Thread for Acrra Ghana applicants

[Francodel]

AVO applicants.

I have read lots about the frustrating wait we all are going thru and how unbearable it is or becoming.
But i will like to view this whole thing from a different perspective.

1- if we all are still within the time line provided for AVO then i don't think its fair to accuse AVO of any lag. I am not disregarding the possibility of them taking things for granted, but i am sure timelines were concluded at for this kind of reasons. Comparing whats going on with other VOs of different timeline is not a good way to judge -In my opinion.

2. We can all rant about how frustrating the wait is till eternity come, without making any effort to reach out to an appropriate authority, nothing is gonna change. if we all collectively think, for sure, that there is a problem with AVO, then we can find out who or which office to direct this concern, and we send out emails. then we can be assured of a possible change.

3. i have heard on multiple occasions that when VOs are not asking you for anything or making any request, there is a greater possibility that there isn't anything to worry about - usually its a good thing. It may not be the same for every one, and i am sure we would prefer VOs to bother us just for us to be sure they are working on our files. Just saying, not bothering us doesn't mean they are not working on our files. VOs are organized, functional offices and i choose to disagree that there would be files that are left behind unattended to.

Finally, raising expectations and getting disappointed is no VOs fault.


Just my thoughts.

I have been following this forum for almost a year now and I have learnt alot from people sharing meaningful information but your comments above is the most shocking I have read thus far that I had to register to respond. You actually just made a case for arrant nonsense?!!! Which other Country(US,Aussie,UK) takes 14 months to reunite familes? On top of that they wouldn't issued visas to travel to Canada yet Syrian refugees can be processed at the speed of light. This clearly shows that it is possible to reunite families faster than 14months. How on earth should it take 14months to process 1 file? That shows lack of accountability or maybe no one cares. Do you know how many homes have been destroyed because of the wait? I submitted since January for my wife and not a word from Accra; my wife's family think I am not doing enough to bring her here because other couples who got married after us have had their spouse join them in UK and US (took 3months or less). I am in total support of brining this to the attention of the world so that those after us don't go through this hell. Something somewhere or some place need to change in the process,if they do not know what it is they should hire the right professionals to redesign their current process because it is not reuniting families!

 

[mamadmama]

Hello everyone,
Below is the response l received from AVO this morning regarding my hubby application.

Please be advised that your application is currently in queue for review; however an exact schedule is not available at this time. As you know, all applications are reviewed in the order in which they were received.

Note:my application was filed February 2015.

 

[Turbo2000]

Good day everyone,

Let's be aware that everything that has a beginning will certainly come to an end. I know the waiting is stressful, but there is always a silver lining with every cloud. Let's stay hopeful.
That's said, while the processing time is unnecessarily long for Family sponsorship across the various VOs, there are things we can always do to limit the duration.
Making sure we send the complete application, with all the necessary documentation and proofs the first time is very important. When the VOs start asking for extra documents, it doesn't only slow down the process for that individual, but it trickles down to affect everybody in the long run.
If possible, submit your medicals and all fees upfront...this will reduce processing time considerably. No need to do your medical now, and send your application in 3 months for instance...re-medical will equally slow you down.
If you have any red flag, add extra sheets with explanation. For instance, if you or your partner had a child from a previous relationship, and was never married to the parent, make sure you explain this. Otherwise, the immigration officer will be expecting to see a divorce certificate.
It's true not all applications are the same, but by addressing certain concerns before hand, many potential red flags will be averted.
It's very important to have faith in the almighty God, but let's do it rightly before seeking divine intervention.

Good luck to everyone !

 

[neelzar]

Good day everyone,

Let's be aware that everything that has a beginning will certainly come to an end. I know the waiting is stressful, but there is always a silver lining with every cloud. Let's stay hopeful.
That's said, while the processing time is unnecessarily long for Family sponsorship across the various VOs, there are things we can always do to limit the duration.
Making sure we send the complete application, with all the necessary documentation and proofs the first time is very important. When the VOs start asking for extra documents, it doesn't only slow down the process for that individual, but it trickles down to affect everybody in the long run.
If possible, submit your medicals and all fees upfront...this will reduce processing time considerably. No need to do your medical now, and send your application in 3 months for instance...re-medical will equally slow you down.
If you have any red flag, add extra sheets with explanation. For instance, if you or your partner had a child from a previous relationship, and was never married to the parent, make sure you explain this. Otherwise, the immigration officer will be expecting to see a divorce certificate.
It's true not all applications are the same, but by addressing certain concerns before hand, many potential red flags will be averted.
It's very important to have faith in the almighty God, but let's do it rightly before seeking divine intervention.

Good luck to everyone !

Hi Turbo2000

Wonderful timeline you got there. Congratulations!!! Your PPR was issued in 7 months, It is really surprising that your visa office is in West Africa and here we are saying that there is a problem with West African visa offices. Last time I checked, Senegal was in West Africa.

