Yesterday I took, and passed, the Canadian citizenship test. Much like obtaining the G1 license in Ontario, I didn’t find enough information online about the process, so I thought I would share some details regarding my personal experience here.
The process to obtain your Canadian citizenship
Before delving into the details of preparing and passing the citizenship test, I want to provide you with a quick overview of the entire process:
- First you’ll need to determine if you are eligible to apply and then, if you are, apply for Canadian citizenship. You’ll need to be a permanent resident who’s been in the country long enough in order to do so.
- Wait a long time. The current processing time is, on average, about 19 months. After several months, the status of your application will change to reflect the fact that your application has been received and is now being processed. Thankfully you can check the status of your citizenship application online. At some point you might receive a notice in the mail stating that your application has been accepted. This notice doesn’t mean that you’ll become a Canadian citizen for sure; just that the CIC has verified that your application was prepared correctly and will now be further processed.
- Some time later, you’ll receive a notice to appear at a local citizenship and immigration center. This notice will tell you exactly what documents you need to bring, as well as the date and time of your meeting.
- Once you pass your knowledge and linguistic ability test, you’ll be invited to a citizenship ceremony, which will is typically attended by yourself and your family and friends. Here you’ll receive a citizenship certificate, which (it’s worth noting) cannot be used for identification purposes (as the government wants you to apply for a passport instead).
Since most people already have citizenship from a different country (in my case, Italy), it’s important to note that Canada is happy to give you citizenship even if you plan to keep your original citizenship. Dual citizenship is allowed in Canada.
Other countries however may not allow you to keep your original citizenship or may require you to go through a process to let them know about your new citizenship. Either way, this has nothing to do with Canada, and you should contact your country of origin’s consulate in Canada for questions related to dual citizenship.
Back to the topic of the citizenship test itself, in this post I focus on the third step in the process outlined above, which is the least documented one. The fourth step is really straightforward. It’s just a formal ceremony where you’ll recite the oath of citizenship, sign and receive your citizenship certificate.
On the day of your citizenship test
You may wondering what things are going to be like on the day of your citizenship test. The notice you receive in the mail prior to this day will include details of where and when you need to appear. If you foresee not being able to attend on your scheduled test date, contact the CIC (by telephone) immediately to let them know and to reschedule your test.
It’s important that you arrive on time. In my case I arrived half an hour beforehand, and I suggest you do the same to be on the safe side. Nevertheless, in my case arriving early turned out to be a moot point because the appointment was at 1pm, and the office was closed between 12pm and 1pm for lunch. (At my local Kelowna center the opening hours were 10am-12pm, and 1pm-3pm, but I’m not 100% sure that your local center will have the same hours.)
You’ll be asked to provide your notice to the clerk at the window, and then to have seat. After a while you’ll be called in for registration. This is an informal interview that should not last more than 10-15 minutes. During this interview you’ll be asked to provide the original documents of the photocopies you sent in with your citizenship application, as well as a photocopy of your passport’s biographical information (basically the first two pages).
They won’t really tell you right there, but during this short interview you’re actually being tested on your linguistic skills (whether you opt to have a conversation in English or French is up to you). The interviewer may ask you generic questions about your life, why you moved here, where you work, and so on. They should not ask you knowledge based questions at this point. This step is primarily done to figure out if your English or French is good enough for you to to become a Canadian citizen.
If your English (or French, if you chose French) is considered to be poor, you won’t be taking the written knowledge test. Instead, you’ll be scheduled to meet with a judge who will ask you knowledge questions and then make a final decision regarding whether your linguistic skills are good enough for you to be granted citizenship.
If your English (or French) is poor to the point of not being able to communicate with at least a certain degree of ease, the immigration official is, in theory, allowed to fail you as though you had failed the knowledge test (more on this topic in a moment). I don’t believe this happens very often though, as they are very understanding of linguistic challenges, but you should be able to communicate in one of the two official languages in order to obtain your Canadian citizenship.
Once this registration/linguistic test is over, you’re asked to take a seat in the waiting room. After everyone (in the room with you) has registered, you’ll be invited into a different room where the actual knowledge test will take place.
