Citizenship Timeline - Page 4 - Settling In - SACanada Forums
By Hendie, December 15, 2002 in Settling In
Interests:Writing, art and science esp. earth science, and astronomy
Yeah, I check that site out often, but it just says "In Process" and that our papers have been sent to our local office, and we will be informed as to the date of our test. So frustrating!
More frustrating - when you have done the test, know you passed and still have to wait!
According to some sources, last year saw a big increase in applicants due to the PR card requirement and the US visa requirements to be introduced for visa-waiver countries later this year.
But - I cannot understand why some applications go smoother than others. I share your frustration. After the test they gave us a letter stating that it would be a two to six month wait AT LEAST! (In Vancouver)
One other point: Harry does your online status show "In Process" or "Decision Made?" (Mine still says "In Process")
SA Location:Pretoria & PE
I have never checked any online status...will do so now.
And so I have tried to use that website repeatedly since 9:30 pm last night. It is now 11 hours later and I STILL have zero response...it just hangs and times out. DO they shut their servers down when they go home?
Experienced the same problem, Harry. I would say that there has been a glitch that caused the database to shut down automatically. Usually you can access it 7 days per week / 24 hours per day. Probably have to wait until Monday now. I have found that most correspondence is indcated on the system before you receive it in the mail.
Letter received at our house a few minutes ago. Citizenship ceremony for our family is to be on 28 April 2004, 9 days from today! What an incredible birthday present for my wife today!
Edited April 19, 2004 by Harry
SA Location:Durbanville, Randburg, Durban, Pinetown,Germiston, Boksburg
Interests:DIY, photography, Scuba, skiing, cars, boating, trying different beers and travelling (preferably to warm places)
That makes it a six year process from the day we said "OK! Let's start the emigration plan" , and started gathering the official paperwork
Interests:Learning to make biltong & dry wors.
Congrats Harry, I envy you guys.
Hope ur taking ur wife out for a mega dinner 4 her birthday.
Thanks Gautenger.....don't worry, it happens eventually!
As to the question.....you bet yer life on it.....it will be a H-U-G-E one.
Hopefully not far behind you
When we received our dual cirizenship forms a few days ago, there were two letters for each person:
1. One form addressed the matter of which passport should be used for entering/exiting which country
2. The second one actually stated the granteing of dual citizenship
We have been worried for a few days because there was no letter 2 for our son.
I spoke to the nice French-speaking lady at the SA High Commission again today, and she explained that he DOES NOT NEED a letter, because he cannot lose his SA Citizenship if he assumes another Citizenship while he is under 21.
OK, so now we all know that's the rule.
Interests:Azelda (my vrou) en ek het in Julie 2001 na Kanada verhuis. Ons dogter, Emma, is in November 2001 gebore hier in Kanada. In die rekenaar bedryf en geniet kuier, buiteluglewe (min hier) ensovoorts.<br><br>Ons probeer die Edmonton klub aan die gang hou en verder uit tebrei. So enige voorstelle sal waardeur word
Hi mense, hoop julle sal kan help met die vrae aangesien julle reeds daardeur is. Ons sal in Julie 2004 drie jaar in Kanada wees, maar was vir so 'n maand uit die land op vakansie. Dus sal ons kan kwalifiseer vir Kanadese burgerskap iewers in Augustus.
Nou die vrae:
(1) Kan ons nou al aansoek doen vir dubbele burgerskap om die proses vinniger te laat verloop (by die SA hoekommisaris)?
(2) Ek hoor mens moet 'n motivering skryf hoekom jy dubbele burgerskap wil he? Is dit so en wat se redes/verduideliking gebruik mens (by die SA hoekommisaris)?
(3) Moet ons eers 'n antwoord ontvang van SA oor dubbele burgerskap voor ons die proses met Kanada begin, of kan mens dit so soort van in parallel doen?
(4) Kan ons nou al aansoek doen vir ons Kanadese burgerskap om die proses te begin, of moet ons eers presies drie jaar in die land wees as Landed Immigrants?
