Started packing

Started initial packing efforts this week. I keep blank notebook paper next to the boxes, then as I pack I write down a general title for each box, and itemize the contents of each box. Example:

Books 1 (4 photo albums, 10 books, 1 notepad)
Books 2 (3 photo albums, 14 books)

Then I use marker on the side of the boxes: Books 1 and Books 2.

This makes it a lot easier than trying to take inventory afterward. At this point we're still not 100% sure where we'll be moving to, but this process is absolutely necessary for Canadian immigration... and anyway, it makes life a whole lot easier no matter where you're moving. So I don't mind that bit of extra effort even if we don't end up in Canada just yet.

RV prep - revised to-do

Called last week and couldn't get someone to come for RV detailing until tomorrow, Monday. I will meet them at the storage place to pay them and decide if I'm going to have them wax it too (based on how good it looks). The last few steps will involve:

1. Bringing back items that made it here, that should be left with RV
2. Bringing water (for cleaning), drinking water, scrub brush, baking soda, checkbook, camera, hand sanitizer, personal fan with batteries, and newspaper (believe it or not, newspaper leaves windows very sparkling clear and streak-free)
3. Securing all windows and vents in anticipation of washing
4. Scrubbing the tub and shower while detailers wash
5. Washing windows inside and bathroom mirror, if I have energy
6. Emptying last few items out of interior and the front compartment
7. Inquire at office - what did they do with our hitch lock?
8. Pay detailers
9. Take photos of inside and outside for posting in ads
10. List RV online and in print publications - post pics where possible

Spouse Inside Canada - FBI & Police Clearance Certificates

This process is very similar to the one for Outside Canada applications.

1. If you have lived in certain countries listed, you will need additional information or forms from CIC before applying for immigration.
2. Apply for Certificates - include:
   
   • Request for Police Certificate/Clearances (Appendix A)
   • Set of fingerprints
   • Complete return mailing address
3. Provide documentation - bring Fingerprints Request Letter (Appendix B) and photo ID and contact local police or RCMP for fingerprinting info
4. Submit the Certificates - original
   

Spouse Outside Canada - FBI & Police Clearance Certificates

Part of the background check process is requesting certificates of record from the FBI and your state of residence.

One thing I don't know yet is how long they are good for once you get them. Another thing is whether you need one from each state you've ever lived in, or just from the one you're living in now. (It stands to reason it'd be the former, I suppose.)

I found that the FBI Criminal Justice Information Services Division (CJIS Division) website has some details on this process. It's described in detail in Appendix B of the IMM 3910 Country Specific Instructions from the Spouse Outside Canada list of required documentation.

There are various options for doing this, but it appears that for this purpose, the process is as follows:

1. Write to the FBI to request an FD-258 Blank Fingerprint Form
2. Bring the form and your ID to a local police station or fingerprinting service and be fingerprinted, preferably by a fingerprinting technician
3. Send the following items to the FBI at:
   

   FBI CJIS Division – Record Request
   1000 Custer Hollow Road
   Clarksburg, West Virginia 26306

   1. Complete cover letter (provided by FBI on website above)
   2. PC-1 request letter from CIC (also provided in Appendix B)
   3. Fingerprinted form
   4. $18 fee (money order, certified check, or money order)
4. Wait 8-10 weeks for processing
5. The FBI will mail back either the fingerprint card stamped with "No Record" or an FBI Identification Record
6. Sponsor sends originals to Case Processing Centre - Mississauga (CPC-M) with rest of forms
   

For residents of California, fingerprinting is done electronically with a process called Live Scan. For people living outside of California, it's done the traditional way on a fingerprint card.

1. Fill out a BCII RR8016 Request for Live Scan Service
2. Take it and a picture I.D. to a Live Scan site
3. PC-1 request letter from CIC (also provided in Appendix B)

I got the following information from the Los Angeles police dept:

How can I get a police clearance letter for immigration purposes?

California Department of Justice: The California Department of Justice (DOJ) will provide a statewide criminal clearance if you are an immigration applicant and you have been directed to obtain California or local clearances by the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service, by a United States consulate or embassy, or by a foreign government for emigration from the United States. Processing time is approximately three to four weeks. For recorded DOJ clearance letter information, call 916-227-3822.

Federal Bureau of Investigation: You may also request a clearance letter for the purposes of immigration, emigration and visas from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The FBI furnishes national clearances directly to the embassy or consulate that is processing the applicant. For further information regarding an FBI clearance letter, please call the FBI at 304-625-3878.