The Citizenship Knowledge test
The knowledge test is aimed at verifying your understanding of:
- The rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizens
- Canadian knowledge (history, geography, culture, political system, etc)
All the information you need to know in order to pass the test is contained within the Discover Canada guide, which is available for free in print, online, as an ebook, audiobook, and even in iPhone format. This guide is only 50 page long, but it contains a significant amount of details, names, and dates. Do not wait to open up the guide for the first time the day before the test, as this will most likely not give you enough time to adequately study and go on to pass the test.
Key Federal Government Figures
The citizenship knowledge test contains 20 questions, and you are provided with 4 possible answers for each of them. You need to circle the correct answer for all of these questions on the sheet provided. If you get five or less questions wrong, you’ll pass the test. If you get six or more wrong, you’ll fail. Each applicant gets their own completely randomly generated set of 20 questions, so there’s no way to base your own test questions directly off of those someone else may have had.
The fail rate has increased over the last few years. This used to be a trivial test with a mere 5% failure rate. Today however that number has climbed to over 30%. This is to say, you’ll probably pass, but you need to actually study in order to do so. Your average Canadian citizen polled at random on these questions would not pass the test.
You are given 30 minutes to complete the test, which might not seem like that long, but to be honest, it should be plenty of time for most people. I had 19 of the 20 questions answered within two minutes of sitting down. One question’s phrasing was a bit ambiguous so I spent some time thinking about which answer was “more correct” in their view.
I don’t remember all the questions that I was presented with, but there was definitely a mix of both very basic and somewhat harder ones on the test. For example, among the basic questions, they asked me about Canada’s winter and summer sports (hockey and lacrosse, respectively), who the Prime Minister was (Stephen Harper), and who sits at the House of Commons (MPs elected by citizens to represent their electoral district).
As well I remember questions about things such as which are the Atlantic provinces (Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick), and which provinces formed the Confederation in 1867 (Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick). Topics such as what the highest honor in Canada is (Victoria Cross), who the first Prime Minister (Sir John A. MacDonald) was, and where the majority of Quebec’s population lives (St. Lawrence’s river) were also covered in my sampling of test questions.
I don’t remember the exact questions for the, supposedly more advanced questions, but I believe they delved into such things as when Nunavut became a territory (April 1, 1999), Vimy Ridge, D-Day and Juno Beach, and the names of early Canadian explorers.
Once you are done answering the questions, you leave the room and wait outside. After a little bit someone will come out to inform you regarding whether you passed or failed the test (but no score or feedback on the specific questions will be provided). If you pass, you’ll also receive a notice in the mail inviting you to attend a ceremony where you’ll take the oath and receive your citizenship certificate. In my case this will take place at the end of next month, six or so weeks after the knowledge test, but I’m sure these dates vary a lot depending on your own location.
The whole citizenship test process took about an hour and a half, but this too will depend on the number of people attending the test, how many government employees are working that day, etc.
If you fail the knowledge test, they’ll schedule an interview with a judge on a different date. The judge will ask you to prove your knowledge to see if you’re ready to become a citizen yet or not. If you are, you may receive your citizenship. If you aren’t, I believe you’ll have to reapply for citizenship from scratch (a process that takes at least a year and a half).
Preparing for the Canadian citizenship test
Since the stakes for failing the knowledge test are high, I really recommend that you study the guide in-depth before attempting the test. Personally, I made the mistake of starting to study the guide only a few days before my test. As a result, I had to cram a ton of information into a very short amount of time. Thankfully, I ended up being over-prepared for the test, which I found to be quite easy compared to some of the obscure facts I had learned (from the official guide) in preparation for the citizenship test.
Ideally you’ll want to start studying from the day that you receive the notice onwards. If you do, hopefully you’ll find the test to be easy and will save yourself a lot of last minute stress.
If all you do is read the guide through once, cover to cover, you’ll probably fail the test. Read/study it at least a couple of times and then take as many practice tests as you can. Also, don’t forget to look up information about key government figures in your own province or territory. I personally made sure I knew even the names of the leaders of the opposition parties at both the federal and provincial level (I knew the federal ones already, having a keen interest in politics, but I had to look up and memorize the local ones for British Columbia, the province where I now live.)
Key B.C. Provincial Government Figures
I have found the following citizenship practice tests to be beneficial. 90% of the questions on my actual citizenship test were not new to me, as I had encountered very similar ones before through these practice tests.