I am really wondering what is wrong with Accra visa office. I applied in May just like you Turbo2000. You can imagine how I feel when I know that some Accra January applicants have not received their PPR, not to talk of me that applied in four months later.

One of Mr Justin Trudeau's goals is REUNITING FAMILIES. I am pretty sure he will be very disappointed to learn that one of the visa offices is going against his agenda..... Just my thoughts.

As for the processing times, Dakar (Senegal) visa office is 19 months, while Accra is 14 months. Therefore Accra should be 5 months ahead of Dakar, according to my calculations, but it looks like it's the other way round.

ACCRA VISA OFFICE....PLEASE EXPLAIN TO US WHY YOU ARE KEEPING OUR FAMILIES APART!!!!

 

[glow2shine]

Hello everyone,
Below is the response l received from AVO this morning regarding my hubby application.

Please be advised that your application is currently in queue for review; however an exact schedule is not available at this time. As you know, all applications are reviewed in the order in which they were received.

Note:my application was filed February 2015.

@ mamadmama, I received similar update from AVO about 6 weeks ago……… “Your application is in process. No further action is required by you at this time. We thank you for your patience and for keeping your correspondence to a minimum”.
This is my believe, whether now or later, I know that AVO will have to make a decision on our applications at point in time. I pray for the grace to bear and deal with the pain, stress and the anxiety of this prolonged processing time. 2016 will bring The Good News we all have been waiting for. It is well.

 

[Turbo2000]

Thank you Neelzar,
I submitted a complete application with all supporting docs and fees. The first correspondence I had with Dakar VO was PPR.
But I must admit I didn't expect such rapidity...mentally I was prepared for a 1 year duration. This made me less worried while waiting.
You will get there too. Good luck !

+1 for you.

Hi Turbo2000

Wonderful timeline you got there. Congratulations!!! Your PPR was issued in 7 months, It is really surprising that your visa office is in West Africa and here we are saying that there is a problem with West African visa offices. Last time I checked, Senegal was in West Africa.

I am really wondering what is wrong with Accra visa office. I applied in May just like you Turbo2000. You can imagine how I feel when I know that some Accra January applicants have not received their PPR, not to talk of me that applied in four months later.

One of Mr Justin Trudeau's goals is REUNITING FAMILIES. I am pretty sure he will be very disappointed to learn that one of the visa offices is going against his agenda..... Just my thoughts.

As for the processing times, Dakar (Senegal) visa office is 19 months, while Accra is 14 months. Therefore Accra should be 5 months ahead of Dakar, according to my calculations, but it looks like it's the other way round.

ACCRA VISA OFFICE....PLEASE EXPLAIN TO US WHY YOU ARE KEEPING OUR FAMILIES APART!!!!

 

[Tolexmi]

I have been following this forum for almost a year now and I have learnt alot from people sharing meaningful information but your comments above is the most shocking I have read thus far that I had to register to respond. You actually just made a case for arrant nonsense?!!! Which other Country(US,Aussie,UK) takes 14 months to reunite familes? On top of that they wouldn't issued visas to travel to Canada yet Syrian refugees can be processed at the speed of light. This clearly shows that it is possible to reunite families faster than 14months. How on earth should it take 14months to process 1 file? That shows lack of accountability or maybe no one cares. Do you know how many homes have been destroyed because of the wait? I submitted since January for my wife and not a word from Accra; my wife's family think I am not doing enough to bring her here because other couples who got married after us have had their spouse join them in UK and US (took 3months or less). I am in total support of bringing this to the attention of the world so that those after us don't go through this hell. Something somewhere or some place need to change in the process,if they do not know what it is they should hire the right professionals to redesign their current process because it is not reuniting families!

oh oh, i am sorry my friend,whatever i said may have come across wrongly or probably just doesnt make sense, and ;D Maybe i over supported the VOs : my overall take on this issue is that our complains here wont change anything until collectively we do something.

. so seriously guys, if we think bringin this to the attention of the world is the way to go , then let's get it started..

 

[Tolexmi]

AVO is currently unnecessarily taking longer than before. I took some time to go thru this whole thread from the very beginning. and from most apps, the average timeline was between 6 to 8 or 9 months. That's from app filed to ppr or visa issues.

But now, seems AVO is either having a huge backlog or just taking their time for no reason. The only positive i have taken from going thru this thread is, whatever starts will definitely have an end. It may seem so long but it will surely come to a fruitful end.

So everyone , hang on, endure the wait, pray well and hope for the best.... ;D

 

[BENESTEL]

Hello,

This is the same response I received last month when I sent an inquiry to follow up on our application.
I applied in March 2015 -
So it appears if someone wants their spouse here before December 2016, next month is the deadline.