There is a Canadian immigration website called Canadavisa.com that has a state-by-state listing for Police Clearance Certificates with addresses, phone numbers, instructions, and fee amounts. I wouldn't blindly trust its accuracy, but this looks like a great place to get phone numbers to confirm details, and/or web search keywords to look up their websites and verify information there. According to this same website, police certificates are considered valid for 6 months and are needed for each country in which the person has resided for more than 6 months since age 18. Interestingly, much like the aforementioned IMM 3910, no mention is made as to whether this same residency restriction also determines which states you need a certificate for. (I know what common sense dictates, but for something this important I'd rather not cause potential delays or incur extra expense by guessing.)

Spouse Inside Canada

gray - Not applicable
red - Completed items

Case Processing Centre
Vegreville, AB T9C 1W3

Sponsor forms

• IMM 1344A - Application to Sponsor and Undertaking - original
  
• IMM 1344B - Sponsorship Agreement - original
• IMM 5481 - Sponsorship Evaluation, or IMM 1283 - Financial Evaluation if your spouse/partner has dependent children included in this application who have children of their own - original

Applicant forms

• IMM 5002 - In-Canada Application for Permanent Residence & Schedule 1 - original
• IMM 5285 - Spouse/Common-law Partner Questionnaire - original

Sponsor and Applicant forms

• IMM 5476 - Use of a representative
• IMM 5443 - Document Checklist - original

Supporting Documents - Sponsor

• Canadian birth certificate - photocopy

Supporting Documents - Applicant

• Passport pages clearly showing your passport number, name, date of birth, passport issue/expiry dates and stamp made by a Canadian authority showing your most recent entry into Canada - photocopy
  
• Indication of status in Canada (e.g. visitor visa, study permit or work permit, temporary resident permit, including out of status documentation) - photocopy
  
• Birth certificate for you - photocopy
  
• Birth certificate or Canadian citizenship certificate for any dependent children
• Custody papers for your children from a previous relationship
• Adoption papers for your dependent children who were adopted
• Police certificates (Refer to Appendix A) - original {6 months}
  
• Proof of medical examination (copy of fees paid receipt) (Refer to Appendix D) - photocopy

Supporting Documents - Sponsor and Applicant

• Marriage certificate (or in our case, domestic partnership certificate) - photocopy
  
• Divorce, annulment, separation or death certificates, if either of you were previously married - photocopy
  
• Proof of your common-law relationship (e.g., evidence of joint bank, trust, credit union or charge card accounts; jointly signed residential lease, mortgage or purchase agreement; statutory declarations of individuals with personal knowledge that your relationship is genuine and continuing)
• Photographs of the marriage or common-law relationship ceremony, if applicable (photocopies are acceptable; originals will not be returned) - photocopy
  
• Declaration of severance of common-law relationship - original

Photographs

• Two (2) recent identical photos of the applicant and any of his/her dependent children in Canada {6 months}
  

Proof of income for Sponsor

• An Option C printout of your last Notice of Assessment for the most recent taxation year including printouts of all income slips, or explanation on a separate sheet of paper why this printout was not provided - original
• If you are employed, a letter from your current employer stating your period of employment, salary, and regular hours per week - original
  
• Other documentation, specified on form, for if you are sponsoring a spouse/partner with dependent children with dependent children of their own - it's too long, I'm not going to include it here
  

Processing fees

• Receipt form that has been stamped by a financial institution showing the amount paid - Copy 2

Other Documentation (beginning at page 40 of IMM 5289 the main guide)

Appendix A - Request for Police Certificates/Clearances - original
Appendix B - Fingerprints Request Letter - original
Appendix C - Photo Specifications
Appendix D - Medical Instructions

Spouse Outside Canada

gray - Not applicable
red - Completed items

(Numbering is a little off because that's the way it is on the Document Checklists.)