- Canadian Citizenship Test iPhone/iPad app by Jonathan Lum
- Citizenship Flash Cards iPhone/iPad app by Tip Top Good Studio
- Practice Tests by V-Soul
- Practice Tests by Richmond Public Library
- Workbook Canada Citizenship Test
Keep in mind that some of the answers for things that change may be slightly outdated on these tests (e.g., who the leader of the Opposition Party is), but generally speaking they do a terrific job at helping you prepare.
I truly believe that if you can pass the practice tests with ease, you won’t have a problem with the real one, as many of the sample questions are extremely close to the real deal.
Should you face a question for which you truly don’t know the answer, you can start by excluding the answers that you feel are obviously wrong. Usually you’ll instinctively feel that 2 out the 4 possible answers are wrong. If you can narrow it down to two choices, you have a 50% chance of picking the right one.
Many non-profit organizations provide free classes to help you prepare for the test as well. I went to the South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Service center for the first time a couple of days before my test, so there was no time for me to take an actual course. However I did get to have a volunteer test me on my knowledge (by asking me sample questions).
Similar organizations exist all across the country and if you contact your nearest one as soon as you receive your notice to appear (or sooner, if you want to get a lot of prep work in), you’ll be able to attend classes on the material you need to learn and will feel less like you’re on your own throughout the study process. (A list of local organizations of this kind are provided on the pinky-orange colored sheet of paper you should receive with your notice to appear.)
In conclusion, if you prepare for the test, you stand a good chance of coming out just fine. Best of luck to you, soon to be, fellow Canadian citizen.
Thanks for your experience. I had recently applied for my Canadian Citizenship after having worked here for 10 years. One question I have is how long is the wait time once you get your study guide. Is it the 19 months that I see on the website or shorter. IF shorter, how short.
Hi Ramon, I got the first notice (where you are supposed to receive the guide) a few months before the second notice (for the actual test). The whole process in my case took less than 19 months (about 14). Best of luck to you.
Hi Antonio, I am just wondering, right now the time frame is 21 months. So, 21 months from the time they sent you the guide or when they start processing your application? On my cic page, there are two notices: One when they sent me the book and second when they start processing my application. The second notice is 6 months after they sent me the guide. SO far, after guide almost 14 months I havent heard about the test. Can you plese advise?? Or is it normal??
Thanks
> So, 21 months from the time they sent you the guide or when they start processing your application?
21 months since they received your application (so a few days after you sent it).
> Can you plese advise?? Or is it normal??
Give them a phone call and ask about the status of your application. If there is an issue they will tell you.
Best of luck.
Hi Anotonio,
Hope you are having a great week. I appled for citizenship last year end of aug, after 14 months, today I got a letter, it wants all my addresses and tax receipts for the last ten years, that how long i have lived here. I dont understand why I need to do it, and dont know where I ‘ll get all rent reciepts . Your thoughts and comments?
hi i applied for my citizenship in 2009 still didn’t received what should i do?
Ali and Fiza, I would contact the call centre at 1-888-242-2100 if I were you. Best of luck to both.
It received “Discover Canada” package on July 18, 2013 & did my test on January 6th, 2014. I have passed the test, meet with an agent who asked some documents & passed me the residence application to fill again. I have asked her how long do i have to wait because i am thinking to leave Canada for 6 months or a bit more. she told me that i will get a letter in the coming 3 – 4 month, max 6 months. Now i have been waiting since than to now (May 24, 2014) with nothing on the mail or email & online status didn’t change as well. I called using the phone, i was told that my application was moved to an agent for investigation & will process as non formal process and that can take between 1 year to 3 years. I have 3 answers, online say the max time is 36 months from the day i submit my application to citizenship ceremony, the lady told me mas 3 – 4, max 6 month & on the phone was told 36 months after the test day & there is no way to contact anyone who can give you a direct answer or at least proximate time.
this Montreal cic office
What’s the wait time after passing the citizenship test and being called to attend the citizenship ceremony? I took my test yesterday and I just want to get an idea of how long I would have to wait before I get invited to the citizenship ceremony…I read somewhere that its 6 weeks…is that right?
Shay
In my case, 4 weeks to get the notice, and two extra weeks before the actual ceremony.
