There's nothing more exciting than knowing that my husband and little girl received their visas last week! One of the best Christmas gifts ever! I thought their application will be approved in February next year, yet God knows how frustrated I am for being alone in this Holiday Season!
Sharing with you their application timeline:
May 17th - Application received by CIC
June 7th - Acknowledgement Receipt from CIC
July 26th - Sponsor's Approval
July 29th - CEM received their application/Acknowledgement Receipt 2
Sept 11th - Medical Request
Sept 15th - Medical Exam
Dec 7th - Decision made on E-CAS
Dec 12th - Passport Request
Dec 14th - Passport submission to VFS
Dec 16th - Application approved on MyCIC Account
Dec 22nd - Visas on hand
Everyone at work is excited to meet them, some of them offered me a ride to fetch the husband and the little girl at the airport. How kind of these people!
My only wish for those who are apart from their families is for them to be reunited soon. I know how hard it is to be away and I admire all of them for being strong facing all the struggles that came or coming their way! Just keep in mind, GOD NEVER FAILS!
Monday, December 26, 2016
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Apartment Hunting and Apartment Rental Procedure in Winnipeg
Now that I moved in to my apartment 3 months ago, I thought of posting my apartment hunting/rental application experience to give the aspiring and new immigrants an idea on how it goes. We all know that you'll be staying with your relatives or friends on your first few months in Canada but let's admit as well that you can't stay with them forever. I started looking for an apartment on my 6th month here and took me 2 months to finally found an apartment with "this is it" feeling.
Apartment hunting is fun, just make sure that you're doing it on a Summer because it will be easier to go to places without the rain/snow. The best way to find an apartment is online, specifically KIJIJI. There were 7 apartments that I visited and found all of them through that website. Here are the things that I considered in looking for an apartment:
>Rent price
This plays a big role of course. I set a budget according to my income and expenses. I wanted to have all the utilities included in the rent, however upon hunting, I found out that it ranges from CAD800 and up for a 1 bedroom apartment (well, it depends on the location of course). Here in Winnipeg, apartments in the North End is waaay cheaper than the other ends.
>Location
I preferred a location where is accessible by bus (because I don't have a car yet) and nearby my work.
>Laundry On Site
Well, believe it or not, there are apartment buildings that do not have their own laundry room and it's such a hassle if you're going out to wash your clothes especially on a winter.
>Parking
I'll get a car eventually and I considered this too. Not all the apartment buildings have their own parking. Oh by the way, you'll pay extra for parking spot. :D
>Caretaker
Yes! This is one of the things I considered. I'll live in an apartment for a while and I want an approachable and accommodating caretaker. :)
So I found the apartment that met my expectations. Since I am a new immigrant and no rental history, I can only submit my application to rent if I have a guarantor. Though there are Landlords that accept application without a guarantor but most of them don't. The caretaker asked me to submit the following:
>Damage Deposit
This is 1/2 of the monthly rent. I gave this to process my application. My caretaker doesn't accept cash and only accepts cheque or money order. If in case that the application isn't approved, they will return the damage deposit.
>Filled-out application form of the tenant and guarantor
>Proof of Income of tenant and guarantor
I submitted my employment certificate, 3 months pay stub as well as my guarantor's. I also provided a bank statement (optional) hoping that it expedites the process which it did. LOL
My caretaker submitted it to their office and I received a call from him 3 days after, telling me that I got approved. He required me to pay the 1 month deposit, sign the lease contract and provide a void cheque because I opted to have the monthly rent deducted from my chequing account.
Also, during my apartment hunting, I learned some things that I want to share with you. There is so called SUBLET wherein you will finish the contract of the current tenant who will vacate the apartment before the contract expires. In this case, the tenant will show you the apartment and if you're interested, the tenant has the application form to sublet and he will submit it to the caretaker.
I also learned that "some" caretakers only allow 2 persons in a 1 bedroom apartment. So if you are a family of 3, whether the 3rd person is still a baby, they will require you to rent a 2-bedroom apartment. Thank God my caretaker isn't strict and he is really the BEST!
