12 replies to this topic

[Martin D]

Ok, here is a strange predicament we are in. Jonna and I decided that she would move here, and we will spend a few years here before moving to the Philippines. That in itself is not the problem. Jonna has two children, and in order to include them in the application to come here, she needs to get a paper signed by the fathers, giving them permission to come to Canada.

Here lies the problem. While the youngest has a father listed on his birth certificate, the oldest child does not. We figured we would go through the courts to get sole custody her her, but the judge wants an address of her father. We don't know where he can be found. So, since no father is listed on her BC, what would the suggestion be to make the Canadian government happy that everything that could be done, is in fact done?

[MrkGrismer]

I'm no expert on the Canadian process. But I assume she at least knows the father's name and last place of residence (city/province). She will probably need to run an advertisement in a newspaper (or three) in that location for a certain amount of time (not sure how long but three weeks is what comes to the top of my head). Also if she is nearby that location she can post a notice in all the local churches (she should take a photo of the notices, along with the ads for documentation purposes). This is generally considered the 'good faith' attempt to get in touch with the person, and is typically what is required in cases of divorce/annullment when contact has been loss.

Hopefully others can give you firmer details.

[1PPCLI]

Martin,

Interesting question. First question, have you contacted CIC? Did they give any advice? How about CBSA? Then you will have the airlines, who will also want some documentation, too.

I think your best bet is to get sole custody through the Philippines' courts. It might be an arduous journey, but if you are thinking of adoption, it would ease the process.

[Martin D]

She has hired a lawyer, and will seek sole custody through the courts.  As you said Mark, it sounds like she will need the last known address, and also sounds like something will need to be published.

 

OK, on to the next problem.  There is a minor spelling mistake on her birth certificate.  Instead of a letter e, there is a letter i.  This came up when she was going to apply for a passport.  Her choices are, get the passport with the wrong spelling, and then possibly have issues with CIC, or take the time to get the birth certificate corrected, adding many months before we can even consider applying.  My suggestion to her was, get the passport, and while we are processing everything, work on fixing her birth certificate.  But I dont know if my advice was the right advice.  What are your guys thoughts?

[Fritz]

A clerical error on the BC is a simple correction done through the Local Civil Registrar's Office (LCRO), so it is best to go ahead and get that done so it never becomes a question

 

The fee is P1000 if done at the LCRO of original record.

 

If she no longer lives near the LCRO where her birth was recorded, she can apply for the correction at the nearest LCRO, or consulate, as a migrant.  The fee is then P1000+P500 in Philippines and US$50 at any Philippine consulate. (There may be an additional P500 fee at the consulate for a migrant petition, the FAQ is unclear)

 

Census.gov.ph Civil Registration Laws FAQ for RA9048

 

The adventures continue

Fritz

[1PPCLI]

Martin 

 

Best to fix the spelling mistake before getting the passport. You don't want to confuse or work the civil servant, too much. 

 

Will make an assumption she will be joining you in Alberta, so if you want some friendly advice, try not having to land at Vancouver. The place will be zoo, as all the Trans-Pacific flights land in the same time period. See if there is a Trans-Pacific flight to Edmonton, if not, I know there is one flight from Tokyo into Calgary, and when it arrives, the custom hall is empty, allowing for a quick entry. Something you may want to consider. 

 

Stay warm, saw it was -41 C up there this morning. 

[Martin D]

Thanks to both of you. Fritz, I will pass on the information to Jonna. PPCLI, I will keep that in mind.

[Martin D]

At long last, we have sole custody of the children, and the paperwork has been filed to correct her birth certificate. That was a pain getting it done. She needed to provide her mothers and fathers birth certificate. As luck would have it, her mothers also had a spelling mistake that needed to be corrected. It's been a long journey and we haven't even started yet. Hahaha

We are hoping that her birth certificate will be in her possession in November. She will then get her passport. I am flying back again (trip 7) in February, so we will take care of the police check, medical check, and all the paperwork then. I will bring them back with me to Canada then drop the package into the mail when I get back. That's the plan...........

[MrkGrismer]

Congratulations!

[Martin D]

At long last we are nearing the end of the road for getting everything together for immigration purposes.  Still waiting on a passport, but we have everything (application to come to Canada) printed out, and tons of proof of an ongoing relationship.

 

In regards to the Canadian immigration process, one of the requirements is to get a medical done.  There are 4 doctors listed in Davao, who all share the same building and same phone number.  Unfortunately, the number doesn't seem to work.  Has anyone else gotten a medical done in Davao, and how were you able to make an appointment?

[Martin D]

So, just an update...we submitted our application for permanent residence to the Canadian Government back in May. In July, I was approved as the sponsor. The file was transferred out of Canada, to the Manila visa office. From everything I have read, I explained to my wife that this is the time that we need patience, and it's best to try to forget that this process is started. Because if not, every week will feel like an eternity waiting for an answer to our application request.

At the end of October, she got an email requesting a document. This was exciting, because we knew they were looking at our file. She sent in the requested document a couple of days later. The day after she emailed it to them, she got a phone call from the Visa office, asking questions...first about the kids, but then more in depth into her. The biggest delay in our submitting our application was because of a spelling error on her birth certificate. We had this corrected before applying. So, this phone call was in regards to the change in her birth certificate. They wanted a new criminal record search done on her but with the old spelling (spelling mistake version) of her name. The one they had was with the new spelling. The Canadian Government is doing their due diligence in making sure there is no funny business going on, and that my wife is who she says she is.

About a week after sending the updated criminal record search, she got an email...a generic email, inviting her to take advantage of free pre arrival services funded by the Government of Canada. The email was telling her to get herself ready to come to Canada. That got us excited, but because this was a generic email, and not an actual approval letter, we waited. And waited. And, are still waiting. She has gotten this particular email four times now. The funny thing is, we have tried to forget about the immigration process, so it doesn't make us crazy...and the government is forcing us to keep thinking about it, every time they send her this free pre arrival services email.

So, we continue to wait. I am hoping that we will hear something early in this new year. But, it could be several more months as well. Whenever it comes, our end of this process is getting near.

[Mr. Lee]

Possible, since they sent it to her 4 times, then maybe they expect a reply, maybe she should take the class as a sign of real interest in moving to your country...

[Martin D]

No, it's not a class. It's an email that links to many different services. Most that I saw do not pertain to her situation. Like I said, it's a generic email. There are refugee services, many services for country specific immigrants, job skills organizations, organizations to help with housing, etc. And all these organizations are in Canada. There is no problem with this email...just that it originally gave a lot of excitement, but then they kept coming. I also went through the various links to see if there was any ngo's that might be of use to her, but I couldn't find any. I tried to find if there was something that she should register for, but I didn't see anything.