Hi,
Can any one suggest if CIC update the citizenship exam date on line on CIC website. I am not in Toronto for last 1 month and affraid if they have sent the letter at my mailing address to appear for citizenship test.
I tried calling CIC many times not able to reach any one it’s always ringing. My online status shows application received. I applied my citienship in Jan. 2012.
Smiley, if you applied for citizenship in January, you won’t hear back from them for a long time. I wouldn’t worry until well in 2013.
Thank you for above response. I got the confirmation from CIC in Mar saying that they have received my application and sent me a test guide along the confirmation letter.
Do they update online the test dates under the file status?
I’m not sure if they actually update the online status with your test date (they might), but I can tell you that once you receive the letter that invites you to the test, everything happens relatively quickly. In a matter of weeks you’ll be done with the whole process.
Thank you.
Thank you for sharing your experiences in obtaining your Canadian Citizenship! My husband is still a PR card holder, but one day he’ll take the plunge.
A belated welcome to the Okanagan, Antonio! 🙂
Thank you, Monica. 🙂
Hi Everyone. I landed in 2011 and I am considering to submit my application for citizenship in June 2014…would this be viewed as being too eager…I want to get it out of the way for me and my 3 year old so that we dont have issues travelling. Am I wrong to think that if I apply as soon as I have completed the 3 year stint it would be looked on unfavourably!
Apply as soon as you meet the requirements to do so. The sooner you apply the sooner you could be Canadian. Your application will not be judged in any way, shape, or form based on anything other than you meeting the requirements for citizenship.
Thank you !
Hello
Can anyone answer a question for me. I applied for my citizenship in Nov 2011 and received acknowlegement of my application from CIC in Dec 2011. I was 54 years old when I applied but by the time my application will be processed I will be 55 years old. Will I need to write the citizenship test because I am now 55 or will I need to write the test because I was 54 at time of application date? any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
My guess would be that you won’t have to. To be sure, I’d give them a call and ask.
Hi Antonio,
My test is this coming Tuesday, and I was wondering, do they tell you to wait around for the results? I’m asking because most people I’ve read of online had no idea how they did after they took the test. Also, I’ve been reading online they only let you know if you’d failed it, so now I am really confused. I wonder if they expect you to hang around after you took the test, and all these people for some reason didn’t.
I would prefer I knew right away if something was wrong, so please let me know if I should ask during registration or if this is something they tell at that time.
Thanks a lot,
Roxy
I was told to wait around for the results. At my location they told us whether one passed or failed. You will be instructed on what to do, so don’t worry. Worst case scenario, even if they instruct you to go home after the test, you’ll receive an answer by mail in a couple of weeks or so. Realistically, chances are you’ll get an answer on the same day though.
Thanks a lot Antonio, that helps a lot! I’m getting a little worked up with all of this and your blog really helped me stay focused on the test. There’s a lot of misinformation out there, sadly, so I really appreciate you taking the time to post this and reply to comments.
Hi again Antonio,
I’m just back from my test this morning, and it seems that local offices have a lot of leeway as to how they conduct these tests.
In my case, we started off with having the test and then we had our interviews with the Immigration Officers. Also, before the test, we were told that the results will not be made public, and that instead we’ll have to wait between three and five months to either receive our notice to appear for the oath ceremony or we’ll receive instructions re. the next steps in our application.
Just thought I’d put this out here if there’s anyone reading your blog who’s going to appear to take the test in Vancouver.
Cheers!
Thanks for reporting back, Roxy. I guess the Vancouver center is a lot more busy than mine. Good to know that it takes longer there.
Hello Antonio and Roxy,
I am glad Roxy mentioned the Vancouver thing, because I wrote my citizenship test in March and I am still waiting for my ceremony to be scheduled:( I wrote to immigration and they said they were waiting for my ceremony to be scheduled. I know someone else who wrote the test around the same time as I did and she is also still waiting for her ceremony! Its taking so long here on the West Coast!
Just an update for people who may be using this to compare their timelines: the timeframe from test to oath in Vancouver as of January 2013 seems to be close to three months.
I had my test October 30th and will have my oath January 23.
HTH
Hello roxy,
Did you just received this letter. I wrote my exam in surrey on October 17 but still waiting for a reply! Did you wrote yours in vancouver or surrey and does the time frame makes different if it’s another location in lower mainland?
