Spouse Outside Canada - next steps

I think we've more or less decided to do an Outside Canada PR application, due to having some things to take care of here, plus wanting to minimize the amount of time Nickie will go without health insurance (or the amount of time that we'll have to be buying it). Now we wait for the police clearances from the FBI and the California DOJ.

Next steps, while we wait:

• Finish the last of the information on the forms
  
  
• Photos and medical exam

That way, when the clearances come in, everything else will be all ready to go. We'll be able to throw them in a big envelope with all the rest of the paperwork and send the whole pile up to Mississauga Processing Centre. :)

Warning: if you haven't looked these forms over yet, they can be pretty intensive. You'll need to supply a thorough history of the applicant's home addresses since 18 years old (no gaps) with a minimum of 10 years; a thorough history of the applicant's activities since 18 years old (no gaps) with a minimum of 10 years; information on any past marriage(s) or any past relationships where you lived with the person for more than a year (common-law); the names, addresses, and marital status of any siblings... whew! I know it's all for security's sake but some of the questions make you wonder why they really need to know all that. I mean, what does a PR application look like for, say, a 60-year-old who moved a lot and took odd jobs? Isn't the past 10 years enough? Why do they need 30, 40, 50 or more years of history? I know all this will be worth it but it's just kind of odd at times.