Mrs. B.

Hi all,

Wondering if anyone can guide me in the right direction. I'm looking to move to Canada with my 3 kids. I have Canadian citizenship. (I wasn't born in Canada but my dad was) I applied for citizenship for 2 of my kids which was granted but the certs were lost. Can I move to Canada now and apply for replacement certs when I get there or do I need them now? CIC posted them and they never showed up. Its taking 5 months apparently to process them. I've emailed them and they said I need to apply for new ones but did not answer if I could travel now and apply later. I cannot get an answer from the London office either.

My youngest child was born after 2009 so she was not entitled to citizen as the rules changed so I have to apply to sponsor her. Can I apply and travel now? Or do I have to wait until its approved? This process is apparently taking 18 months. She will need to go to school so must have proper status in the country. I've been trying to get an answer for 3 weeks now and just cannot seem to have my questions answered.

Hope somebody can help.

Many thanks.

Pulaski

Anyone who arrives in Canada without a Canadian passport or a visa is going to be admitted as a visitor, and notwithstanding that they are Canadian citizens, this could cause all sorts of problems. Therefore you should obtain new/replacement certificates of citizenship for your children ahead of traveling to Canada.

You didn't mention your children's father. Will he be traveling with you too?

Mrs. B.

I will be getting replacement certificates for them but wanted to travel to Canada next month, the certs are taking 5 months to replace. I wonder would a letter stating I've replaced them do?

I'm separated. So its just me and the kids. I have full custody of them.

Pulaski

You can't just say "they're Canadian citizens, honest!" and get them admitted as Canadians, they will be admitted as visitors. ..... Your youngest child will need a visa for the same reason - without it she'll just be a visitor.
"Full custody" doesn't mean anything for immigration purposes, to remove them from the UK you will need either the father's permission or a court order. Full stop.

If you remove them from the UK their father could fairly easily file a claim of child abduction and have them returned to the UK. Canada is a signatory to the convention on child abduction, so when the Canadian courts are presented with a court order from the UK there is very little chance of your children not being returned to the UK. This can happen despitd "full custody", and can happen years later.

Mrs. B.

Their dad is living in New Zealand. He gave full permission for me to leave New Zealand with them. I'm currently living in Ireland. He gets to see them during school holidays 4 times a year if he wishes. Surely it wouldn't matter what country they are in for him to visit. I guess I should look into this though. Thank you.

Pulaski

Well if you're on reasonable terms with him, and in regular contact, then a notarized letter from him saying that he agrees that you can move them to Canada should entirely resolve the matter.

christmasoompa

You will absolutely need his written permission - Canada is incredibly hot on this, and you'll be likely to be asked for it when you try to enter Canada. So definitely get a letter from him, hopefully it won't be an issue.

But you should have plenty of time to sort that by the time you've got citizenship certs and PR for your youngest, it's just really a heads up that it will be necessary.

Best of luck to you.

Mrs. B.

Thank you. So I take it that there is no temporary residents visa I can apply for my daughter while I wait for PR for her?

Snowy560

IMO: your child is eligible to go to school on the basis that you are a Canadian citizen.

Can a minor child go to school in Canada without a study permit?

I don't know how easy this would be in practice, wherever this is that you will be located, but people have posted with this scenario on this forum in the past.

Further on down the line: once you have sponsored the child who is not already a Canadian citizen (as your other children are), and that child has become a PR, you can then apply for citizenship for that child (non-concurrent application).

Citizenship grants: Timing of applications for minors

But very importantly, you need the proof in relation to your custody arrangements as outlined by Christmas above in order to be even considering the move.

As Christmas says, you should have plenty of time to sort things out while waiting for citizenship certs and PR for your younger child before you move.

S

Pulaski

There is also the bigger issue, where immigration and schooling laws are inconsistent, and probably are in many countries - where school for children is mandatory if they are "living" in a country, and parents don't get a pass from sending their children to school because they don't have the right visa or immigrant paperwork. In fact even children in the country illegally are required to receive education (yes, I know this is contradictory to what some school districts try to tell people, but education for children is not optional).

Snowy560

Yes children without status are *allowed* to go to school in Canada:

Find out if your child needs a study permit

As you also note, how easy this is in practice .... depends on various factors. I think in Ontario it's written into the law.

However, the OP's child would probably not be without status (they'd either be a PR or a visitor, probably).

S

Mrs. B.

So if I get the certs for my boys and get their passports sorted within the next 6 months I could bring my daughter while her sponsorship is in process?

Aviator

If you already have an authority to remove from NZ, with no country restrictions, CIC may accept this. If it says to remove them to the UK, you would need another naming Canada or open to anywhere in the world.

Siouxie

You will probably need him to fill out this form: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kit...s/IMM5604E.pdf to sponsor your youngest (consent to emigrate). For the others, probably just a letter of consent to them moving to Canada.

You will need to apply for Canadian Passports for yourself and your 2 elder children if you are planning on coming to Canada after September 2016 as you won't be able to apply for an eTA. Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA)

In answer to your other question, yes, your daughter could enter Canada under dual intent. You can start the sponsorship while you are in the UK, no need to wait.