Aseem
hi antonio ! hey why is it that im from the united states and my friends in your country is begging me to come and reside here .but .. geeZ u know that im not quite sure about that there and my mom is 93 yrs there. and im 54 alos can i skip the requirement of interview and test there .alos can i waiver my resdiency requirement in court there too. ?i LOVe to be a canaadian citixen here BUT with all these requiements ? I DONT KNOW ??
I’m not sure, George. You might want to consult an immigration lawyer or at the very least call them up and ask.
Hi Antonio ,
I wrote the test last monday:( it was trible, I guss Icould not pass it:(:( I’m wondering how many month after this test I could meet the judge? any idea? I live in mississauga
thank you
It was very thoughtful and kind of you to dedicate your time and effort to compile and share this valuable info. Very well compiled. Thank you!!
We applied for Citizenship May 19th 2011, they started processing February 14th 2012. What happens between May 2011 and February 2012? I really wish you just could contact these guys in person! Our son was 12 when we landed he will be 18 the time we can do the test 🙁
Did you take the exam already? You have the same timeline with my husband and the whole family took the exam last may 2012. Until now they’re waiting for the result. I guess, it’s better to apply individually than to apply as a family or group coz it will take forever. 4 o my friends who applied alone (meaning not in a group nor family) took an exam and had their oath taking 3 weeks after.
No we are still waiting for the invite to actually do the test. Have not heard yet. Hopefully not too long anymore:)
I had applied for citizenship and I am above 55 years of age. I understand there will not be any written knowledge test for me. I would appreciate your response on the type of interview with immigration officer when I will be called to verify my documents. Will the interview be covering to check Canadian knowledge or and english competency,
Hello Aseem,
I’m gonna have my written test on 13 February in Surrey Central, and was wondering if I will have my written test first or the interview with the officer first?
Hi.
i want to become a Canadian now i am an Afghan and i am in Afghanistan how can i get you application and now i apply for these things that you mention in above pls send all info to my mention it Email in above
Can you help me understand this properly. So I just mailed all my paperwork, the citizenship package, to Sydney office Feb 5, 2013. How long does it take for them to actually confirm that all is in order and give you a ID number? It would be nice to know how long that would take, so that I know not to worry about it. Thanks for your help.
Yes finally we can write our test on March 8th in Ottawa. Thanks for your info aboutv this on your blog! My husband and I are competing against each other on the test apps:)
Applied with Atlantic Provinces Citizenship June 2011, Updated to IN Process July 2012, by Sydney office.
New Brunswick requested a residency questionnaire, that was complete in full and returned within 2 days. We felt
that the questionnaire was not necessary, for both myself and spouse,… but we completed it same day
we received it and had every piece of documentation they wanted. We are over 54 and would not be required to take citizenship test…Received call from CIC that nothing more was needed from us to do evaluation, that was Oct 2102.Here now, March 2013… 21 months and still waiting. I check CIC website everyday, Atlantic provinces have very ceremonies.. apparently few applicants and do not post future dates of ceremonies as other
provinces do. Why are they so slow. When we applied it should have been 19 months to process,
then 2013 they updated website to now say 21 months…. this is progress????
very few ceremonies
Hi! Thanks for the helpful info Antonio, we are planning to submit an application for the Citizenship but my daughter is not in Canada at the moment but she already stayed here for more than three years she’s turning 14 and just want to know if she needs to be here while the Citizenship is in process and will she take the test too?. Thanks and best regards.
Hi,
In the list of documents to be taken with me to the test, it says: “all your original documents that support your citizenship application”. Other than my Passport, PR card, and Immigration land of landing, which are already in the list, I am not sure what else should I take. Can anyone suggest what do they mean by “all your original documents that support your citizenship application”?
Thanks,
SB
Hi!
I also have a question about ‘all the original documents that support your application’.
My husband travels a lot abroad and we cannot find the residence calculator print out for him anymore.
do we have to bring this document, too? It would take me about three hours to fill it out again!
Thanks
Sue
I applied for Canadian Citizenship on 12th Feb. 2011. Went for test in January 2013. Ceremony is 24th April 2013, exactly 2 years and 12 days after I first applied.
