Sponsoring Algerian Spouse to Canada

[wisdom_seeker]

At the request of a friend I will keep you posted on the Sponsorship Process as it pertains to me.
There have already been some holdups and I haven't filed the documents as yet.
Firstly, when my fiance applied for a Visitors Visa he was denied. I wasn't very clever when I wrote up the letter of invitation... It sounded like he was coming as a visitor and planning to stay. Keep your letter of invitation short and sweet.
I had to plan a trip to Algeria. I applied for a Visitors Visa from the Embassy in Ottawa. They wouldnt give me a Visa until I knew precisely what day I was going and what day I was returning. Although on the webpage it says the visa is good for a month.. it is NOT. I was given the exact day going and returning that i had mentioned..not a day more. The problem with this is that when i went to go purchase my plane tickets.. i had to leeway. Another problem... when I realized i had to extend my trip by ten days... i had to go apply for a Visa extension during my trip. Get your Visa for a few days before and after the days you plan to travel. It will save you time later.
Next holdup... I got married on Dec.9.2004. Because I was a foreignor over there, all the paperwork was delayed. After a couple of visits to the police station in Bordj and countless phonecalls to people who we thought might be able to help us.. nothing helped.. simply had to wait. As of today, we still have not received our Act de Marriage (Marriage Act). This is why i stayed the extra ten days.. to wait for it. It was pointless. My husband got up every morning and went to see what he could do to expedite our document instead of spending time with me... it was our loss.
Next... I did get a Visa extension.. but i also had to change my flight. I took my ticket to a travel agency in Bordj who changed the date without a problem. What i didnt realize was... it made my ticket invalid. I had to purchase a NEW one way ticket home.. almost the cost of the original two way i had originally purchased.
And not to mention that i arrived at the airport ready to go and then discovered the problem.. i was a 4 hour driving distance from the airport. A disaster !
You think I can get that little agency to reimburse my plane ticket ? i wont hold my breath.
The one way ticket put me in Paris and London in the same day.. so i did algeria, paris, london and home.. canada.. in one day. whew.... Had to stop in Paris because the ticket from there to Canada is MUCH cheaper than a ticket from Algeria to Canada.. cheaper by half i believe.
I stayed overnight at his sisters in Paris... 4 hours sleep i think. and ohhhh.. cant forget to mention that whoever the contact was that bought the ticket for me, bought me a two way ticket from paris to canada and back.. apparently its cheaper that way ??? i dunno.. all i could do was laugh hysterically when i saw it....
When I get my Marriage document I will file the documents... and I ofcourse will keep you posted.
Did you learn anything ?? lol

[mimiiw]

greetings Wisdomseeker, I very much appreciate your posting here because it will eventually pertain to me also in the future. I found your experience almost fascinating in regards to what you had to go thru and the troubles and hassles that you encountered. As a travel agent by profession, I can just say that it is always cheaper for you to purchase a fictatious return ticket rather than a one way -that's how the airlines would prefer to make their money! In any case, regarding the misfortune of having to pay an extra one way ticket because the other one became invalid with the change involved -personally i would try to attempt some sort of salvaging for the extra expense that you incurred by photocopying all copies of what you have left of both Algeria/Paris tickets (Im assuming that it is AIR ALGERIE -and if you write a very detailed letter in french explaining the circumstances -send it REGISTERED MAIL to the head office for the airline but in PARIS FRANCE ; with the request for an investigation into your case and a PARTIAL REFUND as soon as possible (worded nicely of course ) In your letter, type out both sets of the original ticket numbers so that they can go into their data base to verify everything that you have mentioned. I have always handled a situation with various airlines for my clients over the years, in this way, and KNOCK WOOD, a vast majority of the time, the results have been beneficial to the clients. I hope that this can be the case for you.

