Hello!
A few months back I posted the General Immigration forum looking for help in finding the best way to immigrate from the US to British Columbia to be with my SO. Since then (And with lots of help from you guys, thanks!) my SO and I have decided on what we want to do - and for the most part how we want to do it - with our own "dream" timeline. Now, I am wondering if our timeline is realistic and if our application stuff can/will be valid.
We decided to get married and apply for Outland Spousal Sponsorship.
Currently, we are "verbally" engaged, looking to be "officially" engaged in October (Although how much more official does the ring make it? Perhaps it is important in the application paper trail?).
Our timeline So Far:
October 2015 - Met and fell in love online and all that good stuff.
Feb 2016: His first visit here
April 2016: My first visit there
July 2016: His second visit here
October 2016 (Booked): My second visit there. "Official" engagement.
We have a few other future visits planned, not booked, as well.
Our Plans:
We are planning a Destination wedding some time in April - June 2017. Having a traditional wedding is a bit of a stretch for us since our extended friends and family will doubtfully travel across the continent for a wedding, and we want to celebrate with everyone, even those who can't afford the time off/plane ticket. Our plan is to have a destination wedding, just us and our parents/siblings, and then have two marriage celebration receptions - one in MA for my friends/family and a second in BC for his friends/family. Of course, our application probably would be sent out shortly after the Wedding and before the receptions.
The plan following the wedding is, shortly after submitting the application, to stay put in America for the remainder of the summer to settle out my accounts since the Outland application process currently can take anywhere form 3-6 months according to these forums, and we website says there's a 14 months processing time currently! (and who knows how long next summer). So yeah, living apart for a few months after the wedding isn't ideal, but this way I can tie off my loose ends here, yard sales, save extra money, finish my lease, etc. without planning a wedding at the same time. Stress reduction is my friend. Regardless if the application is accepted by the time I'm all set here, I will be moving there on a visitor visa probably 2-3 months after the wedding.
My Questions:
1.) We do not have a -lot- of photos. I mean, we have a lot of cute selfies of the two of us during our visits and a lot of photos we send back and forth to each other through the distance. We have no professional photos, other than a planned engagement shoot and the wedding of course. I have read forum posts where people have 40+ pages of photos for proof of relationship... will this be a hindrance to us?
2.) Will having the receptions after the application is sent in be a hindrance? I can include deposits for the halls and stuff like that, but the receptions may be months apart, the one in BC may even be after I'm already living there.
3.) FBI and Medical. I have been hearing/seeing that the FBI clearance can take MONTHS.. to the point where I'm almost tempted to get it out of the way now... but if we send the application in, say, June 2017, will it still even be valid? When is the best time to get that done so everything can go out together when we get our wedding photos and such? Medical I believe is much quicker, correct? And that I know is only valid for 12 months.
4.) I am trying to make the process as easy as possible as early as possible, so I am already getting together things I may need for "proof of relationship" Aside from the listed, what else should be included besides the stuff we haven't attained (Marriage certificate, wedding invites, Wedding receipts, Wedding photos, Joint bank accounts etc.) So far I have:
- Tracking numbers/Amazon/Etsy receipts for all packages sent between the two of us.
- All plane ticket stubbs and itineraries from visits so far.
- All hotel receipts and some event/dinner receipts.
- Receipts for expensive gifts, such as jewelry
- Photocopies of all cards we have given each other and from each other's families Bonus question: Cards were given in person or placed in packages - Envelopes are not postmarked. Should I note that?
- Printed color photocopies of photos we have together so far
- Printed color photocopies of goofy photos we send to each other throughout the day
- Written testimonials from friends/family about the validity of our relationship from their perspective
- Exact timeline of events from visits & the first time we met each other's families and close friends, down to the exact day for each individual person
We also can acquire prior to applying:
- Facebook screen caps from being tagged in the same location & relationship status with friend/Family reactions
- Text conversation logs (Hundreds of pages (Should I include ALL of it?)
- Currently a Skype log dating back from November 2016 with literally nightly calls. Bonus question: Is there a more "official" way to attain the Skype logs other than copy & Pasting it into Microsoft Word? Also, is it best to include the ENTIRE Skype log? I mean, it will be a LOT of pages, it is our main form of communication.
- All of the application paperwork required to be included by both me and my SO we have looked through and have no issues filling out when it is time to submit the entire application package.
5.) Is it easier to just get a Lawyer? ><;
All in all, Am I over-prepared? Under-prepared? Overreacting? I'm just looking to have a smooth move to Canada and any of your own stories, incites & advice you're willing to share is greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!
