This is an attempt to share my experience of applying for a Canada study visa (Canada Study Permit). I would be more than happy if this helps atleast one person in a small way. As of now, I have got my visa but am yet to fly, so this narration stops with desmystifying the process of applying & obtaining a canada study permit.
Applying for a Canada study permit is quite simple and straight forward and the whole process can be summarized as follows,
a) Fill in the application form and submit to VFS along with the related documents.
b) Wait for a week or two to get the embassy's initial response.(usually a request to undergo medical examination).
c) Complete the medical examination and have your report sent to the embassy directly by the doctor himself.
d) Wait for the embassy's response (this could be issuance of the visa).
e) Get the visa, book flight tickets.. and fly!!
A student needs both a Canada Study permit and a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) before going to Canada. However, there is no separate application for the TRV. When you apply for a Study Permit, a TRV will be issued automatically. A TRV is a document which tells you the date before which you should travel to and be in canada. You cannot stay in Canada after the date mentioned in the TRV. The date mentioned in the TRV is usually the date up to which you want to be in canada to complete your studies. YOU will have to provide this date in your study permit application. You can apply for extending your TRV/Study permit, in case you need more time to complete your studies.
Lets look in to each of the steps in detail:
a) You can apply directly to the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, but it is preferable to apply through VFS (Visa Facilitation Services - a private third party who manages non-judgemental activities of the high commission). You can get the application form and document check list from their site www.vfs-canada.co.in or by visting them directly at Gowdhami towers,Cenetoph road, Chennai. I suggest you check their site often for these forms as these forms can be updated without prior notice. I prepared all the documents as per the existing document check list, but later found out that they changed the document checklist few weeks after I had downloaded the forms. They also changed the Student questionnaire while I was preparing to apply. So, Keep an eye on those and be updated. As far as filling the application is concerned, you may be having a few doubts about what to answer for certain questions. In such case, search some immigration forums(a good forum is at www.canadavisa.com) to get an idea of what other people did or ask VFS guys.Try to put in all required documents with the application the first time itself to avoid unnecessary delay. You have to submit your passport along with the application. Every other document needs to be a photocopy of the original. When I applied, the Visa processing fee was Rs. 5080 and VFS service charge was Rs. 600. Remember to take a Photograph with a "negative" (not digital) which you will attach with the application. This negative is crucial because when you go for the medical test they will ask for your negative to be superimposed on your Chest X-ray. This serves to identify and distinguish your x-ray from hundrerds of others. (The high commission asks you to do something only because it has a sound reason and purpose, so try to follow the guidelines strictly).
b) The embassy sends an initial response to your address through VFS by post. This is usually a request to complete a medical examination with the DMP (Designated Medical Practitioners - in short, doctors who are officially linked with the embassy) nearest to your area.All applicants from India must undergo a medical examination. The initial response could also request you to send additional documents depending upon your case.
c) Your passport will be returned to you with a visa file reference number marked on the last page of the passport, along with the initial response. This is done because you need your passport to confirm your identity at the DMP's clinic. you need to give blood and urine samples, stand baring your chest for an X-ray and strip everything (literally!!) for a physical body check-up. So, decide whether you go to Mr.Doctor or Mrs.Doctor bearing this in mind. Total time to complete the formality might be from 30 mins to 3 hrs depending upon the rush. You have to bear the cost of the examination which is around Rs.2500.
The DMP has to send the medical report to the embassy directly through his clinic. So, remember to contact the doctor and ask for the courier tracking number a day after you have completed your medical examination. This way you can ensure that your report reaches the embassy safely and in time. You need to return the passport to the embassy through VFS after completing the examination. VFS charges Rs.200 as courier charge each time you send the passport through them.
d) After receiving the report from the DMP and the passport, the embassy might take a week's time or more to send you another response. This could be the issuance of visa itself. In my case, it was an additional medical test. So, I repeated step c and got my visa a week after that.
It took me a month and 10 days (from the date of application) to get my visa. However, I would suggest that you apply early for visa so that you have some cushion time in case of anything unexpected happens.
e) It is advisable to book tickets after you get the visa, but you can block ticekts in advance to reduce the cost of travelling. July and August are the busiest months for students travelling abroad and the ticket cost keeps sprinting uphill because of the high demand.
