Your Personal and Financial Documents are very important when you submit your application for the Canadian Permanent Residence visa.I recommend sending with your application NOTARIZED copies of all the documents that I will describe the following weeks of the program, except for the following (which should be ORIGINAL):

- Immigration Forms Academic Transcripts - Police Certificates - Bank Statements - Letters of reference - Language test(s) results - Photos Some of the Personal and Financial Documents you must gather ASAP are:

a) Identity and Civil Status Documents

- Birth certificate - Marriage - Final Divorce - Annulment or Separation - Death certificate for former spouse should - if applicable - Citizenship certificate or permanent resident visa (copy) for any family members who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada b) Children's Information

- Children's birth certificate (showing the name of their parents) - Adoption papers (if applicable) - Proof of custody (children under 18 years of age) and proof that the children may be removed from the jurisdiction of the court - Proof that the principal applicant has fulfilled any obligation stated in custody agreements (only if the children will not be accompanying the applicant to Canada) - Proof of full-time studies (only dependent children 22 years of age or more). You should include: i. School transcripts (since 22 years of age) ii. Letters from each school indicating numbers of days attended per week and number of hours per day

- Proof of financial support by parents (since 22 years of age)

c) Travel Documents and Passports - Passports / travel documents for:

- Principal applicant - Spouse or common-law partner - Dependent children (Only pages showing passport number, date of issue, expiry date, photo, name, date and place of birth)

- Copy of visa of the country where you currently live (only if you live in a country different from your country of nationality)

In my next article, I will explain more about your Personal and Financial Documents. However, if you want to start gathering your supporting documents TODAY, I recommend downloading Step-by-Step Immigration to Canada, which covers the entire Canadian immigration process.