Bukzie:
OUR PPR JOURNEY……………So Sorry it’s a very long post. Please bear with me. I hope this encourages one or more people to keep pushing…….
TIMELINE:
IELTS (Principal Applicant) LRSW – 8, 6.5, 7.5, 7 (1st attempt) - April 30, 2016
IELTS (Spouse –the writer) LRSW – 8, 8, 7.5, 7 (1st attempt) - April 30, 2016
ECA (PA) – March 15, 2016 – August 3, 2016 – 2 or more certificates
ECA (Spouse) – March 10, 2016 – August 11, 2016 – 2 or more certificates
1st EE Profile (PA) – August 2016
1st EE Profile (Spouse) – August 2016
2nd EE Profile (PA) – September 2017
2nd EE Profile (Spouse) – September 2017
1st EE SINP Application submitted – January 2017
1st EE SINP Application rejected – May 2017
2nd EE SINP Application submitted – October 26, 2017
SINP Letter of Request for Additional Information – February 7, 2018
Response to SINP Letter of Request for Additional Information – February 11, 2018
EE SINP Nomination Letter Received – April 6, 2018 (Dated April 5, 2018)
EE SINP Revised Nomination Letter Received – April 6, 2018
EE SINP Nomination Accepted – April 7, 2018
PCC done and collected – April 9, 2018
ITA Received and Accepted – April 11, 2018
Medicals done – April 17, 2018
EE Application Submitted – April 23, 2018
AOR – April 23, 2018
Medicals Passed – April 27, 2018
Web Form submitted and response received informing us of our VO – November 2, 2018
Web Form (enquiry about the status of our application) submitted to Accra Visa Office and response received – November 6, 2018
1st set of GCMS Notes – Ordered on November 19, 2018 and received on December 19, 2018
Joined NairaLand – December 6, 2018
2nd set of GCMS Notes – Ordered on January 8, 2019 and received on February 5, 2019
Sent an email to AVO as advised by @abakiki when I asked my first question about how to reach AVO (without filling a Web Form) on NairaLand – February 5, 2019
ADR received after sending the email (1st update since MEP on April 27, 2018) – February 5, 2019
PPR received (We were yet to upload the ADR) – February 7, 2019
ADR uploaded via Web Form – February 7, 2019
Passports Submitted to VFS Lekki – February 11, 2019
PRE EXPESS ENTRY
In the second quarter of 2014 when it seemed that the company I had worked with for over 6 years would be wound down, two friends (and colleagues at the time) spoke to me about the Canadian Immigration journey which they were about embarking on. This was some 7 months before the introduction of the Express Entry System. I quickly joined in preparing for IELTS and was excited about the possibility of immigrating though I had always believed in living in Nigeria and just visiting other countries for exposure and relaxation. My excitement was cut short by my hubby when I told him about it and he said I could go ahead with the process but that he was not going to write any exam and he would gladly visit us from time to time. I tried to convince him but to no avail so I let it go. My only regret was that I didn’t carry out any research about the process and thought that I couldn’t meet the requirements without my husband writing the IELTS test based on the information I got from people.
One day in the first quarter of 2016, after I told him that my friends and former colleagues’ applications for PR had been approved, he told me he was now interested in immigrating to Canada and wouldn’t stop disturbing me so I eventually gave in and started the process. I searched the CIC link and read about the process like I was going to write a professional exam.
IELTS
By November 2014, my employment had been terminated by AMCON alongside all other colleagues so I had more time to study for IELTS. I had a set of 10 practice questions that I got from one of my friends in 2014 which my husband and I used to prepare for IELTS. We registered in March 2016 and wrote the exam in April 2016. I practiced for a month while my husband practiced for just a week (he kept asking me why I was studying so hard and if he would pass the exam at all).
That was our only attempt. Thank God!