As Gail Vaz-Oxlade would say: It is RIDONCULOUS.

This is teh result of the latest Inspection of the Canada High Commission in Accra. This would almost explain the slowness... There are less than 20 people looking at everyone's application coming to that office from Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Ghana, Togo. -- Enjoy the read and try not to throw anything at the wall or yell...

http://www.international.gc.ca/department-ministere/inspection/2012/accra.aspx?lang=eng

Hello everyone,
Below is the response l received from AVO this morning regarding my hubby application.

Please be advised that your application is currently in queue for review; however an exact schedule is not available at this time. As you know, all applications are reviewed in the order in which they were received.

Note:my application was filed February 2015.

 

[mamadmama]

This was 3yrs ago ,is of no use to me.My hope is in the Lord and Mercy is working for me and to those who believe.

 

[BENESTEL]

I believe it was 3 years ago and you are fully right. But I am also very certain, that it was built on something... and this lead to something... if you gonna go stand in front of the authorities and demand a change, I would assume you wouldn't go empty handed. Even in the corporate world, audits for change are built on prior audits for the sake of comparison. As far as I am concerned it is a starting point. At least i can say Mr Trudeau, based on this result only 3 years ago, what was done in 2015? No matter how bad I want good news, i like to have informed arguments if I am gonna go demand a change. #justsaying
I hope you have good news soon and a Merry Christmas.

This was 3yrs ago ,is of no use to me.My hope is in the Lord and Mercy is working for me and to those who believe.

 

[Tolexmi]

I believe it was 3 years ago and you are fully right. But I am also very certain, that it was built on something... and this lead to something... if you gonna go stand in front of the authorities and demand a change, I would assume you wouldn't go empty handed. Even in the corporate world, audits for change are built on prior audits for the sake of comparison. As far as I am concerned it is a starting point. At least i can say Mr Trudeau, based on this result only 3 years ago, what was done in 2015? No matter how bad I want good news, i like to have informed arguments if I am gonna go demand a change. #justsaying
I hope you have good news soon and a Merry Christmas.

Good job BENESTEL for d research and providing the info. The previous inspection was 2005 and the last one 2012- after seven years. Am thinking , if there isn't any cogent cause, the next inspection wont probably happen until 2019. #justsaying.


Personally , myself and my spouse , we both put our minds at 14 months, and come to think of it , by January , its just gonna b 10 months more. Now if anything happens before the expiry of 14 months, then thats awesome.

Like i said previously, we should just hang in there, pray well and hope for the best. ;D

 

[BENESTEL]

Thanks! I believe we can hang in there and also do something for those coming after us. If everyone starts bombarding these folks with complaints, we may not need to wait till 2019... who knows? All it takes is one outrageous reaction and things get going from their end. After all, if we did something today and next week news comes through that AVO processes were changed and they must respond within 4 months for example... won't you dance? ;D It would have definitely done something for you. But anyways don't mind me jare... Let's wait and see where this takes us. I wish you a speedy response to you and your spouse! Merry Christmas!

Good job BENESTEL for d research and providing the info. The previous inspection was 2005 and the last one 2012- after seven years. Am thinking , if there isn't any cogent cause, the next inspection wont probably happen until 2019. #justsaying.


Personally , myself and my spouse , we both put our minds at 14 months, and come to think of it , by January , its just gonna b 10 months more. Now if anything happens before the expiry of 14 months, then thats awesome.

Like i said previously, we should just hang in there, pray well and hope for the best. ;D

 

[Destinyba]

Good job to all those who are being proactive. I want change for everyone that is why when I send letters out to the immigration minister and Mr Trudeau. I use specific examples and i make sure i have all my ducks in order. February will be exactly 12 months for me. I am patiently waiting, and in serious prayer.. but at the same time I want to encourage everyone to send those letters.

 

[pokie]

I have been following this forum for almost a year now and I have learnt alot from people sharing meaningful information but your comments above is the most shocking I have read thus far that I had to register to respond. You actually just made a case for arrant nonsense?!!! Which other Country(US,Aussie,UK) takes 14 months to reunite familes? On top of that they wouldn't issued visas to travel to Canada yet Syrian refugees can be processed at the speed of light. This clearly shows that it is possible to reunite families faster than 14months. How on earth should it take 14months to process 1 file? That shows lack of accountability or maybe no one cares. Do you know how many homes have been destroyed because of the wait? I submitted since January for my wife and not a word from Accra; my wife's family think I am not doing enough to bring her here because other couples who got married after us have had their spouse join them in UK and US (took 3months or less). I am in total support of brining this to the attention of the world so that those after us don't go through this hell. Something somewhere or some place need to change in the process,if they do not know what it is they should hire the right professionals to redesign their current process because it is not reuniting families!

Thank you Francodel, very well written!!