Hope this helps someone.
Has anyone sent a citzenship application around August 2011 in Nova Scotia????????I sent mine and heard from them a month later acknowledging that they had received my application but after that I havent heard anything whatsoever…Just wanna have an idea of how long is it taking them to process applications in nova Scotia…Been studying that book forever and know everything on it. from dates to names I even can tell who anyone in the book is just by looking at the pictures. If anyone here applied from Nova Scotia around mid 2011, please share your timeline
Hello everyone,
CIC received my application on June 2013. I received the first acknowlegement letter with the book in September. Now, my status says, the process started on September 5th, 2013. Any idea how long will it take before I get another notification? A friend of mine applied just 2 months before me, following the first acknowlegement letter in the summer, she also received another letter, I think residency questionnare, was asked to send docs showing her residency in Canada. I haven’t received such thing, and haven’t heard anything back 🙁
Thank you all for your in puts in advance,
Hi, I live in calgary right now nd will apply for Canada citizenship on this august. But waiting time is for citizenship is toooo long. Can anyone tell me, can I reduce my waiting time if I apply from Ontario or Quebec ? As my some family members live in different states. Thanks
Hi Antonio,
Thanks for sharing your experience with the rest of us. I have a quick question about your local MP/MLA. Should you know the MP/MLA in your district or in the district that you’ll be taking the test in?
I am wondering the same thing. In the discover Canada s study guide there is the space to fill out MY Provence Provencal government details so i hope i don’t need to know anything on Richmond.
I don’t live in Richmond, will there be any questions on Richmond s government?
Hi Antonio,
Do you know or remember if at the time of the exam, CIC kept your permanent resident card?
Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge!
I have been scheduled for the test. I’d like to know how much time off work I should take.
I am a dual citizen (the first citizenship is from Europe) but do not want to purchase two passports as this is expensive.
I have Canadian picture ID and the Canadian citizenship certificate and my Dutch passport. Can I re-enter Canada with this ID after I visit the States (or Europe) if I were ever to do so?
Hi, was born in Aug 1960 and just completed 54years. I am putting my papers for Canadian citizenship and would like to know whether i have to sit for the language test
No….dont need to…..Have fun. congrats. I recommend to call them confirm.
Confirm becz they increased from 54 to 64 recently. Please let me know whats the scenerio.
I think they changed the rule from 54 to 64…….confirm after calling CIC.
Hey Herath,
I was born in Aug, 1960 too so I am facing the same situation with you.
Did you have to take the language test?
It is very sad to realize that people stopped being people and have stopped understanding the pain of others. I, by no means, want you to pity me. I just want to understand myself better. I know that it is difficult to understand all stories until it touches you personally. The point of my entire story is for someone to ask one question…..so in order for a better perception I wanted to reveal my story in a way so that in this story the reader (you) are the main hero and then everything will fall into place.
What is war!? It is a scary memory. It’s a blockade to everything; there is no light, no warmth; no water; no food. People gather water from lakes, from the leftover water after a rainfall, from snow. In the plaza close to your house is the closest place where you can get water; rain water usually gathers in the craters left after a bombing. You are happy to gather this water to make some time or simply not to die. And so you, after gathering 5-6 people, run to this water filled crater but they start shooting at you from both sides. People fall dead on both sides of you and others turn themselves inside out in pain and die, and you keep running and think how you can possibly get back and stay alive since at home you have helpless loved ones who are thirsty. Do you know what is hunger? It’s when out of hunger people start eating the dead animals they found on the streets. For food people would do anything!
