please help, mail from VO

[Remrov]

This is the email I received from my VO today:

Dear Ms,
This refers to your application for permanent residence in Canada.
We require the following documentation in order to continue the process of your application.
- Statutory declaration of common law relationship jointly signed by your sponsor and yourself
- Your current lease/rental agreement
- Proof of joint bankaccount or joint utility bills with your sponsor

We lived in the Netherlands together for 1.7 years until (26 june 2012). My boyfriend (sponsor) lives in Montreal, I live in the Netherland nows. We did sign a lease for an appartment in Montreal together but I still officially live in the Netherlands (applies outland). We don’t have any of the documents they ask for.
Please help. What do I do?

 

[Sweden]

This is the email I received from my VO today:

Dear Ms,
This refers to your application for permanent residence in Canada.
We require the following documentation in order to continue the process of your application.
- Statutory declaration of common law relationship jointly signed by your sponsor and yourself
- Your current lease/rental agreement
- Proof of joint bankaccount or joint utility bills with your sponsor

We lived in the Netherlands together for 1.7 years until (26 june 2012). My boyfriend (sponsor) lives in Montreal, I live in the Netherland nows. We did sign a lease for an appartment in Montreal together but I still officially live in the Netherlands (applies outland). We don't have any of the documents they ask for.
Please help. What do I do?

Hey Remrov,

first - don't panic! what they want is to see that you are common-law, and that you are in a serious relationship.
So - I would advise to explain your situation: When you lived together in the Netherlands (and include proofs of that if you have - either a lease, or mail to his name and your name in the NEtherlands etc), when he went back to Montreal, and when you went to visit him. If I remember correctly, you just spent quite a lot of time in Montreal with him - so explain that, include the plane tickets, and any information that you may have ( scan of your stamp visa for Montreal airport for example). Explain that you are still in a relationship but you have not moved to Canada and won't be able to do so until you have your PR. Explain that you are spending as much time as possible together (your recent visit is the best example), and include proofs that you communicate on a daily basis - skype chats, email, etc.

Also get the lease from Canada - it will show that you are serious about your relationship, that everything is ready for you. That you don't live in Canada now, but everything is ready for you to go there, and your name already on the lease.

Get the statutory declaration of common-law signed from your boyfriend and send it together. If you have any other proofs ( if you went shopping together in Montreal for common household stuff etc, then add that too).

Proof of joint bank account - if you don't have it, explain why: if you are on a tourist visa in Canada it might have been difficult to put you on his bank account. Explain that you filed your application as soon as he returned to Canada so you had been common-law for at least 12 months interrupted, and now that you are not living together anymore, but it's a temporary thing and you intend to move to Canada with him as soon as PR is granted.

The VO is looking for proofs that you are a couple and you still are together - so give them all the proofs... they are giving you a chance to answer their questions.

I can not find the link, but I remember on this forum people in a similar case : having lived together for more than a year, but one had to go back to Canada and the other one was waiting to get the PR - and they got it after explaining their situation.

Good luck,
Sweden

 

[Remrov]

Thank you so much Sweden! That makes me feel better
I saw our whole future already falling apart.

I did visit my boyfriend from september 17th to November 11th. So I'll send the boarding passes of that. And I'll send the lease of our Montreal appartment also and as many other things I can find.

Many thanks again!!!!!

 

[Remrov]

By the way...

Do they want me to send the documents by email or snailmail?

 

[Rob_TO]

This is the email I received from my VO today:

Dear Ms,
This refers to your application for permanent residence in Canada.
We require the following documentation in order to continue the process of your application.
- Statutory declaration of common law relationship jointly signed by your sponsor and yourself
- Your current lease/rental agreement
- Proof of joint bankaccount or joint utility bills with your sponsor

We lived in the Netherlands together for 1.7 years until (26 june 2012). My boyfriend (sponsor) lives in Montreal, I live in the Netherland nows. We did sign a lease for an appartment in Montreal together but I still officially live in the Netherlands (applies outland). We don't have any of the documents they ask for.
Please help. What do I do?

Here is how we did our common-law app in these cases:

Stat Declaration of Common-law - This was never included in our app, as it's not a requirement in the checklist. However if needed, it's easy to download the declaration of common law from the CIC site.

