azarme09 said:
Thank you
I'll reply in a list:
1. I am from Pakistan but haven't been there since summer 2011. Between 2007 and today, I was studying in BC, then the US, Ireland, and the UK. I came here to visit (i had plans to work in the US) but my now husband proposed me the day before I was supposed to leave. Mainly because long-distance doesn't work for us. I have a visitor visa and I have UK residency (my ex-husband was British). Should I attach my letter from the UKBA where they confirmed my residency? I never sent my passport to them because I had already filed for divorce by the time it went through.
2. What did you say about your small ceremony? For us, both of us are atheists but our families are Muslims. We wanted nothing to do with religion (we had religious ceremonies with our previous spouses). A straight, secular, civil ceremony with a humanist celebrant is what we wanted and that's what we did. Our families don't approve of the marriage at all. They wanted both of us to go the arranged marriage route which we tried to talk them out of but failed so we had no choice but to elope.
3. I already have my FBI clearance (applied right after he proposed to me!) and I am getting my clearance from Pakistan in the next week or so.
4. We have travel records for when I was in the US. He visited me 3 times last year. I visited once before moving here. I do have pictures with his family since we are family friends. The families are just against the marriage not because they think we are bad people, just because they wanted us to marry people they had picked for us in Pakistan. Nooooot gonna fly, haha. Plus, they don't like how we both are atheists and support each other's secular activism (both of us are writers and speakers on various human rights & first amendment issues).
Any tips?
1. I don't know anything about all of that except that I would think you can still apply to extend your TRV online: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/extend-stay.asp. You are supposed to apply at least 30 days prior to the expiration of your current status. As I said, because we had already submitted an inland PR application, I asked for an received a one-year extension to allow me to remain with my husband while my PR app was being processed. Not sure if you will have sent in your PR application yet by the time you need to apply for an extension? If not, my advice is to pay the fees (at least the sponsorship - $75 - and principal applicant - $475 - fees, even better if you can pay the right of permanent residency fee - $490 - up front as well) and include those receipts with your extension request to show them you will be submitting an inland application.
2. As I said, we submitted a "relationship narrative" to give more info and more fully answer questions from form
IMM 5285. It was about four pages long, including the colour photos within the document, and I put a header with the form number on each page and placed it behind the IMM 5285 form. In this narrative, explain what you've explained to us here. You are both atheists from muslim families. Your families are aware of your relationship but, due to religious differences, did not support you or attend the wedding. Share what you shared here, that what was important to you and your spouse and consistent with YOUR beliefs was a secular humanist celebration of your union, which is what you got. All of that makes sense and explains why the ceremony was small, was not traditional, and did not include your families (with the one exception). For us, we explained that we simply weren't concerned about the ceremony. We wanted to get married, not have a wedding, especially since he's military and we never could have had a ceremony that would have included all of our friends and loved ones, since they're spread across the globe. So we simply had a legal ceremony at the courthouse and, instead of family (mine lived just over an hour away, his over 3000km away), we invited three friends who lived or worked nearby to serve as witnesses.
3. Just keep in mind that CIC must receive your app, containing your FBI clearance (and everything else, of course, haha) within three months of the date the FBI issued the form. If not, it's NOT the end of the world. Include the FBI clearance you have now and a note stating that a new one will be provided. Since you already have a TRV, you already have your UCI number. When you get the new FBI clearance, send it to (Mississauga? I think inland apps now go there, instead of Vegreville "back in my day") with a cover letter noting your UCI so they can match it to your file.
4. Include the travel records, to show you doing things you did as a couple. And include the photos. You'll be explaining why your families don't support the union, but photos show that your families are aware of the relationship.
Extra question: see what I said about paying fees for PR application prior to requesting the extension. Not absolutely necessary, but helps show CIC you're serious and you're getting things together to apply soon.