I hope this post will help you in your apartment hunting in Winnipeg. :)
Apartment hunting is fun, just make sure that you're doing it on a Summer because it will be easier to go to places without the rain/snow. The best way to find an apartment is online, specifically KIJIJI. There were 7 apartments that I visited and found all of them through that website. Here are the things that I considered in looking for an apartment:
>Rent price
This plays a big role of course. I set a budget according to my income and expenses. I wanted to have all the utilities included in the rent, however upon hunting, I found out that it ranges from CAD800 and up for a 1 bedroom apartment (well, it depends on the location of course). Here in Winnipeg, apartments in the North End is waaay cheaper than the other ends.
>Location
I preferred a location where is accessible by bus (because I don't have a car yet) and nearby my work.
>Laundry On Site
Well, believe it or not, there are apartment buildings that do not have their own laundry room and it's such a hassle if you're going out to wash your clothes especially on a winter.
>Parking
I'll get a car eventually and I considered this too. Not all the apartment buildings have their own parking. Oh by the way, you'll pay extra for parking spot. :D
>Caretaker
Yes! This is one of the things I considered. I'll live in an apartment for a while and I want an approachable and accommodating caretaker. :)
 |
| Photo from Google |
So I found the apartment that met my expectations. Since I am a new immigrant and no rental history, I can only submit my application to rent if I have a guarantor. Though there are Landlords that accept application without a guarantor but most of them don't. The caretaker asked me to submit the following:
>Damage Deposit
This is 1/2 of the monthly rent. I gave this to process my application. My caretaker doesn't accept cash and only accepts cheque or money order. If in case that the application isn't approved, they will return the damage deposit.
>Filled-out application form of the tenant and guarantor
>Proof of Income of tenant and guarantor
I submitted my employment certificate, 3 months pay stub as well as my guarantor's. I also provided a bank statement (optional) hoping that it expedites the process which it did. LOL
My caretaker submitted it to their office and I received a call from him 3 days after, telling me that I got approved. He required me to pay the 1 month deposit, sign the lease contract and provide a void cheque because I opted to have the monthly rent deducted from my chequing account.
Also, during my apartment hunting, I learned some things that I want to share with you. There is so called SUBLET wherein you will finish the contract of the current tenant who will vacate the apartment before the contract expires. In this case, the tenant will show you the apartment and if you're interested, the tenant has the application form to sublet and he will submit it to the caretaker.
I also learned that "some" caretakers only allow 2 persons in a 1 bedroom apartment. So if you are a family of 3, whether the 3rd person is still a baby, they will require you to rent a 2-bedroom apartment. Thank God my caretaker isn't strict and he is really the BEST!
I hope this post will help you in your apartment hunting in Winnipeg. :)
Saturday, October 1, 2016
Sad reality
I thought living alone will be easy. I never thought that boredom can kill me. Almost a month since I moved in to my apartment, and living by myself is fun yet sad. Thank God I have my internet installed after a week of moving in, or else I might be crazy by now. Now I wonder how my mom manage to live by herself while we are away. Back in the days I was still in PH, I used to call her during my break and made sure she's ok. Now that I am in the same situation, I can say that living alone, well, I mean technically alone can be boring most of the time.
I found myself crying last night and felt the world is against me. I don't have friends to hang out with, I don't have family in CA that could give me a hug when I feel depressed. Yes, you read that right, I am depressed. I don't know why all of a sudden I am feeling this, seems like my hormones are kicking in. Saw my husband and daughter's pictures in a birthday party that made me cry out loud to the extent that I can no longer breath. I told myself, I should be there, we are family, we should be together.
I woke up this morning and the feeling is still the same. I have no one to talk to and decided to message my husband. I don't want him to worry but I feel like going crazy if I won't tell anyone about what's happening.