Lease agreement - We never shared an agreement together. I already had a mortgage when i was single, and its not possible to simply add someone into a mortgage without going through the whole approval process again. I simply explained this in a letter. You mention you actually did have a shared lease agreement in Montreal... if you no longer have it, is there no way to get a copy of that lease agreement now from the landlord?

Joint bills - Did you specifically state somewhere in your app that you had a joint bank account or utilities? We never shared any bank acct or utility bills. The only shared account was a credit card applied for and registered in my name, but my common-law spouse was a second card holder under this account. So on the bill, it showed both our names.

We also submitted a cell phone bill and Canada Revenue mail addressed to my spouse, at our shared address. So any mail addressed to both you and your common-law spouse you could submit that shows your shared address during that time in the Netherlands would help.

Other proof of common-law was that she was listed under my work benefits as my spouse, and my life insurance has her as sole beneficiary.

So i'm not sure why your VO is specifically asking for shared bank/utility accounts, as on their own these things are not absolutely required. I would submit any "joint" proof you can. Life insurance is an easy one to set up and is great proof of a real relationship.

 

[Remrov]

In June we signed a lease of an appartment in Montreal together. My boyfriend lives there now. I live in the Netherlands (because I don't have my residence status yet) but I will send this lease, it will be a good one.

The appartment where we lived in the Netherlands (I still live there) is and always was on my name. This was becuase of a special reason. I have autism and this appartment was rented by a autism organisation. Because I was the one enlisted by that autism organisation, the appartment was only on my name as well.

I did find the linbk to that form, the statutory declaration, so I can fill that out and my boyfriend and me can sign and send it.

In the Netherlands we never had joined bankaccounts either. All the bills were paid from our separate bankaccounts. We did send proof of this with our original application, as well as letter from family, envelopes send to our adress with both our names on it, a proof from municipality that we lived at same adress etc.

 

[Sweden]

By the way...

Do they want me to send the documents by email or snailmail?

They probably gave you an address and the name of an officer ? I would say to submit by snail mail (but registered of course), especially because it's best to get the commonlaw declaration as an original ( meaning your boyfriend prints it, signs, sends it to you, you sign, etc. ), so just put together all the proofs you have, include a letter explaining what they are and what is your current situation, and send everything to the VO as soon as possible. (but don't rush - you probably have a deadline of 45 days or something like this, indicated in the email).

Just see it as "positive" : they think you are common law and have a valid application but they want to confirm your case, and give you the opportunity to explain where you are. You are not living together, but the definition of common law is "you have been living together in a conjugal relationship for at least one year in a continuous 12-month period that was not interrupted" so you qualify. Of course, it would be easier to prove if you were still in that case, but I'm sure you can convince the VO ( some of the proofs mentioned by Rob_TO are also a good thing to add). It's tricky because you have been away, but he left back to Canada end of June and you went to visit him for 3 weeks - and just return. In addition, you have the lease in Montreal where your name is (very strong proof that you are still together!).

If you want, and because they have sent you an email ( unless it says specifically "do not answer to that email"), once you have put the package together, and sent it by post, you could answer to the email attaching the scan of the post receipt, and letting them know that you are sending additional proofs to your file, sent on DD.MM.YY etc).

Good luck - fingers crossed for you!
Sweden

 

[Remrov]

Thank you for your help!!!!

We didn't recieve a name, it says only: embassy of Canada. And no adress either. They do have a website. Maybe I'll find the adress there.

 

[Rob_TO]

Thank you for your help!!!!

We didn't recieve a name, it says only: embassy of Canada. And no adress either. They do have a website. Maybe I'll find the adress there.

If your applying outland for Netherlands, your visa office is most likely Vienna.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/offices/apply-where.asp
http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/austria-autriche/visas/contact-contactez.aspx?lang=eng&view=d

Best to confirm though. I'm sure the office location appears somewhere on some mail or email you've gotten!

 

[Sweden]

Thank you for your help!!!!

We didn't recieve a name, it says only: embassy of Canada. And no adress either. They do have a website. Maybe I'll find the adress there.

