Pheisharah:
Long post alert!!!

So my canny journey started in 2016, please see my TL below.

First app: SOWP

Applied, August 2016 and refused September 2016 (paper)

Husband NOC: C

Second app: visit

Applied October 2016 and refused November 2016 (paper)

NOC was updated from C to B (2017 Long story of preparation)

Third app: SOWP

Applied January 19, 2018 and Refused February 24, 2018. (Paper)

Fourth app: SOWP

This application came with a lot of surprises.

Online route
Applied: February 26, 2018
Biometrics: February 28
Upfront medical updated: March 29
Approval and ppt request: October 19 (33weeks)
Ppt submitted: October 22 (the rest is history).

After using the whole of my family's documents in my previous apps, I decided to go for @dodoyemi's formula (by just using the required docs stated online), the statement we submitted was 3 months old and I uploaded it in a very scattered manner. When we started getting worried, I submitted CSE and got a response from Lagos embassy, hubby called IRCC and he was informed that the app was in London (U.K), I sent them a mail and was told "under active review". After 4 weeks hubby sent a mail to London but Lagos replied, my last mail to London two weeks later was very long and should have pushed any angry VO to make a decision because at that point i gave up hope and just wanted them to either reject or approve the app but i got the same one lined response. Eitherways, I was already preparing for EE.

Hubby submitted our EE profile on October 16, we were hoping to meet the October 17 draw, only for CIC to have conducted the draw on the 15th and the approval message came to my profile on October 19. Are this preparations tied? (I'm still trying to phantom the psychology of IRCC). Plus hubby's work permit expires January (due to passport expiry) and CIC issued me a 2 months visa till January (I'm still surprised).

A lot of intertwined stories but as always God is still on the throne....@dodoyemi thank you for everything.

My one penny to spouses of workers on here is that;

1.) IRCC's priorities are students and PR applicants (if I had known this, I won't be in this country by now instead of all d shakers I gave)

2.) Please start something towards EE, a step in the right direction is better than no step.

Abeg I they go pack my bag before dem change their mind.

Taink you and all the best to everyone.

Kindly explain more on EE, do one have to apply for it while SOWP is on process?

My husband is a Canadian Citizen working in Canada, can I use the EE/SOWP root as well?

You guys should kindly come back to this thread

Good Morning house! Please I would like to know how you can ask for your GCMs note and if it possible to ask for two different GCMs note assuming you have been refused twice? Thanks for your prompt response.

A friend of my husband got approval for her spouse sowp and visas for her kids on Friday, a month after application with medicals passed a day before; Nairobi, Kenya office...
My application is with London visa office and no update, it is well!

RedDoor:



Kindly explain more on EE, do one have to apply for it while SOWP is on process?

My husband is a Canadian Citizen working in Canada, can I use the EE/SOWP root as well?

Hi, family sponsorship is your way........You do not qualify for EE or SOWP. Be patient God answers.

RedDoor:

My husband is a Canadian Citizen and reside in Quebec. Please does Quebec stay longer than other province before approving PR / visa??

Please someone with info about this question should kindly answer me.
Cheers.

My hubby is a Canadian citizen and is sponsoring me now. My last stage was medicals which I passed on June 4th. Since then nothing yet. I'm hopeful that I will get PPR this week.

Pheisharah:


Hi, family sponsorship is your way........You do not qualify for EE or SOWP. Be patient God answers.

Family sponsorship is my way but I also paid fee for open work permit together with permanent residence. Hubby paid for the two for me.

Please was it an online application or paper route?

bigmove:
A friend of my husband got approval for her spouse sowp and visas for her kids on Friday, a month after application with medicals passed a day before; Nairobi, Kenya office...
My application is with London visa office and no update, it is well!

jaybaby2017:

Please was it an online application or paper route?

online application

nkay1888:


My hubby is a Canadian citizen and is sponsoring me now. My last stage was medicals which I passed on June 4th. Since then nothing yet. I'm hopeful that I will get PPR this week.

You are lucky your app processing time is almost over.

It will end in praise.

CIC didn't process mine at all just realized last week when my husband went to their office. My app was submitted second week of December.


They said he didn't include his job details.

bigmove:
A friend of my husband got approval for her spouse sowp and visas for her kids on Friday, a month after application with medicals passed a day before; Nairobi, Kenya office...
My application is with London visa office and no update, it is well!