(5) Is daar enige kantoor waarna toe mens jou aansoeke stuur sodat dit vinniger verwerk word, of moet ons s'n na Calgary toe gaan?
Baie dankie en julle hulp sal waardeer word.
SA Location:Paarl, Stellenbosch
Interests:photography, organic farming, road trips, great outdoors, reading, music (NOT rap!), movies, computers, Internet
Hi Tony! (ltns!)
Harry sal jou kan antwoord op jou eerste paar vrae, want sy gesin het die dubbele burgerskap roete gevolg, ons nie. Hier is egter solank vir jou 'n paar antwoorde:
(4) Jy mag slegs aansoek doen vir burgerskap wanneer jy reeds die 1095 dae in Kanada was. So nee, jy sal moet wag tot "iewers in Augustus".
(5) Soos jy sal sien op die aansoekvorms wanneer jy hulle aflaai van die 'Net af, almal stuur hulle vorms na die Case Processing Centre in Sydney, Nova Scotia.
1. Die reëls sê jy moet aansoek doen by SA vir dubbele burgerskap voordat jy aansoek doen by Kanada vir burgerskap. Soos dit vir my lyk, kan julle nog nie aansoek doen vir Kanadese burgerskap nie, so jy kan net sowel nou al begin en by SA aansoek doen. Ons het in September 2003 by Kanada aansoek gedoen, maar reeds in Junie 2003 by SA aansoek gedoen.
Hou in gedagte dat die Kanadese regering tyd wat jy buite Kanada sal erken teen HELFTE van die tempo. Een werklike dagtel vir 'n halwe dag. Ons het nie daarvan gebruik gemaak nie, maar jy kan dit dubbel-check met Nico of Cobus.
.....hierdie stelling is verkeerd. Dis tyd IN Kanada, VOORDAT jy "land", wat tel. [sien later].....Harry
2. Jy moet 'n motivering skryf. Ons het eenvoudig gesê ons wil in Noord Amerika werk en aftree in Suid afrika met ons "estate". Kinders onder 21 verloor nie hulle burgerskap as hulle Kanadese burgersakp aanvaar nie. EK het gebel en gevra en hulle het bevestig. Die SA Kommissariskantoor in Ottawa word beman deur Frans-sprekende dames wat baie behulpsaam is. Vir die "Dual Citizenship Timeline", kyk HIER.
3. In beginsel moet jy dit ontvang voordat jy Kandees aanvaar. In ons geval het ek die SA kantoor gebel in Januarie, toe ons gehoor het ons moet die Kanadese "citizenship exam" gaan skryf. Die dame by die kantoor het geweet van ons aansoek ( lyk my nie daar is baie nie) en het gesê dat sy reeds met Pretoria gesels het. Die goed was skynbaar goedgekeur en sy het gesê ons moet voortgaan met die Kanadese proses.....dis nie soos by regeringskantore in "Nuwe" SA nie...OK!?
4/5. Hendie het geantwoord, maar sien weer my tweede paragraaf in punt 1.
Edited May 1, 2004 by Harry
Hou in gedagte dat die Kandese regering tyd wat jy buite Kanada sal erken teen HELFTE van die tempo. Een werklike dagtel vir 'n halwe dag. Ons het nie daarvan gebruik gemaak nie, maar jy kan dit dubbel-check met Nico of Cobus.
Nou het jy my deurmekaar gemaak Harry. Ons het verseker die immigrasie ouens se bydraes hier nodig. Hoe ek dit verstaan is dat die "klok" stop sodra jy die land verlaat. So geen halfdae vir tyd buite die landsgrense nie. Waar halfdae inkom is met werkspermitte. Vir die tydperk wat jy hier is op 'n werkspermit tel die dae as halfdae. Dis in elk geval hoe dit met ons gewerk het.
Ek het Immigration 2 weke terug gekontak om my te help om die datum te bereken wanneer ek kan aansoek doen vir citizenship. Ek was die laaste vier jaar 9 weke uit die land, en hulle het die volle nege weke bygetel, en vir my die presiese dag gegee waarop ek kan aansoek doen. Hulle het ook gesê dat jy net jou geld gaan verloor as jy voor die datum aansoek doen.