So you finally come home and at home Russian troops have killed your relatives first by slashing their throats and then shooting them. You and your husband escape in order to hide from this war but this doesn’t even save you …. Airplanes fly above your head endlessly releasing bombs. Russian soldiers enter the cities and villages and shoot everyone without hesitation or investigation. In front of your eyes they rip open pregnant women’s bellies and burn the children. Mothers have to see their children being abused and get their heads cut off. Pregnant women are tied to armored transports and ripped into two pieces. After all of this horror in front of you, you know that you are pregnant with your third child. You run holding your son in your arms (your belly holds your other baby), and your husband is holding your daughter. You run with all your strength to save yourself and your family. You hear a bomb go off. You turn around and you see your husband lying on the ground. Your little daughter is crawling on top of him smeared in blood and alone. You take your pregnant self and grab your husband and your children and drag him to the side and hide your children from the shooting and the bombing so that their lives can be saved. You don’t lose hope that your husband’s life can be saved but you realize you can’t save him because he is already dead. And so you are alone. You don’t have anyone but your two kids and one on the way. You decide to run to the neighboring town. There you get abused and beaten up. There you can’t hide your nationality. The police enter your house and throw gas grenades and you and your children are gasping for air. Then they beat you and your children up with their rifles simply because you are Chechen. You cannot escape this hell. You cannot go anywhere since no one will place a pregnant woman on an airplane. You also cannot give birth safely since no hospital will admit you and once again you are left alone. You are thrown by the police in a holding cell with three criminals who rape you. Then they put you on your stomach against cold concrete and tie up your hands and feet in your back. Then they put you face to the wall and throw knives at your back for fun. Then they cut your fingers and skin hangs off like strings. Then they sharpen knives on the pillow parts of your fingers thereby slowly tearing the skin off. Then they pierce your nipple with a big and dull needle. But you are ready to endure all of this just so they don’t touch your children and don’t hurt them. You then get beaten up with such force that you start bleeding from your ears.
So yes you manage to escape all that horror, take your children and come to Canada. In Canada they immediately recognize your refugee status and give you an opportunity for a new life. In your heart and soul there was so much joy that you couldn’t stop crying. You went though a tough path but you remained a human being and wanted to see the light in all dark things. You meet a person who you love. When you love someone you don’t see their nationality or colour or what language he speaks!? You simply love the other person. Don’t you have the right to simply love another? Of course it was unfortunate that you were born in a place like Chechnya and that you were born Chechen. You ask why? The answer is simple …Arabic Muslims are nothing compared to Chechen Muslims. I want to explain to you the reasons why Chechen Muslims kill women.
1) wearing of pants
2) wearing makeup
3) men can’t touch women; if they do then they have to marry them or otherwise the women gets killed since she is a fallen woman
4) if a man divorces a woman, she gets thrown out into the streets and her kids get taken away; her parents have no power to take her back
5) a brother can kill his sister simply because someone said a bad rumor about her
6) lately if as a woman, you happen to marry a man who is not of your Muslim faith, then you and him will get killed.
The above examples are not exhaustive of all the situations for which Chechen Muslims kill women. So it is very difficult, after having endured all of this to find inner strength and faith and to believe that you will finally live a happy life. And so you are in Canada. Canada is a country that prides itself on understanding and family. In 2003, you are given refugee status. In 2004 you get married. In 2006, your file gets transferred to Scarborough. You go through all types of interviews and investigations and in the end? In 2007, an officer calls you from the Scarborough immigration office with a question which you answer. You ask the officer: HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO WAIT? The officer’s answer shocks the ground from underneath you..”AS SOON AS YOU GET A DIVORCE YOU WILL GET YOUR PR STATUS”
I am not going to recount how many other negative experiences we have had to go through after that phone call at the hands of CIC….
Then in 2010 in May you once again get invited to an interview where you are held from 10 am until the closing time of the office. At the interview you are degraded, the officer tells you that it would be better for your story if your daughter died along with your first husband. The officer doesn’t even give you an opportunity during the entire day to feed your children. After which you can’t take it anymore and you burst and tell the officer exactly what you think about her behavior. Isn’t this a fair reaction when you hear such words being spoken to you? The next day the manager from the CIC office calls you and further threatens you that they will call the police on you. You tell the manager that he was present during the entire interview and he himself saw the behavior of his employee officer and you tell him that you will tell the police to get the video from his office showing the entire interview and this will prove that the CIC officer was abusive. The manager doesn’t expect to hear this from you and abruptly hangs up the phone.
You continuously tell CIC that they are prolonging the processing of your application without any justification. But they could care less. I regret not requesting and using the video from this interview. After the interview I immediately started writing letters to everyone I could think of including all of our Ministers. And so what in the end … Everything that that CIC officer threatened with is happening and continues to happen to the present day. Further, CIC is now offering to separate your children from your application; essentially they offer to separate you from what is most dear to you in this world.