If I have a friend or relative in Kenya I would have gone and submit mine from there. Anything that will reduce my PPR processing time is a welcome development

RedDoor:



You are lucky your app processing time is almost over.

It will end in praise.

CIC didn't process mine at all just realized last week when my husband went to their office. My app was submitted second week of December.


They said he didn't include his job details.

add me on what'sapp if you can, I would like to chat you up. 08059895488

Amen o. I can't wait. Last week Tuesday a friend having her AOR as December 8th was sent PPR. So I was thinking by now that I should have received mine since December 20 ain't far of. The waiting is torture. Will add you.

nkay1888:


Family sponsorship is my way but I also paid fee for open work permit together with permanent residence. Hubby paid for the two for me.

When did you put in your application ?

Seems you guys are now turning this SOWp thread to Family sponsor thread and EE. I believe there are threads that covers those aspects. Please let's make this thread strictly for Spousal open work permit so we don't lose it purpose.

Any news from London office yet? Anyone

Bab5:
As I have said in other answers, I am a retired visa officer (Canadian overseas immigration officer). I worked for CIC and its predecessors for many years.

Concerning “slow”, are you speaking of applications for visitor visas or applications to immigrate to Canada? Processing procedures and processing times are very different depending on what sort of visa you are applying for.

Visa applicants so often seem to imagine that CIC and its programming must be the most important activity conducted by the Government of Canada. It’s not even close. Historically immigration and visas have been much lower priorities than other Government of Canada activity, such as Employment Insurance, National Defence, international trade relations, income tax collection, implementing bilingualism legislation, regulating and ensuring the safety of the transportation industry, the pharmaceutical industry etc. After all, immigration applicants don’t vote.

The Government of Canada has a central budgetary agency called the Treasury Board. Each fiscal year every Government of Canada department must apply to the Treasury Board for its funding. The Treasury Board is responsible for advising the Prime Minister and the federal Cabinet about priorities for disbursing Government of Canada funds. The Government of Canada never has anything near the funds to resource every department to the hilt. There is no real reason to identify CIC as a special priority to receive large amounts of funding and resources.

The funds paid by visa applicants do not go into a special CIC account. Those fees are paid to the Receiver General for Canada. The Receiver General ‘s accounts are a central repository for all sorts of fees paid to the Government of Canada. It is mostly there where the Treasury Board finds the funds it will disburse.

I would almost suggest that the revenue producing parts of CIC ( principally the skilled worker program) be spun off into what in Canada we call a “Crown Corporation”.

Wikipedia describes what a Crown Corporation is:


Essentially a crown corporation acts in some ways like a private company but is owned by the Canadian federal or a provincial government. They operate “at arms length” from the federal or provincial bureaucracy and make most of their own business judgements. Unlike federal departments they collect and allocate their own revenues. Were a crown corporation operating the federal skilled worker selection program you might see much more efficient and timely operations.

The visa application program operated by CIC happens in the context of a rather rigid, hierarchical bureaucracy. Also, since the 1960’s a strong objective of Canada’s immigration selection legislation has been to limit the discretion of visa officers in order to reduce subjectivity and restrict the ability of visa officers to make such subjective and racist decisions. Even in the case of visitor visa applications visa officers are expected to note up the reasons for their decisions in the GCMS electronic visa processing system. This takes time, sometimes a lot of it.

I should note that, due to technical and infrastructural limitations GCMS sometimes stops and does not work. (Perhaps it could work better if more resources were devoted to operating it but there aren’t such resources.) In a situation like that the visa officer has no alternative but to stop work and look helplessly at their computer screen.

When I became a visa officer in 1978 the immigration program was to a large extent beyond the Canadian public eye. There was little attention in the Canadian media to visa matters. The immigration bar (those lawyers who specialize in immigration matters) was small and not always very professional. Now things are very different. In particular litigation is now very common. A visa officer’s notes have to be adequate enough to withstand review by the Federal Court. A visa officer would want to think very carefully and take extra time with their notes, and never have them become a source of derision by the Canadian media. This type of publicity can easily destroy your career.

I have mentioned in another Answer that, in my opinion, there has been intense pressure to reduce the cost of Canada’s visa operations. One of the results is to take as much as the processing as possible and “dumb it down” so it can be done by lower-paid clerical staff in Canadian processing centres, not more experienced and better paid visa officers. One of the unintended results is a substantial number of processing errors. This increases processing time.