My experience with the Algerian embassy in Ottawa, last year was extremely easy. I looked at my old visa from last year just now, in my passport, and I see that it says, a 30day visa, but the expiry date on it was actually for 10days afterthat? And I know that when I had originally applied for it, I had sent them the itinerary showing the exact arrival and departure date into Algeria at the time, so go figure? But I hope that I havent jinxed myself now by yibberyabbering about this now, for when I apply for my second visitor's visa in the near future! :P In any case, I appreciate you posting the details of what happened, and I hope that everything goes well for you in the future. If you want furtuer information in regards to the refund request process you can always answer back here and I will do my best to help you in any way I can with this.

[wisdom_seeker]

Update :
I obviously misunderstood something. Maybe it was all this talk about legal documents.
I thought that the only document I was waiting for was my Act de Marriage...and that there was a good chance that I had to return to Algeria to sign for it. It turns out theres more to it than i originally thought.
When my husband told me that someone at the City Hall in Bordj called him to come in and fill in some forms and make sure everything was spelled correctly... i thought they were going to release the Act de Marriage to him without me being present. But what they are releasing is the "Licence" to get married legally. He can get that without me being present... but they still will not issue an Act de Marriage without me being there. So i do have to return to Algeria afterall.
I thought I had found a way around it. I contacted the Algerian Embassy in Ottawa and asked if i could go to the Embassy and they could do the marriage by proxy.... Nope !
Because I am not Algerian. I already got clearance from the Canadian Embassy in Algiers showing that I am suitable to marry but it suppose it isn't enough. The person I spoke with suggested that I write an affidavit giving permission for someone to sign on my behalf and send it... but really.. if the Algerian Government will not acknowledge the Algerian Embassy in Canada... then there is no other way. And besides.. I offered to do that while i was still in Algeria and they said it would not matter.
Sooooo.. looks like I'll be packing my bags soon... again.
The man I spoke with was shocked when I told him how much I paid for my first ticket. He suggested I go to Montreal and take the Royal Air Morrocco to Casablanca and then onto Algiers. It will save me about $500.CDN... nothing to sneeze at.
I just look forward to having all the documents I need so I can proceed with sponsorship. Inshallah it will come together nicely... I don't need any more challenges

[wisdom_seeker]

I received my letter of invitation to return to Algeria. It took two weeks to get here.
This very night I sent everything off to the Algerian Embassy in Ottawa. I called them earlier today. They said I should apply for a Tourist Visa.. not a Family Visa because I have no legal documentation to prove that I am married. This is the purpose of this second trip !
I am leaving for Algeria at the end of next week. I will come back with all the documents that I need to sponsor my husband. And at that time I will be back to tell you more.

[wisdom_seeker]

Today I received my passport back from the Algerian Embassy. I got a 45 day VISA even though i will only be in Algeria for 9 days ! Better safe than sorry.
Maybe I can bring the old plane ticket back and show them what a mess they created for me.
When i bought my new ticket i was informed by my travel agent that no matter where i am in the world... i can always pay more money to have the date of my flight changed... there was no need to purchase an entirely new ticket ! Why didnt i think of that !? Anyhow.. it was not a good day to make decisions and many needed to be made. I got home safe and now I'm well armed with knowledge. This will not happen again !

This is the Canadian Citizenship and Immigration link :
http://www.cic.gc.ca

[MrMean_]

Originally posted by wisdom_seeker
Today I received my passport back from the Algerian Embassy. I got a 45 day VISA even though i will only be in Algeria for 9 days ! Better safe than sorry.
Maybe I can bring the old plane ticket back and show them what a mess they created for me.
When i bought my new ticket i was informed by my travel agent that no matter where i am in the world... i can always pay more money to have the date of my flight changed... there was no need to purchase an entirely new ticket ! Why didnt i think of that !? Anyhow.. it was not a good day to make decisions and many needed to be made. I got home safe and now I'm well armed with knowledge. This will not happen again !

This is the Canadian Citizenship and Immigration link :
http://www.cic.gc.ca

HI WS,

When are youn leaving and where are you going to be staying (City) if you don't mind me asking?

[wisdom_seeker]

[/B][/QUOTE]
HI WS,

When are youn leaving and where are you going to be staying (City) if you don't mind me asking? [/B][/QUOTE]

I'm leaving April 8 and I'm going to Bordj Bou Arreridj