On top of all of this you have a new husband who is young and healthy. He wants to have his own kids with you as well. However, you can’t do this because if your kids are born citizens and you are not then they could be taken away from you.
I came to this country in hopes. This is a country that boasts about family values and family reunification. However at the same time this country encourages me to separate my family. So what does one do in this situation? Of course ….you try to turn to any organization that will listen to you and your story but everywhere there is no response. It seems as if there is no one out there that cares and no one wants to know about you….however you don’t understand why you deserve such treatment?
Now I have a question: how do you feel in my skin? What would you do if you were me?
I know only one thing….I am happy that despite all of my hardships I have remained a human being. I take joy in one thing that all of my hardships do not make me weak and this is very important. Thank you for your attention and understanding.
Hi you have to understand Canada is by far perfect and that if you have faith that above all will direct your path and destiny just know that no matter what your going to break through. Life is hard here in Canada too.. there is homeless people all over the city I was born here and I have to say it was hard life for me too. Good luck and all the best..!! you will make it ..!!
I also have the sazme questione. I am 64 yearz old too applying for papers.
Hi,
i got my permanent residency two years ago. how long after getting my permanent residency can i apply for a passport?
And how long after submitting my application for for the passport will it take to get my notice to do the citizenship test.?
thank you
Hi, I received the letter acknowledging they received my application and they are processing it, the package also included the study guide. How long do I have to wait for the actual test? Is it 24 months? I called CIC office but they do not give me clear answers. HELP PLEASE! 🙂
THIS WEBSITE ROCKS !
I took my exam early this morning…before I got my schedule for my exam I’ve been through in a depression stage so my mind was out after my exam…now I don’t know if I passed or failed my citizenship test when the time that I had an interview with the officer my mind got blocked…I didn’t understand what the officer said to me…how will I know if I passed or failed the citizenship…I hope anyone can help me how to contact the citizenship immigration…thanks
I have received my invitation to appear to take the oath but my son who is a minor and for whom I applied with myself has not received a letter to appear to take the oath. What should I do?
Hello all,
I am 54 years old, born in August, 1960.
Since the citizenship law would be changed by Thursday,
I am considering whether I just send my application without language test or not.
Is anyone who dealt with this kind of situation?
Thanks!
Hi Antonio,
Thank you for your information.
I’m thinking on applying for my citizenship on November 2015 but my plan is to go abroad in April 2016. Do you know how long until I get a date for my test or until I get an answer on my application status? How long does it usually take from the momento you apply until the get back to you?
It is safe to leave the country? or Should I try to stay until I received a letter?
Thank you
Hi Barbara same here…I want to apply in March 2017.Did you apply? when did they send you the notice for the day ?
Hello, i have been working in Canada for 6 years now and i have already filed for the citizenship application. My son will turn 18 in 8 months and my schedule for the citizenship test is this month, june. My question is, do you think my son’s application will be approved? And after taking the exam, how long do i have to wait to complete my application for me and my son?
Hi Lukas, unfortunately I don’t work for the government so I wouldn’t know. I would suggest calling them.
Hi i passed my citizenship test yesturday and how long will it take for the oth cermoney
HI,
I have passed my citizenship test. I was expecting a invitation for Oath, but instead I received a letter asking for an interview with the Citizenship officer. My question is is this normal procedure ? The letter does not say anything about bringing any documents. What could be the reason for the interview ?
Please help
It can be. See here.
Hi Antonio,what type of documemt did they ask you to bring the day of your interview- test ?someone said the receipt of rents???Is that right ?I moved several times 5 years that I live in Canada and it’s not so easy to find receipts ,however in all the taxes forms the address is present…
Also do you remember the exact number of months from the the day that you sent your application to the date that you informed about the test date?Thank you in advance ?
I sent in my application on Feb 10 2017 and received the acknowledgement (email) that they have started processing the application on Feb 23 2017.
it is approximately 6 months since i have applied for my citizenship but i am not getting any kind of update. Last time i called them and i was told that my file has being send to Mississauga office and they are checking my eligibility. I know some people who have applied at the same time as i or even a month later and they already had their citizenship test. How can i know what is the hold up in my case?
Unfortunately, your only two options are calling them again to inquire further or getting an immigration lawyer to help you. Six months is really not unheard of, sadly. I think waiting is your best bet.