So many applicants do not understand that CIC does not have full control of the visa application process. CIC has to rely heavily on CSIS, the RCMP and CBSA for security and criminal clearances. These federal agencies have many other, more important priorities than visas.

Visa applicants do not always understand that immigration visas are subject to rationing by the annual immigration levels system. CIC has to allocate resources to each visa office according to the contribution that office is expected to make to the annual level. A given visa office is only expected, or allowed, to issue a certain number of immigration visas per year. They are not allowed to issue as many visas as they can. At times they must delay or stop processing certain categories of visas.

I have alluded in the Answer I mention above to problems in the working environment and career system for visa officers. Put yourself in a visa officer’s shoes. How productive would you be?

Martin Levine

Additional Answer

It is September 11, 2017. I received a question about my Answer in the form of a comment. The question was to the effect of why CIC does not provide details about the reasons for refusals when it issues refusal letters to Study Permit applicants. Here was my response:

Study Permit processing is mass processing which has to be done within the couple of months before the start of the Canadian academic year. This doesn't allow for much detail in refusal letters. Nor is it clear in Canadian law that there has to be much. The applicants are meant to be given procedural fairness during the application process but not so much at the end.

The study permit program has had substantial difficulties with fraud and misrepresentation. Above all the applicants have to show that they are credible visitors to Canada, not elicit immigrants. Many can't.

I should point out that refused applicants may find out more about the refusal reasons if they know a citizen or permanent resident of Canada who will submit a Privacy request on their behalf.

This isn't to say that all refusal decisions are adequately documented by the deciding officer. Not infrequently the Federal Court decides that they weren't.

Again, remember that study permits are just one more Government of Canada program. The resources to operate it are limited.

Martin

There is something else that frankly I find a little disturbing in some of the questions I see that relate to immigration to Canada. Many of those comments come from the developing world.

Many of those who ask questions about visas do not seem aware that Canada is essentially land stolen by colonizing European countries. They invaded North America and attacked and brutalized and in some cases attempted to exterminate the indigenous peoples, all of them people of colour. Some of those countries were the same ones that attacked most of what is now the developing world and subjugated, exploited and humiliated the peoples who were there.

Please remember that Canada was established on a terrible historic justice. There is nothing that immigrants can do about it other than be aware and be understanding and supportive of Canadian aboriginal people who are trying to recover what is left of their heritage and their resources. If you do not you are essentially accepting the rationalizations of European colonizers who asserted it was their destiny to rule the developing world.

Thank u so much for the explanation. Like mine I submitted my application on 25th of July and still on process. I was honored and invited to a program that wil come up tomorrow November 9th in canada. But the application still on process going to 4 months now. My bank contacted me and asked me some questioned and I answered perfectly. It was later I was told it was Canada embassy sent mail to bank and confirm it frm me. Can the canada consular can stil approve the visa after the event gone. That is my question. Thank u

Snillous:



Thank u so much for the explanation. Like mine I submitted my application on 25th of July and still on process. I was honored and invited to a program that wil come up tomorrow November 9th in canada. But the application still on process going to 4 months now. My bank contacted me and asked me some questioned and I answered perfectly. It was later I was told it was Canada embassy sent mail to bank and confirm it frm me. Can the canada consular can stil approve the visa after the event gone. That is my question. Thank u

It depends on the Visa Officer handling your application. My mum-in-law applied for a visiting visa to attend my husband's graduation which was Oct 28. She was just issued the visa on Nov 9th and not only that, her visa is valid for 5 years. As long as they have contacted the bank, just hope and pray that you get a positive news soonest.

arrJay:







It depends on the Visa Officer handling your application. My mum-in-law applied for a visiting visa to attend my husband's graduation which was Oct 28. She was just issued the visa on Nov 9th and not only that, her visa is valid for 5 years. As long as they have contacted the bank, just hope and pray that you get a positive news soonest.

God bless u ma, my application was online application. Meanwhile the passport I used then has less than 6 months validity but I have renew another one which is with me. With the hope if am contacted to bring my passport for visa I wil take the new one to their embassy for Visa. Hope my passport details with them won't disqualify me? Though I have renew, pls are u from Nigeria too? Thank u once again

arrJay:







It depends on the Visa Officer handling your application. My mum-in-law applied for a visiting visa to attend my husband's graduation which was Oct 28. She was just issued the visa on Nov 9th and not only that, her visa is valid for 5 years. As long as they have contacted the bank, just hope and pray that you get a positive news soonest.

