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This section of my website deals with the Process of Applying for an Immigrant Visa either as a Skilled Worker or as a Business Class immigrant.
The Immigration Application: What Are the Basic Requirements to Submit the Application?
To put it simply, the process merely involves submitting a three page application form, duly signed and dated, to a Canadian visa office, together with the required processing fees, and a form appointing Carter Hoppe as your legal representative. That is all that is required to begin the process!
Supporting documents will, obviously, eventually be required to substantiate the application, documents such as birth and marriage certificates, education certificates, police certificates, employment or business references, passports copies, photographs and other similar documents. But those supporting documents are not required to start the process. Eventually, the visa office will make a First Assessment: it always takes many months, and usually more than a year and often several years for a First Assessment decision to be made. Currently, at the visa office in London UK (the Canadian Hign Commission) it is taking approximately 26 months for the First Assessment decision to be made. That decision may be to accept the application in principle without an interview (interview waiver) or to require an interview, or to refuse the application.
The Time Frame
The current processing system was implemented on June 28, 2002. Currently, in London it is taking 26 months to reach the First Assessment stage. Although a file number is issued within one or two months of filing the application, the application is not actually considered ("assessed") until approximately 26 months after the application is submitted.
Interview Waiver
If no interview is required (interview waiver) then medical examination instructions will be issued at that point. Immigrant visas will then be issued withing a few weeks thereafter.
But if an interview is required, that may well take many months to be scheduled, adding considerably to the overall processing time frame.
Carter Hoppe Legal Consultants will prepare your application thoroughly and our presentation will be so comprehensive that you will have the best chance of an interview waiver.
Time Frame for Investors: Fast Track
The Federal Government has established a high priority for Investor category applicants. The visa office in London can interview an applicant within 12-18 months.
Retroactivity
Theoretically, any change to to the selection rules could be made retroactive, such as a change to the current pass mark. But, as a practical matter, it is highly unlikely that any attempt by the Canadian Government to make an adverse selection rule change retroactive would succeed. The Government attempted to make such an adverse change retroactive in December 2001, but backed down in September 2003, in the face of thousands of Federal Court lawsuits that threatened to paralyze the Government Immigration program.
In my professional opinion, the Goverment will not make any retroactive changes to the pass mark. The pass mark is currently set at 67 points. It would be wise to apply now before the pass mark changes. Once your application is made, you would then be protected against any subsequent change to the pass mark.
VISA INTERVIEWS and INTERVIEW WAIVERS
As indicated above, an applicant may be required to attend a personal interview at a Canadian Visa Office, for the purpose of verifying qualifications, including education, language proficiency, work skills and experience.
Many applicants are required to attend an interview. However, this requirement may be waived (interview waiver) if the application documentation is persuasive, and the visa office decides that waiving the interview is an acceptable risk. Unfortunately, due to widespread document fraud and applicant misrepresentation, many applicants, whose interviews might otherwise have been waived, are called to an interview, simply to verify the authenticity of the documentation. If an interview is required, the visa officer makes a final decision as to whether the applicant is suitable for Canada.
If the interview requirement is waived, the application will be concluded at the Visa Office without interview. Immigrant visas will be issued following medical examination and background check.
Skilled Worker Interviews—Principal Applicants Must Attend Interview
Residents of the UAE and other Gulf States may choose the Visa Office at the Canadian High Commission in London, UK. If an interview is required, interviews can take place either in London or at the Canadian Embassy in Abu Dhabi. [Applicants choosing to be interviewed in London must be able to obtain a UK entry visa]. If the interview is successful, medical examination forms will be sent to the applicants after interview. Medical examination processing can add up to 3-6 months to the overall processing time. Immigrant Visas are valid for twelve months from the date of the medical examination, or expiry date of the applicant’s passport, whichever is earlier.
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