ECA (WES)
We registered with WES for ECA in March 2016 and it seemed we would get it sorted out in a month or two but alas, it took 5 months! It took ‘forever’ for our schools to get the copies of our transcripts and certificates for verification but once our schools did, it took about a month to complete the process. It was a long wait but that was the beginning of so many others in this journey.
EXPRESS ENTRY PROFILE
Immediately we received our ECAs, I created our Express Entry profiles in August 2016. Our CRS scores at the time were really low as we were both over 40. Mine was 413 and my husband’s was way less (I can’t remember the exact score but around 331 or so). At this point, we knew we had to pursue the option of going the PNP route.
We had to create a second Express Entry profile when our profiles expired after a year of not achieving much. Patience is indeed a virtue my people.
SINP (SASKATCHEWAN IMMIGRANT NOMINEE PROGRAM) NOMINATION
I was determined not to give up on this journey and God sent a good friend and sister of mine to me in September 2016. She told me about the SINP and added me to two WhatsApp groups. At that time, our NOCs were not included in their Occupation In-Demand list but there was a NOC we thought was close to my husband’s so we created two profiles (EE and OID-paper-based) and uploaded all necessary documents while waiting for the programs to open. We eventually submitted both that year/January 2017 and we were asked to choose one of the programs we wanted to be processed. We chose the SINP EE program and by May 2017, the application was rejected due to a wrong NOC. We prayed and hoped that one of our NOCs would be added to their OID list and thank God it happened sometime in August 2017 or so. My husband’s NOC was added to the list and we created a new profile and waited for the program to open for submission.
On October 26, 2017, we paid CAD300 and submitted the application. It was a very long wait of constantly checking the profile to see if there was any progress made. The application was in process until February 7, 2018 when we received ADR which we responded to on February 11, 2018. The status didn’t change from ‘waiting on applicant’ almost two months after we had responded to the ADR. Someone in one of the WhatsApp groups I joined, who also was in the same situation, mentioned that he sent an email to the Manager in charge of the program and got a reply that a decision had been made and he will hear from them soon. He got his letter of nomination that same day. I told my husband about it and after waiting for a while, we decided to follow suit. On April 3, 2018, we sent a very polite email stating that we had sent the additional documents requested for and there was no change in the status of the application. On April 6, 2018, at about a few minutes after 12am when I had just gone to bed (worried that our IELTS reports would expire on April 30, 2018 i.e. in less than 4 weeks), my husband woke me up with the news of an update. I quickly got off my bed to check his profile and low and behold, it was our nomination letter. I rolled on the floor thanking God and asking Him to forgive me for doubting and almost giving up. I couldn’t sleep that night. I checked his Express Entry profile and found out that some parts of the profile had not been transmitted so I stayed up dotting the ‘I’s and crossing the ‘t’s.
I discovered that the EE profile number and job seeker validation code stated in the nomination letter were those of the expired EE profile and had to send them an email immediately requesting that they kindly issue a revised nomination letter with the current details which they did as soon as they resumed work.
We accepted the nomination that same day (April 6, 2018) and my husband’s CRS score jumped to 900 plus.
PCC
We contacted someone whom my friend and sister (the same one that added me to the SINP WhatsApp groups) introduced me to and went to Ikoyi on April 9, 2018 to get our PCCs done. It took about an hour and a half to get the PCCs for N5,000 each.
ITA
ITA came on April 11, 2018 (five days after SINP nomination) and it was another happy moment.
MEDICALS
I called IOM on April 16, 2018 and got an appointment for the next day. The process took about 3 hours from when they allowed us in at 8am.
POF
We had a joint investment account that we had opened in 2011 with more than the sum required for a family of 4 with a financial institution (not a bank but a CBN licensed FI). We were given a detailed letter and the statement of account stamped and signed.
WORK EXPERIENCE REFERENCE
My husband got a letter from his former colleague for two years of his last ten years of work experience (as the company was no longer in existence) and got reference letters from his clients for the remaining eight years. He also got his company’s bank statement and highlighted each payment made by each client on client by client basis. It was easier at this point because this had been done when we applied for the SINP nomination. He had 40 pages of bank statement to work on but thank God he did a good job. This was one thing he actively participated in throughout the process….LOL.