A few months back I posted the General Immigration forum looking for help in finding the best way to immigrate from the US to British Columbia to be with my SO. Since then (And with lots of help from you guys, thanks!) my SO and I have decided on what we want to do - and for the most part how we want to do it - with our own "dream" timeline. Now, I am wondering if our timeline is realistic and if our application stuff can/will be valid.
We decided to get married and apply for Outland Spousal Sponsorship.
Currently, we are "verbally" engaged, looking to be "officially" engaged in October (Although how much more official does the ring make it? Perhaps it is important in the application paper trail?).
Our timeline So Far:
October 2015 - Met and fell in love online and all that good stuff.
Feb 2016: His first visit here
April 2016: My first visit there
July 2016: His second visit here
October 2016 (Booked): My second visit there. "Official" engagement.
We have a few other future visits planned, not booked, as well.
Our Plans:
We are planning a Destination wedding some time in April - June 2017. Having a traditional wedding is a bit of a stretch for us since our extended friends and family will doubtfully travel across the continent for a wedding, and we want to celebrate with everyone, even those who can't afford the time off/plane ticket. Our plan is to have a destination wedding, just us and our parents/siblings, and then have two marriage celebration receptions - one in MA for my friends/family and a second in BC for his friends/family. Of course, our application probably would be sent out shortly after the Wedding and before the receptions.
The plan following the wedding is, shortly after submitting the application, to stay put in America for the remainder of the summer to settle out my accounts since the Outland application process currently can take anywhere form 3-6 months according to these forums, and we website says there's a 14 months processing time currently! (and who knows how long next summer). So yeah, living apart for a few months after the wedding isn't ideal, but this way I can tie off my loose ends here, yard sales, save extra money, finish my lease, etc. without planning a wedding at the same time. Stress reduction is my friend. Regardless if the application is accepted by the time I'm all set here, I will be moving there on a visitor visa probably 2-3 months after the wedding.
My Questions:
1.) We do not have a -lot- of photos. I mean, we have a lot of cute selfies of the two of us during our visits and a lot of photos we send back and forth to each other through the distance. We have no professional photos, other than a planned engagement shoot and the wedding of course. I have read forum posts where people have 40+ pages of photos for proof of relationship... will this be a hindrance to us?
2.) Will having the receptions after the application is sent in be a hindrance? I can include deposits for the halls and stuff like that, but the receptions may be months apart, the one in BC may even be after I'm already living there.
3.) FBI and Medical. I have been hearing/seeing that the FBI clearance can take MONTHS.. to the point where I'm almost tempted to get it out of the way now... but if we send the application in, say, June 2017, will it still even be valid? When is the best time to get that done so everything can go out together when we get our wedding photos and such? Medical I believe is much quicker, correct? And that I know is only valid for 12 months.
4.) I am trying to make the process as easy as possible as early as possible, so I am already getting together things I may need for "proof of relationship" Aside from the listed, what else should be included besides the stuff we haven't attained (Marriage certificate, wedding invites, Wedding receipts, Wedding photos, Joint bank accounts etc.) So far I have:
- Tracking numbers/Amazon/Etsy receipts for all packages sent between the two of us.
- All plane ticket stubbs and itineraries from visits so far.
- All hotel receipts and some event/dinner receipts.
- Receipts for expensive gifts, such as jewelry
- Photocopies of all cards we have given each other and from each other's families Bonus question: Cards were given in person or placed in packages - Envelopes are not postmarked. Should I note that?
- Printed color photocopies of photos we have together so far
- Printed color photocopies of goofy photos we send to each other throughout the day
- Written testimonials from friends/family about the validity of our relationship from their perspective
- Exact timeline of events from visits & the first time we met each other's families and close friends, down to the exact day for each individual person
We also can acquire prior to applying:
- Facebook screen caps from being tagged in the same location & relationship status with friend/Family reactions
- Text conversation logs (Hundreds of pages (Should I include ALL of it?)
- Currently a Skype log dating back from November 2016 with literally nightly calls. Bonus question: Is there a more "official" way to attain the Skype logs other than copy & Pasting it into Microsoft Word? Also, is it best to include the ENTIRE Skype log? I mean, it will be a LOT of pages, it is our main form of communication.
- All of the application paperwork required to be included by both me and my SO we have looked through and have no issues filling out when it is time to submit the entire application package.
5.) Is it easier to just get a Lawyer? ><;
All in all, Am I over-prepared? Under-prepared? Overreacting? I'm just looking to have a smooth move to Canada and any of your own stories, incites & advice you're willing to share is greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!