Die bogenoemde werk alleenlik as jy voorheen op 'n werkspermit gewees het, dan kry jy krediet vir die tyd spandeer binne Kanada met 'n maksimum van 1 jaar.
ek sou gaan met wat Nico en Cobus sê. My inligting kom via my vrou, wat die ding van 'n kant af deurgekyk het om te bepaal wanneer my ma kan aansoek doen. So, kom ons hoor wat se die twee eksperts.
Okay...I have printed out the rules and checked everything again:
It is time you were resident IN Canada BEFORE formal "landing" that is counted at half rate...and not time away outside the country. Time away always counts for ZERO.
So, if you were here for a hundred days BEFORE formally landing, then you get credited 50 days.
The only time that is considered, is the time that falls within the past four years.
What is less than 100% clear to me, is whether the "halftime" rule only applies if you have a work permit. The form says that you may have "halftime" for the period you were resident in Canada before "landing". At the point where one actually fills it in, it says "enter the date you arrived in Canada." A person on a 6-month visitor's visa also "arrives", but is presumably not legally resident as such.
Nico/cobus...what say you? :
The guys have since answered, and it turns out that time in Canada on a visitor visa will count. Great news for my mother, who "landed" 8 months after us, but was here on a visitor's visa from the day we arrived. That will count as four months....Harry 30 April 2004
Harry, Ek sien julle word more Kanadese. Byvoorbaat geluk. Ek wens ek was al daar. Ons "timeline" is as volg:
Junie 2003 - Ek my man en seun dien aansoeke in.
Oktober 2003 - Kry erkenning van ontvangs
19 Januarie 2004 - Ek kry brief waar hulle vra vir my vingerafdrukke (net myne )
21 Januarie 2004 - Laat vingerafdrukke neem en gee dit in by die Harry Hayes gebou (in Calgary), hulle se dit gaan nog 10 maande neem.
19 Februarie - my man ontvang brief waar hulle vra vir nog inligting omdat hy so baie uit die land was (vir sy werk)
8 April 2004 - My man en seun kry briewe waar hulle gesê word hulle skryf 18 Mei die toets
27 April - Ek wag nog
hou maar jou vingers mooi gekruis en gaan net aan met die lewe. Burokrate se wiele draai maar stadig. EK dink ons was relatief gelukkig en ons storie was vreeslik eenvoudig..nikse snaakse goeters nie.
Met die wag vir die oorpsronklike "landing" dokumente vanaf '98 to 2000, was ek amper van my verstand af van absolute frustrasie....todat ek mooi met myself gepraat het en 'n paar lekker vakansies in die Kalahari gaan hou het. Die snaakse ding met hierdie goeters is: "If one takes one's eye off the ball, it seems to pleasantly surprise one"
Well...tonight we go to sleep as Canadians for the first time in our lives....six years almost to the day after deciding that we finally had no choice but to leave South Africa.
Perhaps we were incredibly fortunate in that the judge we had did a singularly brilliant job. After his description of what was involved in being a Canadian, it is a miracle that the rest of the planet does not apply to be citizens....he ended it off with: "Do you see those beautiful mountains out there in the sunshine....they are now yours. Welcome home!"
It was a rather emotionally taxing day for us and I'll try to follow up tomorrow with a bit more detail. I think for now I will rest with the picture of the documents that were handed to us at the ceremony. :
The card with O Canada, the National Anthem
The actual citizenship card
The scroll of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
We also went off to the Sinclair Centre, where the passport office is, and handed in our applications. This took about 1-3/4 hours. The passports will be be sent about 16 days from now by registered mail.
Welcome Harry & family! Yes, it was an extremely emotional do for the Dijkmans as well. I don't think anyone who loves South Africa the way we do can fully comprehend the emotions that suddenly overwhelm you on this great day when you suddenly realise the enormity of what you are doing, and by implication the wonderful opportunities that have been lost to our beloved South Africa the day we saluted the maple leaf!
Welcome to your new life in Canada!