If you ever asked him about the EE and PNP process, he would tell you to ask his wife. He referred quite a number of people to me (he still does) and I was happy to help.
AOR
We submitted our application on April 23, 2018 (7 days to the expiration of our IELTS reports). It was such a huge relief.
POST AOR
Medicals Passed – April 27, 2018.
We thought it was going to be a smooth and fast journey to PPR getting an update 4 days after AOR. Little did we know that we still had a long journey ahead of us. We had learnt patience and perseverance during the journey so far but this part of the long wait was even more frustrating to say the least.
We didn’t receive any update for the normal processing time (6 months). I kept checking the EE profile and my husband’s email account every other day (sometimes several times a day) but nothing changed. I knew about ordering the GCMS notes but we decided to be even more patient.
In November 2018, I filled the web form (I didn’t know the VO processing the application so I chose within Canada). We received an email notifying us of our VO, the notorious AVO! We immediately filled another Web form and AVO informed us that our application was in queue for review. We were discouraged by some friends in Canada from requesting for the GCMS notes in October but decided to do so in December when there was still no progress and AVO would not respond to our Web form.
At this point, while searching for another means of communication with AVO apart from the Web form, I stumbled upon this great Platform. I joined this platform on December 6, 2018 and asked how I could reach them apart from using the web form. @abakiki mentioned that I could send them an email (God bless you).
I ordered the GCMS notes in December 2018 and got it in January 2019. From the notes, the application had been transferred to AVO on May 17, 2018 after the last case analyst in CIO recommended a review of the lead statement, main duties and work experience but AVO had not touched the application since it was transferred to them.
I decided to check the EE profile less and take my mind off the matter though I somehow believed that one day it will end in praise. I was just not sure when the one day would be and prayed that it will happen before April when our Medical reports would expire.
I ordered another set of GCMS notes in January (my cousin helped with both orders) after submitting another web form to AVO and didn’t receive any response. On February 5, 2019, I decided to send an email to AVO (as advised by @abakiki in December) enquiring about the status of the application and politely informing them that our application had been in queue for review and we were unable to plan appropriately for the year. We received an automated reply almost immediately that they would respond shortly. About an hour later, there was an update on the EE profile (the first since April 27, 2018). We were requested to submit the following:
-Schedule A Form (PA and Spouse)
-Additional Family Information Form (PA and Spouse)
-Updated Proof of Settlement Funds
On February 7, 2019, I tried uploading the additional documents but one was too large so I decided to upload later that day after compressing the file. Before I had the chance to upload the documents, we received another update. I was so scared to sign in and check what it was. When I did, it was another request but this time, it was PPR!!! We didn’t know how to express our joy, relief, excitement and gratitude to God. We are truly grateful to God and thankful for all the people He sent our way while on this journey. We were way older than the ‘favourable’ age group but God made it happen. Do your part and leave the ‘how’ to God. His grace is sufficient for you.
Once again, a BIG THANK YOU to all of you who have been very magnanimous with your time and wealth of knowledge on this platform. Rest assured that your labour of love will be greatly rewarded. Though I joined this platform long after we had submitted our application, I was encouraged and sometimes entertained by the many posts and responses I got. It was great to celebrate with other PPR recipients while waiting for ours.
@ifeoma77, I have noticed your dedication to helping people and I know that we will celebrate with you very soon by His grace. God bless you immensely.
I wish everyone who's still in the race, about starting or already a PR, God’s very best. Keep on moving…….
God bless you all.
Pls dear can u add me to the what's app group.. 08171959286.Thanks and God bless u.
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Pls can u send the material to me..@ taflino@gmail.com.Thanks alot.