Believe me, living in the different side of the world with only few friends and some distant relatives is a challenge. Yes, they are there to help you but of course they have their own lives too. Sometimes I'm thinking how I survive by myself and how I control my emotions seeing a family doing groceries together, seeing friends having a good time and witnessing couples fetching their partners at work. I used to be in their shoes but now, I'm ALONE, just M-Y-S-E-L-F. And I explode! I can't tolerate the emotional pain anymore.
The last time I experienced depression was when my first month or 2 living in Canada and yet, here again. The struggle is real. My husband wants me to go out, then what? go to the mall by MYSELF and see families or group of friends hanging out? I'll end up envious of them.
I know no one can help me, but myself. I know I'll be fine. I'll be alright. They'll be here. SOON. and I will say I HAVE MY FAMILY and I am NOT ALONE.
I found myself crying last night and felt the world is against me. I don't have friends to hang out with, I don't have family in CA that could give me a hug when I feel depressed. Yes, you read that right, I am depressed. I don't know why all of a sudden I am feeling this, seems like my hormones are kicking in. Saw my husband and daughter's pictures in a birthday party that made me cry out loud to the extent that I can no longer breath. I told myself, I should be there, we are family, we should be together.
I woke up this morning and the feeling is still the same. I have no one to talk to and decided to message my husband. I don't want him to worry but I feel like going crazy if I won't tell anyone about what's happening.
Believe me, living in the different side of the world with only few friends and some distant relatives is a challenge. Yes, they are there to help you but of course they have their own lives too. Sometimes I'm thinking how I survive by myself and how I control my emotions seeing a family doing groceries together, seeing friends having a good time and witnessing couples fetching their partners at work. I used to be in their shoes but now, I'm ALONE, just M-Y-S-E-L-F. And I explode! I can't tolerate the emotional pain anymore.
The last time I experienced depression was when my first month or 2 living in Canada and yet, here again. The struggle is real. My husband wants me to go out, then what? go to the mall by MYSELF and see families or group of friends hanging out? I'll end up envious of them.
I know no one can help me, but myself. I know I'll be fine. I'll be alright. They'll be here. SOON. and I will say I HAVE MY FAMILY and I am NOT ALONE.
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Sponsoring spouse and dependent child to Canada
When I was still preparing the application for my husband and daughter, I tried looking for blogs about how the application goes for Family visa to Canada. Seems like there's none and decided to create one to help the spouses of Canadian Citizens or Permanent Residents of Canada to unite with their loved ones. :)
There are two process in applying for a family visa application. First, they will determine if your sponsor meets the eligibility to be a sponsor. Second, principal applicant's background check which takes place in the visa office where the applicant resides.
Before we proceed in discussing the requirements and process, let me share who can be sponsored under the family class:
-Spouse of Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident
-Dependent child of sponsor and/or of the principal applicant
-Common law partner
To apply for this type of visa, the completed application must be submitted once at Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario.
Questions I asked myself before I applied for my family:
-Can I sponsor my spouse or family even if I'm working part time/temporary/casual?
Yes. The sponsor for family visa application doesn't require to meet the low income cut-off provided by CIC. Yet, the sponsor needs to prove that he has a job to support the needs of his spouse or family. If the dependent child has dependent child of his own, that's the time the sponsor is required to meet the low income cut-off.
-Can I sponsor my spouse or family even if I just arrived in Canada last year?
Yes. There's nothing in their website that restricts the sponsor to apply for family visa even if the sponsor arrived in Canada in less than a year.
-Can my family do the upfront medical?
Yes. Applicants under the family visa category can do the upfront medical and submit the receipt together with the application as a proof that the applicants are already done the medical exam.
-Can I still apply as sponsor even if I don't have the Notice of Assessment or Option C print-out?
Yes. Make sure that you provide an employment certificate, pay stubs and a letter of explanation why you cannot provide the mentioned requirements.
The answers above are based on my personal experience. I applied for my family while I'm on a temporary job, arrived in December 2015 and No Option C print-out, yet I got approved as Sponsor. :)
I only followed the checklist available in the CIC's website and did a lot of reading before I decided to sponsor them. We all know how hard it is for us to be away from our family. Applying for a family visa takes a lot of time, money and effort. I would just suggest to be careful in filling-out the application forms, do not staple your documents and separate the documents of sponsor and PR applicant/s.
