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Need help on Question 13 on Adult Application

Printed From: Canada Immigration and Visa Discussion Forum
Category: Canada Immigration Topics
Forum Name: Canadian Citizenship
Forum Description: Commentaries outlining important issues in acquiring Canadian citizenship through naturalization
URL: https://secure.immigration.ca/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=32245
Printed Date: 27 May 2024 at 7:41pm


Topic: Need help on Question 13 on Adult Application
Posted By: sgidwani
Subject: Need help on Question 13 on Adult Application
Date Posted: 16 Jun 2018 at 9:02am
Friends, I am so glad I stumbled across this forum! we are planning to submit my wife's citizenship application in a few days and are having some difficulty getting clarification on how to answer one of the questions.

I have been a citizen since the early 1990's. I moved to the UAE in 2000 and opened a business there. Met my wife (who is a citizen of India) in 2003, got married, had 2 children, and we all returned back to Canada in 2013 when we immediately applied and finally received her PR in march of 2015. The kids, of course, being born in the UAE, got their citizenship shortly after their births in 2005 and 2006.

At this point, we have been living here for 5 years. I work and she takes care of the home and kids. We both have filed taxes every year and she has gone on two vacations in this time, both to visit her family in India. Her physical presence calculator shows her being present for about 1450 days.

In filling out the application, question 13 asks: "Have you ever had Immigration or Citizenship status in any country other than Canada, including your birth?" 

While we lived in the UAE, we had visas that were renewable every 2 years. At no time did this put us on a path to citizenship. All expatriates in the UAE fall under 2 classes: visitors, or residents. There is no immigration class that will eventually allow you to apply for citizenship. You will never get a travel document. But yes, as long as you keep renewing your residence permit every two years, you can continue to stay there indefinitely!

The question I have is... in filling out the question, do I:

a) Not include any reference to our time in the UAE as it is irrelevant
b) Include the UAE because of the amount of time we lived there
c) Include the UAE, and provide an explanation in the covering letter.

I thank you all in advance for any help you can offer in addressing my confusion.




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Sammyboy


Replies:
Posted By: pmm
Date Posted: 16 Jun 2018 at 12:21pm
Hi

Originally posted by sgidwani sgidwani wrote:

Friends, I am so glad I stumbled across this forum! we are planning to submit my wife's citizenship application in a few days and are having some difficulty getting clarification on how to answer one of the questions.

I have been a citizen since the early 1990's. I moved to the UAE in 2000 and opened a business there. Met my wife (who is a citizen of India) in 2003, got married, had 2 children, and we all returned back to Canada in 2013 when we immediately applied and finally received her PR in march of 2015. The kids, of course, being born in the UAE, got their citizenship shortly after their births in 2005 and 2006.

At this point, we have been living here for 5 years. I work and she takes care of the home and kids. We both have filed taxes every year and she has gone on two vacations in this time, both to visit her family in India. Her physical presence calculator shows her being present for about 1450 days.

In filling out the application, question 13 asks: "Have you ever had Immigration or Citizenship status in any country other than Canada, including your birth?" 

While we lived in the UAE, we had visas that were renewable every 2 years. At no time did this put us on a path to citizenship. All expatriates in the UAE fall under 2 classes: visitors, or residents. There is no immigration class that will eventually allow you to apply for citizenship. You will never get a travel document. But yes, as long as you keep renewing your residence permit every two years, you can continue to stay there indefinitely!

The question I have is... in filling out the question, do I:

a) Not include any reference to our time in the UAE as it is irrelevant
b) Include the UAE because of the amount of time we lived there
c) Include the UAE, and provide an explanation in the covering letter.

I thank you all in advance for any help you can offer in addressing my confusion.





1. Yes, your spouse had Immigration status in the UAE, she was there as a visitor for 2 years. The questions doesn't ask whether you were on a path to permanent residence or citizenship in the UAE>


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PMM

Posted By: sgidwani
Date Posted: 17 Jun 2018 at 7:40am
Thanks for taking the time to respond, but this only raises another question then: 

Are you saying that every place she has ever visited needs to be included? If "Ever had Immigration" means "Ever been in another country" then it would be nearly impossible to answer the question for someone who has travelled extensively since birth.

Or is it simply the length of time (more than 6 months) that determines whether a location should be included?







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Sammyboy


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