Ukrainian woman separated from husband living in Vancouver calls for visa changes

Many Ukrainians have loved ones in Canada and are desperately trying to come here for their own safety.

Ivanna Syvokon is among those who were able to flee Ukraine before the Russian invasion and has been in Bulgaria for the past two weeks. She's trying to get to Vancouver, where her husband works and lives. The last five days have been terrifying, she says.

“Now I’m not able to go back safely. I’m not sure what’s going to happen next. Apart from being anxious for my family, I’m also anxious to see my husband,” said Syvokon, adding that while her parents are still in Ukraine, they've been safe so far.

The young couple met at university in Poland in 2015, before moving to Canada four years later to finish their studies and tie the knot.

“He proposed to me on the beach in Victoria and we ended up having a small wedding with some friends from school,” said Syvokon.

Syvokon had to leave Canada in January 2020 after her student visa expired. She returned to Poland and started working while waiting for husband’s permanent residency application to get approved.

“I had to wait before I could apply for a visitor visa again because my husband was not considered a permanent resident yet,” said Syvokon.

When her husband finally obtained his PR in November 2020, she immediately applied for a visitor visa. Two months later, it was refused.

“I was refused due to my economical situation and family ties,” said Syvokon.

The 24-year-old was informed by an immigration lawyer that she might have better luck if she applied for the visitor visa from Ukraine, not Poland.

“The second documentation process took me about seven months. I wanted to make it very well,” explained Syvokon, emotionally.

“We applied with the help of Canadian lawyer, with the help of Ukrainian visa consultant yet I was still refused."

Ryan Neely, with McCrea Immigration Law told CTV News, it is not unheard of for visa applications to sometimes take two years to be approved.

“The processing time for visas for eastern European countries is significantly longer than from other places and that was not unheard of prior to COVID. The pandemic has added even more difficulties with processing visas,” said Neely.

Starting over for the third time, Syvokon reapplied for a visitor visa in January.

According to immigration lawyer Richard Kurland, based on a new immigration policy that was implemented in December 2021, the process should only take about 35 days.

“The government recently reversed decades-old policies, allowing spouses in Canada to reunite prematurely, allowing them to remain in Canada until they are processed as permanent residents,” said Kurland.

At a news conference in Ottawa on Monday, the federal government also announced it is fast-tracking visitor visa applications, providing additional immigration support for those affected by the situation in Ukraine.

“Since Jan. 19, we began processing applications in our existing inventory with immigration and refugees Canada on a priority basis,” said Sean Fraser, Canada’s immigration minister.

“To date, there have been nearly 4,000 applications that have been approved."

Fraser did not clarify if 4,000 have been approved since Jan. 19.

According to the government’s website, a dedicated service channel has been set up for Ukraine enquiries. Applicants are encouraged to call 613-321-4243, with collect calls accepted.

In addition, clients can now add the keyword “Ukraine2022” to the IRCC web form with their enquiry and their email will be prioritized. 

With more Ukrainians displaced every day, calls are mounting for Canada to remove the visa requirement entirely, or at the very least, waive the $150 fee.

“The European Union has done it and Ireland has just joined them. There is no reason why Canada can’t follow suit,” said Jenny Kwan, member of Parliament for Vancouver East.

By late Monday afternoon, CTV News learned that Syvokon’s visitor visa was approved and was told to go to the nearest visa centre. She’s hoping to reunite with her husband on March 6 in Vancouver, after being apart for over two years.