Once you submitted your application, the first email you'll receive from CIC is the Acknowledgement of Receipt (AOR1), then the Sponsor's Approval (SA). In my case, I haven't received my SA yet, but I tried calling CIC and they confirmed that I got approved. 2 days after calling them, my husband received his AOR 2 emailed by the Canadian embassy-Manila. From there, you will know if you still have additional documents that need to submit. After the AOR2 and no additional documents required, you only have to wait for the Passport request from the embassy for visa stamping. :)
There are two process in applying for a family visa application. First, they will determine if your sponsor meets the eligibility to be a sponsor. Second, principal applicant's background check which takes place in the visa office where the applicant resides.
Before we proceed in discussing the requirements and process, let me share who can be sponsored under the family class:
-Spouse of Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident
-Dependent child of sponsor and/or of the principal applicant
-Common law partner
To apply for this type of visa, the completed application must be submitted once at Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario.
Questions I asked myself before I applied for my family:
-Can I sponsor my spouse or family even if I'm working part time/temporary/casual?
Yes. The sponsor for family visa application doesn't require to meet the low income cut-off provided by CIC. Yet, the sponsor needs to prove that he has a job to support the needs of his spouse or family. If the dependent child has dependent child of his own, that's the time the sponsor is required to meet the low income cut-off.
-Can I sponsor my spouse or family even if I just arrived in Canada last year?
Yes. There's nothing in their website that restricts the sponsor to apply for family visa even if the sponsor arrived in Canada in less than a year.
-Can my family do the upfront medical?
Yes. Applicants under the family visa category can do the upfront medical and submit the receipt together with the application as a proof that the applicants are already done the medical exam.
-Can I still apply as sponsor even if I don't have the Notice of Assessment or Option C print-out?
Yes. Make sure that you provide an employment certificate, pay stubs and a letter of explanation why you cannot provide the mentioned requirements.
 |
The answers above are based on my personal experience. I applied for my family while I'm on a temporary job, arrived in December 2015 and No Option C print-out, yet I got approved as Sponsor. :)
I only followed the checklist available in the CIC's website and did a lot of reading before I decided to sponsor them. We all know how hard it is for us to be away from our family. Applying for a family visa takes a lot of time, money and effort. I would just suggest to be careful in filling-out the application forms, do not staple your documents and separate the documents of sponsor and PR applicant/s.
Once you submitted your application, the first email you'll receive from CIC is the Acknowledgement of Receipt (AOR1), then the Sponsor's Approval (SA). In my case, I haven't received my SA yet, but I tried calling CIC and they confirmed that I got approved. 2 days after calling them, my husband received his AOR 2 emailed by the Canadian embassy-Manila. From there, you will know if you still have additional documents that need to submit. After the AOR2 and no additional documents required, you only have to wait for the Passport request from the embassy for visa stamping. :)
Friday, March 18, 2016
Spring in Winnipeg
When you think winter is over, uh oh! Not for Winterpeg! Winnipegers loved the weather in the past week because we were having +6 and snow melted. When roads are almost totally dry, I think the snow missed Winnipeg and started to fall last Tuesday, just in time I was about to go home from work! Good timing, eh? I wasn't prepared then, and when I got off from the bus and walked towards home, my coat and shoes were covered by snow.
Who am I to complain? I am in Winnipeg and it's not impossible to happen! The next day, I was planning to just wear rubber shoes and to my surprise, the surroundings were all white!
I guess I should name it "White Holy Week" ?
Who am I to complain? I am in Winnipeg and it's not impossible to happen! The next day, I was planning to just wear rubber shoes and to my surprise, the surroundings were all white!
I guess I should name it "White Holy Week" ?
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Life of a new immigrant in Winnipeg
It's been a while folks! I've been in Winterpeg for nearly 2 months and still adjusting to the weather, culture and simple life that this City has. I arrived in first week of December and since then, I've been looking for work. It's true that opportunities here are endless, it's just up to you if you are comfortable working in a different field.