Disclaimer : Although most of the content above is of generic nature, your case is unique in its own way and the outcome of your application depends purely upon the information you provide. I am not an expert in the procedures for applying for a canada study permit. The information I have given is purely based on self experience and cannot be construed as professional advice.
Applying for a Canada study permit is quite simple and straight forward and the whole process can be summarized as follows,
a) Fill in the application form and submit to VFS along with the related documents.
b) Wait for a week or two to get the embassy's initial response.(usually a request to undergo medical examination).
c) Complete the medical examination and have your report sent to the embassy directly by the doctor himself.
d) Wait for the embassy's response (this could be issuance of the visa).
e) Get the visa, book flight tickets.. and fly!!
A student needs both a Canada Study permit and a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) before going to Canada. However, there is no separate application for the TRV. When you apply for a Study Permit, a TRV will be issued automatically. A TRV is a document which tells you the date before which you should travel to and be in canada. You cannot stay in Canada after the date mentioned in the TRV. The date mentioned in the TRV is usually the date up to which you want to be in canada to complete your studies. YOU will have to provide this date in your study permit application. You can apply for extending your TRV/Study permit, in case you need more time to complete your studies.
Lets look in to each of the steps in detail:
a) You can apply directly to the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi, but it is preferable to apply through VFS (Visa Facilitation Services - a private third party who manages non-judgemental activities of the high commission). You can get the application form and document check list from their site www.vfs-canada.co.in or by visting them directly at Gowdhami towers,Cenetoph road, Chennai. I suggest you check their site often for these forms as these forms can be updated without prior notice. I prepared all the documents as per the existing document check list, but later found out that they changed the document checklist few weeks after I had downloaded the forms. They also changed the Student questionnaire while I was preparing to apply. So, Keep an eye on those and be updated. As far as filling the application is concerned, you may be having a few doubts about what to answer for certain questions. In such case, search some immigration forums(a good forum is at www.canadavisa.com) to get an idea of what other people did or ask VFS guys.Try to put in all required documents with the application the first time itself to avoid unnecessary delay. You have to submit your passport along with the application. Every other document needs to be a photocopy of the original. When I applied, the Visa processing fee was Rs. 5080 and VFS service charge was Rs. 600. Remember to take a Photograph with a "negative" (not digital) which you will attach with the application. This negative is crucial because when you go for the medical test they will ask for your negative to be superimposed on your Chest X-ray. This serves to identify and distinguish your x-ray from hundrerds of others. (The high commission asks you to do something only because it has a sound reason and purpose, so try to follow the guidelines strictly).
b) The embassy sends an initial response to your address through VFS by post. This is usually a request to complete a medical examination with the DMP (Designated Medical Practitioners - in short, doctors who are officially linked with the embassy) nearest to your area.All applicants from India must undergo a medical examination. The initial response could also request you to send additional documents depending upon your case.
c) Your passport will be returned to you with a visa file reference number marked on the last page of the passport, along with the initial response. This is done because you need your passport to confirm your identity at the DMP's clinic. you need to give blood and urine samples, stand baring your chest for an X-ray and strip everything (literally!!) for a physical body check-up. So, decide whether you go to Mr.Doctor or Mrs.Doctor bearing this in mind. Total time to complete the formality might be from 30 mins to 3 hrs depending upon the rush. You have to bear the cost of the examination which is around Rs.2500.
The DMP has to send the medical report to the embassy directly through his clinic. So, remember to contact the doctor and ask for the courier tracking number a day after you have completed your medical examination. This way you can ensure that your report reaches the embassy safely and in time. You need to return the passport to the embassy through VFS after completing the examination. VFS charges Rs.200 as courier charge each time you send the passport through them.
d) After receiving the report from the DMP and the passport, the embassy might take a week's time or more to send you another response. This could be the issuance of visa itself. In my case, it was an additional medical test. So, I repeated step c and got my visa a week after that.
It took me a month and 10 days (from the date of application) to get my visa. However, I would suggest that you apply early for visa so that you have some cushion time in case of anything unexpected happens.
e) It is advisable to book tickets after you get the visa, but you can block ticekts in advance to reduce the cost of travelling. July and August are the busiest months for students travelling abroad and the ticket cost keeps sprinting uphill because of the high demand.
Disclaimer : Although most of the content above is of generic nature, your case is unique in its own way and the outcome of your application depends purely upon the information you provide. I am not an expert in the procedures for applying for a canada study permit. The information I have given is purely based on self experience and cannot be construed as professional advice.
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