From the Vienna thread, it seems that there is quite a few people (3 or 4) that got today a mail about missing documents - strange that everybody got it at the same time! maybe they have some kind of routine...
In any case - nothing to be alarmed off for now, just prepared everything you have, and the VO will review it.
Good luck!
Sweden

 

[Remrov]

Sweden, thank you!! Probably indeed a routine then.
Rob_TO, I know that my VO is Vienna, but I don't know which adress they have. But I'll find that on their website probably.

Thanks everybody!!!!

 

[Liz1986]

Hi!
I also received a letter like that from my VO on October 17, asking for additional Proof of my relationship and police certificate. I have inland application and i am legally married to my sponsor. I mailed all the docs on November 06. Here is what they requested, however i also sent more proof that i thought could help me in my case.
In order to continue processing your application in Canada, further info is requested. Provide details of your relationship with your spouse and how it developed. If you were lliving apart, how did you maintain your relationship? if your marriage was arranged, who arranged it, when and where? Was there a reception after your wedding? did you go on a honeymoon? include any details that are relevant to establish you have a genuine relationship..Acceptable documents includes: evidence of joint bank accounts, trust, credit union or charge card accounts, jointly signed residential lease, mortgage or purchase agreement, insurance and beneficiary forms. Other supporting documents such as statutory declarations of individuals with personal knowledge that your relationship is genuine and continuing may be considered.
In addition they asked me for a police certificate for my country of origin which i sent in the original application, but i just applied for new one and sent it again. also, i was in a previous common-law relationship and i had a son from that relationship.they asked for copy of divorce..i sent a declaration of severance of common-law and explained that i was not married to my ex-partner.

For proof of relationship here is all i sent:
-Jointly signed residential lease, letter of joint bank accounts, letters of support from friends, Also wrote a letter explaining details of my relationship and how it developed signed by me and my husband, proof of financial support from my husband like: receipts of purchase of clothes, gifts,groceries, movie tickets,more pictures, text messages, facebook conversations and phone calls history from the date that i submited the application to november 2012. And we applied for the life insurance, so i will send them copy of the policy when i get it in the mail. I sent them everything i had. Do yu think will be enough proof? or they will ask for more evidence?

I am really unpacient now..my application is from may 10 2012 and i was soppose to have 1st stage approval by now; but as they requested additonal info i don´t now how long that will delay the process? does this means that they approve us in principal already? and they just needed to see more evidence of our relationship... I really need to know that we are aproved and get at least my work permit so we can move on with our lives.. if someone could help me answering this questions i will appreciate it..!! Hope this was helpfull!

In my Ecas it shows now: We received your application for permanent residence on May 10, 2012
We started processing your application on sept 05
Medical exams received.

 

[missmymexi]

Just a quick question about the common law declaration, I was under the assumption that this had to be done in the presence of a notary together, in other words, you need to be at the same place to do it. We also would like to do this document but my fiance is living abroad, we were waiting until I was able to visit to do it but if we can do it being apart this would be great !

 

[gsize]

with Immigration....you must give them everything you can and when you think its enough....give them more. Yes, its overkill, but it will strengthen your case.

 

[Rob_TO]

Just a quick question about the common law declaration, I was under the assumption that this had to be done in the presence of a notary together, in other words, you need to be at the same place to do it. We also would like to do this document but my fiance is living abroad, we were waiting until I was able to visit to do it but if we can do it being apart this would be great !

Remember in general this document is not needed as part of a common-law application (i never included it in my common-law app). The actual paper itself doesn't really prove anything, as basically any 2 people can get a notary to witness them signing a piece of paper. The main substance is in the proof behind the document, which involves establishing you really lived together for at least 1 year, you have a genuine ongoing marriage-like relationship, have joint lease, mortgage, credit card, bank or utility accounts, have life insurance in each others names, named as beneficiary in employment benefits etc etc.

So if its easy to do and both partners can sign together and get a notary stamp on it... then go for it as it can't do anything but help the application.

But if partners are separated by a long distance and it would cause a long delay in submitting the app just for a form that is not even required to begin with... IMO at least, it's better to not include it. As long as the actual proof of common-law is all there.