1. Stick to a FEW practice materials! The number of materials for IELTS that we see on a daily on this thread can be overwhelming. Try out only a few and stick to the one that resonates with you. Don't use ieltsliz, Jay, Cambridge, ieltsadvantage, road2ielts etc at the same time (some of these peope don't agree on the same approach and reading all can get really confusing). If you try one and it sits well with you, ditch others. Focus on that one and be a master of it. I almost got overwhelmed at some point, because l wanted to open every link or try every material l saw here. But l had to give myself brain oh.
2. Practise everyday. No excuses. Create the time. Even at work, you can use your lunch break to practise. Instead of listening to music or radio on your way to work, listen to your downloaded tips on writing, speaking, reading, listening. When walking down the streets, have an earpiece on (l hate this, but we can make sacrifices for one month abi?) and keep LISTENING. At weekends, practice speaking with your wife/husband, friend, son/daughter etc. Write out questions and tell them to ask you (under exam conditions). I finished a WHOLE 30 leaves notebook for listening practice (yeah l work an 8 to 5 and live on the mainland with my office on the island -remember, no excuses!). Always check your wrong answers and replay those portions and find out what you didn't hear properly. I used youtube for listening/speaking/reading.
3. There's this ielts expert too, one Ryan (cannot remember his surname) that l think is underrated. I used his tips for writing. He talks about 15 sentences max for writing. 3 paragraphs with 4 sentences and the closing paragraph should have 3 sentences. This keeps you in check and you already know what to write before the exam, all you will be waiting for on the ielts day is the topic given! I can share his materials if you drop your email address.
For writing, write letter and essays! Don't read what someone else wrote. Write yours too. Some people practise writing by reading another's work -WRONG! write yours too and compare. Minimum letters to write on different topics - 10. Minimum essays - 20. Revise your work and look for better ways to reconstruct your sentences. I suggest you write with pencil on your exam day so you can erase if need be.
4. For reading - use youtube. It also has a timer, so practice using the time and don't stop the timer or pause the video. The easiest comprehension in reading are the first two. Spend less time there. Say 5 mins tops for each. You do not need to UNDERSTAND nada. Just look at the instructions (very important), then the questions, then scroll through the passages for the answers. You need all your time for the last two passages. They are more technical.
5. For speaking - Be confident, relaxed and know your basic english and introduction (see ieltsliz). See this as an interview. We all attend interviews don't we? I got a list of 42 likely cue cards from ieltsliz blog (l think she said they change it every 3 months but she always update the cue card questions) and l practiced the 42 different topics and l always set my two minutes timer with my phone. You can be in the BRT or your car and practice this one, or when walking down the street or whilst doing chores at home, or lying down in your bed doing nothing (l did this. Some days, people will think you are going crazy because you are talking to yourself, but...who no go no know). One of the 42 questions l practiced was my cue card during my speaking test -something on my pet animal (l was wondering "madam why me? Animal kwa?" but because l had practised earlier, the examiner had to cut me off when it was two minutes. I just went on and on.
4. Lastly and certainly not the least...the place of PRAYER. I'm catholic, so when l saw the prayer to St. Joseph of Cupertino here, l made a mental note to say it. I started saying it every day from September till i wrote my exam on the 1st of November. I even added a 9 days St. Joseph of Cupertino novena with prayer and fasting which ended on the 31st of October (l'm that extra oh. I left no chances). I asked my family to add me in their prayers too. So, pray, pray and pray. Whatever works for you. Someone dropped one St. prayer here on financial assistance for POF, best believe l'll look for that prayer and do it too!
5. People have done it, you too can. Don't be discouraged if you have tried more than once. We don't give up on this thread oh. Being here has taught me a different level of selflessness and never say never spirit. People you don't even know are quick to help and empathise and l am still in awe of you guys.
6. Please drop your email address so l can send the Ryan materials to you.
This too shall pass!
All the best everyone and my apologies for the long post.
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Travel / Re: Canadian Express Entry/federal Skilled Workers Program - Connect Here Part 7 by talisae: 9:25am On Mar 02, 2019