MelM

all messages by user

9/11/2015 Topic: What are our Chances for Undeclared Children? MelM	I think the marriage date error is a small one. I would explain it - but not worry about it too much. I'm not an immigration lawyer or consultant - and can't comment on your second question. However what I would suggest is that CIC won't accept your application as is (i.e. without all children listed). For your application to have any chance of success - you will have to provide CIC with a corrected version of the form that lists ALL of the undeclared children and their full details. CIC will also expect all of the undeclared children to obtain medicals. If you are unable to obtain medicals for some or all of the children - you will have to explain this situation to CIC's satisfaction and prove why you cannot obtain medicals for each one of them. Typically the kind of proof accepted by CIC is legal/court documentation proving you have no custody of these children and no visitation rights (i.e. your ex spouse has sole custody) as well as some sort of evidence (e.g. email communication) from your ex spouse showing that you asked for medicals to be completed for the children and your ex spouse refused to cooperate. CIC will not accept the application you originally submitted. There is still quite a bit of work on your part required to have any chance of approval.
9/12/2015 Topic: Landlord requires Home (Content) Insurance MelM	A landlord can insist that a tenant obtain content insurance before renting or subletting and apartment to them. So yes - your landlord can insist that you obtain insurance.
9/16/2015 Topic: Admission to a Canadian University MelM	You will need to start by applying and being accepted by a school in Canada. Once you have been accepted by a school in Canada, you will need to apply for a study permit: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/study/study.asp To be approved for a study permit you will need to show that you have sufficient funds to pay for your studies (you'll need to show a bank balance that covers first year tuition + $10K in living expenses + $2-3K in travel expenses). You will also need to demonstrate that you have strong ties to your home country and are planning on returning there once your studies in Canada have been completed.
9/16/2015 Topic: TRV and ODSP MelM	Your girlfriend can be denied if CIC feels she does not have the funds to support herself while she is here and/or if they feel she has plans to remain in Canada long-term. Since you are on ODSP, it would probably be best if your girlfriend can show that she has the funds herself to pay for her trip and support herself while she is here. She should also show proof that she has ties to her home country and plans to return there after her trip (e.g. proof of employment, proof of property ownership, etc.).
9/17/2015 Topic: Citizen-Son Born Outside of Canada-Sponsor Wife MelM	You need to submit a Proof of Citizenship application for your son and a separate PR application for your wife. If you include your son in your wife's application - CIC will eventually kick it back to you and tell you your son is already a citizen and to apply for him via the correct methods. Each application requires different paperwork and evidence - so they can't be combined.
9/18/2015 Topic: Studying Abroad after Applying for Citizenship MelM	1. No - you cannot postpone your application or put it on hold. The only options are to proceed with the application or withdraw. 2. No. 3. You can't postpone your citizenship test or oath. If you cannot attend, you must notify CIC and they will book you for another time (they will select the date). If you are unable to attend again, your application will most likely be refused. 4. CIC won't care that you are going on an exchange program. However it would be a good idea to notify them that you are out of the country. http://www.canadian-citizenshiptest.com/guides/how-to-change-address-in-canada.aspx 5. No - you'll just have to apply again from scratch and any fees you paid for the original application will be lost.
9/20/2015 Topic: My Children's OHIP has been Cancelled MelM	Assuming your wife was born in Canada - your children are Canadian citizens. What paperwork did you complete to confirm this status? Anything? If not - that's your problem. You need to apply for proof of citizenship for both of your children. Details are here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/proof.asp I don't think you'll be able to restore their OHIP until you complete this process. Proof of citizenship takes several months to process - so submit the application as soon as you can. Unless there's info you haven't provided, right now your children are technically just visitors to Canada. Visitors don't qualify for OHIP. You're lucky they were ever given OHIP at all (they shouldn't have been). What is your status in Canada? I assume you are a permanent resident and that you were sponsored for PR by your wife? If there are any additional details you didn't provide in your original post - it may change the answer.
9/21/2015 Topic: My Children's OHIP has been Cancelled MelM	Just to add - assuming your wife was born in Canada, the record of landing isn't needed to apply for proof of citizenship for both of your children. In fact, ideally you should have submitted this application well before you came to Canada.
9/21/2015 Topic: Permanent Resident - Child born overseas MelM	Unfortunately you cannot sponsor your son since he was excluded from the PR application. I suppose you can try submitting a Humanitarian & Compassionate (H&C) application. However there is no guarantee this will work. I would recommend you start working with a good immigration lawyer since your case is complicated. Good luck.
9/28/2015 Topic: Family Sponsorship MelM	As you've discovered, your son is now too old to be sponsored through the Family Class sponsorship process by you. Unfortunately it doesn't matter why you waited to sponsor your son. If your son wishes to immigrate to Canada, he will have to qualify on his own to immigrate through one of Canada's economic immigration classes (e.g. Federal Skilled Worker, Provincial Nominee, etc.). Typically you need to have at least one year of full time and paid work experience to qualify to immigrate under these programs. It also helps a great deal if you have a permanent job offer from an employer in Canada (supported by an approved LMIA). Hope this helps and good luck.
9/28/2015 Topic: Sponsor Parents -Ontario Works Question MelM	Your Ontario Works history won't be a problem provided you and your huband's income meets the low income cut off for 2014, 2013 and 2012 (assuming you want to apply in 2016). Note that only 5,000 applications are accepted each year and last year the cap was reached in a day and a half. This year the cap will probably be reached even faster. If you are in fact applying next year, you'll need to make sure your application reaches CIC's offices on the first business day of the month.
10/1/2015 Topic: Can my American Nephew go to School in Windsor? MelM	Unfortunately it's unlikely you can sponsor your nephew yourself. However he may in fact be a Canadian citizen by birth. Was his father (your brother) a Canadian citizen when he was born? If so, did his father obtain his citizenship status by being born in Canada or through naturalizing (i.e. immigrating to Canada as a permanent resident and then becoming a citizen). If so, your nephew just needs to apply for proof of citizenship: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/citizenship/proof.asp Once the application is approved (this will take a number of months), he will be regarded as a Canadian and will be able to attend school without paying foreign student fees.
10/2/2015 Topic: Raising Rent on a Lease MelM	Yes - the landlord can raise the rent by giving you 90 days notice. No - he does not have to wait until July. See: http://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/co/reho/yogureho/fash/fash_009.cfm " When a lease is renewed, unless otherwise agreed, other than the new term of the lease, all other conditions of the lease remain the same with the exception of rent increases. The landlord can raise the rent with 90 days written notice."
10/6/2015 Topic: Timeline between Citizenship Test to Oath Sep 2015 MelM	It can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months. Unfortunately it's difficult to guess when you can expect to receive your oath invitation.
10/13/2015 Topic: Renewal of the PR card MelM	Unfortunately the reasons you have listed won't be accepted as Humanitarian and Compassionate reasons for failing to meet the residency requirement. You should wait until you have at least 730 residency days in the past five years before you apply to renew your PR card. If you apply earlier, you should expect to run into issues renewing your card that may result in your PR status being revoked.