Case Processing Centre - Mississauga
P.O. Box 3000, Station A
Mississauga, ON L5A 4N6

Sponsor forms

• IMM 5491 - Document Checklist - original

1. IMM 1344A - Application to sponsor and Undertaking - original


2. IMM 1344B - Sponsorship Agreement - photocopy


3. IMM 5481 - Sponsorship Evaluation or IMM 1283 - Financial Evaluation - original


4. Use of a Representative (IMM 5476) - original


5. IMM 5401 - Receipt - Copy 2


6. IMM 5409 - Statutory Declaration of Common-Law Union - original


7. IMM 5540 - Sponsor Questionnaire - original

Supporting Documents - Sponsor

13. Canadian birth certificate - photocopy


14. If spouse is a co-sponsor, marriage certificate - photocopy


15. Proof of spouse's PR status or Canadian citizenship, if s/he is co-sponsoring - photocopy


16. Proof of severance of any previous marriages or common-law relationships - photocopy


17. "Option C Printout" from last year's Canadian taxes, or explanation why missing - original


18. Evidence of last 12 months' income (Letter from employer or self-employed statement) - original


19. If you must meet the minimum income requirement, more evidence of income (i.e. paystubs)


20. If you are a Canadian citizen exclusively living outside Canada, proof of intent to accompany spouse in Canada


21. Medical Condition Statement for adopted children

Applicant forms

8. IMM 0008 Generic - Application for Permanent Residence - original, 3 copies
   


9. IMM 0008 Schedule 1 - Schedule 1 - Background / Declaration - original, 3 copies
   


10. IMM 5490 - Spouse / Partner Questionnaire - original


11. IMM 5406 - Additional Family Information - original


12. IMM 5476 - Use of a Representative - original
    

Supporting Documents - Applicant
(Details are in Appendix A, in Country-Specific Instructions)

22. Identity and civil status documents - birth certificates, baptismal certificates, domestic partnership certificate - *************** not finished, adding later **************
    
23. Children's information
24. Travel Documents and passports - photocopy
    
25. Proof of relationship to sponsor - photos, letters, phone bills, airline ticket coupons, boarding passes, etc. For common-law partner:
    
    • evidence that your relationship is genuine and continuing and has existed for at least 12 months prior to your application
    • details of the history of your relationship
    • at least two (2) statutory declarations from individuals with personal knowledge of your relationship supporting your claim that relationship is genuine and continuing
      
26. Police certificates / clearances - original {6 months}
27. Proof of medical exam - Copy 2
    
    • Photos - five (5) recent *identical* photos {6 months}
28. Photos - four (4) recent *identical* photos {6 months}

Country Specific Instructions - USA

• Appendix A - Document Checklist - Applicant - original


• Appendix B - Police Certificates/Clearances - original


• Appendix C - Photo Specifications


• Appendix D - Medical Instructions - original
  

Travel Document - for Dad

First the Travel Doc because it's simplest. It appears that the processing time is a few days, maximum. Since from my research it is likely to only be valid for 1-3 months depending on the discretion of the immigration officer, and since in the case that his app for a Travel Doc was refused we couldn't make a new PR app until I was in Canada anyway, we've decided that this will be one of the last things we do before leaving.

Making sense of paperwork

Trying to understand exactly what the necessary paperwork is, and what order the various tasks should go in, is more than a little confusing. For example, the medical exam should be done as soon as possible to the day you send in all your paperwork because it expires in 12 months (if I recall correctly). But your police/FBI clearance certificate(s) may take around 4 months to get (also if I recall), so you want to do them in advance... but how far in advance, since there is no doubt a time window during which it is considered valid?

The following posts are my attempt to organize my thoughts on what paperwork is needed for Nickie's PR app (Inside Canada vs. Outside Canada app), and Dad's Travel Document.

For the purposes of describing the spouse / common-law partner / conjugal partner PR applications, I'm simply going to refer to them as "spouse." It's just easier, and that's the type of relationship those terms describe anyway. :) Items we don't need are gray. Completed items will be red.


-- More to come; I'm just about out of energy and so is my laptop battery. :)

Locations - Plan B

These are more considerations in case there is a problem with immigration. If for some reason Canada was unattainable, it would be nice to live close by so we could at least travel there frequently. Michigan and New York are the closest states to the area we want to be in, and I apologize in advance to any, uh, Michiganians? Michiganis? ...but we are not interested in living there.

I've read that Ithaca, NY is very gay-friendly and sounds like a nice place to live. It's around 4-5 hours' drive to the border. Also (and I'd have to check on the details of it's job market and such), Buffalo, NY is just this side of the border and I've read that it and Syracuse have a decent IT job market. One thing we can vouch for after driving and taking the train through upstate NY is that there's no denying it's gorgeous. This could be a very pleasant alternative.

In other news, it looks like getting the RV washed up would be about $60+, or a wash with a long-overdue wax job would be about $150-250. Ouch, but I'll bet you're liable to lose a lot more than that trying to sell it dirty, as people will assume it's been neglected and be willing to part with much less $.