Mind u today is Nov 9th. Was it last year u talking abt?

wealth360:
Seems you guys are now turning this SOWp thread to Family sponsor thread and EE. I believe there are threads that covers those aspects. Please let's make this thread strictly for Spousal open work permit so we don't lose it purpose.

Any news from London office yet? Anyone

What's the link for family sponsor thread? I don't think we have it here. I have searched and couldn't find any...

Good day all,

Please I will like to know while attaching documents like WAEC result, B.Sc statement of result, marriage certificate etc how do u do it?

If you are submitting via paper root do u attach original or photocopied certificate, will the document be returned after one is granted visa?

Baba God please let the thread bubbles with good news for the remaining days in this year. Amen

RedDoor:
Good day all,

Please I will like to know while attaching documents like WAEC result, B.Sc statement of result, marriage certificate etc how do u do it?

If you are submitting via paper root do u attach original or photocopied certificate, will the document be returned after one is granted visa?

photocopies is all that you need you don’t have to submit the original copies.you can have them notarize if you have time.

Snillous:


God bless u ma, my application was online application. Meanwhile the passport I used then has less than 6 months validity but I have renew another one which is with me. With the hope if am contacted to bring my passport for visa I wil take the new one to their embassy for Visa. Hope my passport details with them won't disqualify me? Though I have renew, pls are u from Nigeria too? Thank u once again

You ought to have renewed the passport before applying. The passport number on the old passport might not tally with what you have now. If both numbers are the same, you use the new one. But if they are not, you have to use the old passport.

Snillous:


Mind u today is Nov 9th. Was it last year u talking abt?

Yes . I am talking about this year...

arrJay:


You ought to have renewed the passport before applying. The passport number on the old passport might not tally with what you have now. If both numbers are the same, you use the new one. But if they are not, you have to use the old passport.

Thank you but on the new passport it shows previous passport number and new passport number also appeared. Two numbers appeared on my new passport. Previous passport number and new passport number.

arrJay:



Yes . I am talking about this year...

Wow... means my program that has passed I still have a hope of given me the visa.

Please, has CIC stopped attending to Nigeria SOWP applications?
Why have they refused to attend to applications submitted since May/June?
Or are they planning to carry it over to next year as the year is already running to an end?
What crime have we committed to deserve this long wait?
June 14th.........still on background check

waya1:
Please, has CIC stopped attending to Nigeria SOWP applications?
Why have they refused to attend to applications submitted since May/June?
Or are they planning to carry it over to next year as the year is already running to an end?
What crime have we committed to deserve this long wait?
June 14th.........still on background check

Honestly I don’t understand what’s happening even when the processing time was 33weeks last year people are still getting updates on time . I applied May 5th and no update since then still on background check. Let’s just hope for the best and pray we hear positive feedback from them.

Praise the Lord!!!! Passport Request for my spouse and three kids yesterday after three refusals!!.
Applied online in April 24th, 2018
Upfront Medical October 3rd
Medical Passed October 5th
Passport request November 15th!

For all others, it will surely end in praise!

Otn34:
Praise the Lord!!!! Passport Request for my spouse and three kids yesterday after three refusals!!.
Applied online in April 24th, 2018
Upfront Medical October 3rd
Medical Passed October 5th
Passport request November 15th!

For all others, it will surely end in praise!

Amen oooo. Congratulations!!
Does it mean they are just working on April files now?
It is well

Otn34:
Praise the Lord!!!! Passport Request for my spouse and three kids yesterday after three refusals!!.
Applied online in April 24th, 2018
Upfront Medical October 3rd
Medical Passed October 5th
Passport request November 15th!

For all others, it will surely end in praise!

Congratulations to you finally it is over. Please just want to know if you are on PGWP when you spouse applied.

Congratulations brother. Is it London office that treated your application?

Otn34:
Praise the Lord!!!! Passport Request for my spouse and three kids yesterday after three refusals!!.
Applied online in April 24th, 2018
Upfront Medical October 3rd
Medical Passed October 5th
Passport request November 15th!

For all others, it will surely end in praise!