Life hasn't been easy since I arrived, especially if you migrated alone. The first night was terrible. Sleeping without my husband and my baby was a torture. I even experienced chilling outside until I arrived in my destination because I didn't check the weather (stupid) and just wearing a leather jacket plus a not waterproof boots. But guess what, I'm still here, embracing what Winterpeg has to offer.
It is important to gain friends in a new environment, aside from building your network, you can have someone to run to if you need to have your resumes printed, go together and job hunt or simply catch up. I have a small circle of friends I met during the Entry Program and Employment Workshop hosted by Manitoba Start and still keeping in touch with them through Facebook. Cool, right?
I would advice aspiring immigrants of Winnipeg, Manitoba to attend the MB Start. They will help you create your targeted resume, how to be employable and gain confidence during interview. You can also use your Career Coach as your Reference in Canada when you apply for a job.
Job hunting isn't easy. I'm telling the truth not to disappoint you but to open your eyes to reality. I got my first job in a call center, attended a 1 week training (too much information that has to be taken up I guess for more than a month) and went to work for just a day. Yes, you read it right, just a day. Why? Because, I've realized that I'm not right fit for the job. Yes, you'll just answer calls for 8 hours and stuck up yourself in front of the computer and give information and process your callers' request. But that's not me. I used to work interacting personally with people. I give up the job and look for another one. I had 3 interviews this week, and luckily got a job that I wanted. It may not be full time, but I know that I'll enjoy it. While the other company invited me to 2nd interview in a different area and that will be on Monday.
Like any others, I felt depression, I can even feel it until now. There are times that I lock myself in the washroom and cry. I lie down, gather my thoughts then cry. I always tell my husband that I'll just wait for my PR card and I'll go home. However, I've realized, when I go back to the Philippines, I will also look for a job, we will look for an apartment, bring up our daughter to school and many more. The same way that we will eventually do when they arrive here, so better yet build a career in a first world country where medical assistance and school for our kid are free. Not to mention, there's also an allowance for our baby monthly. Isn't it a good deal?
Now that I can write about my thoughts, I know I have gained now myself back. Well, I'm inspired of the call I received this morning that I got the job. :) So for newcomers, we've all been through that, just remember that Winnipeg is a place to be!
Monday, October 26, 2015
Peycie's pre-birthday shoot
I still can't believe that I'll be having a toddler in less than a month! Photo s*cker I am, I won't let her birthday passed without having a photoshoot. Remember my last post about the Baby Shower Studio? Well, this time we didn't avail their service, not that we don't like their work, but because we are in a budget especially that I am now a stay-at-home mom for 4 months already. I don't want my husband to shoulder the burden of my kaartehan.
Anyway, let me first show you my DIYs used in her photoshoot. I never thought that I have a hidden creativity in my voluptuous body until I created these:
I made the pompoms using crepe paper and with the help of YouTube, while the improvised picket fence was made of illustration board. Over all, I was really happy seeing the result.
Let me share with you some of Peycie's shots last Saturday and how we used those props.
You might be wondering where are the pompoms, well we used them on the later part of the shoot. I'm having trouble uploading it, so please forgive me for that.
It was a tiring yet a fun-filled afternoon! I can't get over with the cuteness of my daughter, just like they say "love your own". :D
Anyway, let me first show you my DIYs used in her photoshoot. I never thought that I have a hidden creativity in my voluptuous body until I created these:
 |
| Paper pompoms and picket fence :) |
I made the pompoms using crepe paper and with the help of YouTube, while the improvised picket fence was made of illustration board. Over all, I was really happy seeing the result.
Let me share with you some of Peycie's shots last Saturday and how we used those props.
 |
| My little fairy |
You might be wondering where are the pompoms, well we used them on the later part of the shoot. I'm having trouble uploading it, so please forgive me for that.
It was a tiring yet a fun-filled afternoon! I can't get over with the cuteness of my daughter, just like they say "love your own". :D
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