Important information regarding spouse sponsorship

I am writing this to share my experiences and information about spouse sponsorship cases from Pakistan to Canada, to help them answer a few questions about this long process of sponsoring their husband or wife from Pakistan as it is taking unusually long with always increasing processing times of family applications from Islamabad Visa Office. 

The process consist of two stages.
1. sponsorship part(processed in Canada)
2. Immigration part(processed at CHC London)

PROCESSING TIMES:

The main issue is the processing time which is now longest for Pakistan according to cic website. You can check processing times at this site http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm/fc-spouses.asp.
Processing times keep on changing and are some where around 16 to 20 months for wife cases and 18 to 24 months for husband cases on an average, although some cases are processed faster and some are slow so it vary from case to case. 

GENERAL PROCESSING MILESTONES:

1) Stage 1 approval takes 1 to 2 months

2) Then the file is transferred to London Embassy and no further processing is done for 6 to 7 months 
3) Then the initial review of the application is started. 
4) They request some additional documents along with an updated police clearance certificate(but not in all cases).
5) Then comes request for Re-medical after some time.
6) If the background checks are clear and medical is clear, they request for Passport photocopy to be sent to the London Embassy by courier or email.
7) Then after 2 to 3 weeks, they request passport to be sent to Islamabad embassy.
7) Passport is returned in 2 to 3 weeks.

Visa Offices:

For stage 2 files were sent to Islamabad before December 2013 but due to increased number of cases, files are now sent to London office. This change will hopefully decrease the processing times.

How to check progress of your case 

Order GCMS notes:

You can always check the progress of your case if you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. Actually anyone residing in Canada with a valid mailing address can order GCMS notes with consent of applicant.

It helps you see your case progress and if there is any delay you can see the reason for it and try to resolve that issue by sending additional documents. The fee for ordering notes is 5$ and you can order online. Order GCMS notes after one year if there is no contact from CIC.

Requesting GCMS notes:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/atip/requests-atip.asp

see this link for details:

 http://paktocanada.blogspot.com/2013/07/how-to-order-gcms-caips-notes.html

See sample here: http://www.gcmsnotes.com/Sample_GCMS_File.pdf

Check online status:

You can check online on cic website on the follwing link once you have the UCI number

                    http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/my_application/status.asp

This will not be so useful however as they dont update status until your case is almost processed.

Contact your local MP:

Sometimes it is helpful but most of the time MPs don't help you much. If there is any delay in your case you should contact MP as they can directly ask about the case progress.

Call or email Canadian high commission: 

If you have any query you can call or email them and if you are lucky enough you will get a reply within a week or so.

Ottawa:        OttPilot-Immigration@cic.gc.ca

                CPR-OttPilot-Caseprocessing@cic.gc.ca

London:  london-im-enquiry@international.gc.ca

Background & Security Checks processing 

Background Check comprises of 2 parts:

1. The Standard Documentation Checks
2. The Security & Criminality Checks.

Standard Documentation Checks:

Background check is done at the CHC stage. It commences the moment file gets the 1st BFD by the visa officer.

It takes usually 4 to 6 months and involve many things. If the case is well presented with adequate documents and proofs, they might not actually visit or call the employers, references etc. They know how to do it. If there are any concerns, the visa officer will request additional documents and might ask for an interview.

         They send 'Medical Request' when fully satisfied

Security & Criminality Checks:

A part of the background checks is the 'Security Check'. It starts after medical results are uploaded by IOM centre.  

It involve many agencies and is a serious & time-consuming stage. Many things are considered here... travel history, nationality, ex-Servicemen [including Law Enforcement services], frequent travelling to certain nations, Inter-Religion/Nationality Marriages etc.

If everything is simple & straight, the file gets into the 'final review' stage. If there are any 'red flags', case goes into a 'spin' and thereby the time frame can be anything [sometimes beyond 1year]. But, usually this stage should be over by 2 to 5 months. 

         After security clearance we receive the passport request

With new system, sometimes passport request comes with Medical request

-eCAS: Still 'In Process', but 'Medical Results Received.' inside.

The Process in a Nutshell:

Stage-1: [CIO stage] Send Initial Apps+Processing Fees to CIO-NS > Qualitative Check > Issue of AOR

Stage-2: [CHC stage onwards] Send Full Docs+RPRF to the Local Visa Office > File on Queue > Eligibility Check > Issue of 2nd AOR > Background Check > Issue of Additional docs Request and re PCC > Send additional Docs > Issue of medical request

Stage-3: Medical done>uploaded by IOM centre > get passport request > Send Passport/s > Security Check > Visa/s Stamped > e-Cas: "Decision Made" 

*The Medical & PPR are sometimes 'clubbed' together.

Stage-4: Return of 'Stamped' Passport'

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