more difficult actually. Families are being lost in the process."

Tobin first sent Dickenson's application in January 2017. Both times it was sent back — over errors her lawyer said didn't exist — it meant up to three months of delay. They had to start from scratch to re-apply.

Meanwhile, the clock was ticking on Dickenson's visitor status that was only valid for half a year after entering Canada. It had expired by the time her second application was returned.

The Dickenson family moved to Canada with their two children, Ava and Loui. (Submitted by Dickenson family)

'You want to start working'

For more than 10 months, Dickenson couldn't work and her family had to live off one paycheque.

"You want to start working," said Dickenson. "It's hard not to know what your futurelooks like."

It was only after Tobin complained to the government that it gave Dickenson a work visa in November 2017. But she's still waiting for permanent residency and expects it's likely to take longer than the government's self-imposed one-year deadline since she's already behind in the process.

The family is living in limbo while they wait.

It's "definitely a frustrating process," said Dickenson. "Something's got to change. It feels like something's wrong."

Alexandra Dickenson, a Swedish woman living in Ottawa, says the government erroneously returned her spousal sponsorship application twice, forcing her to re-apply all over again. 0:32

Push to submit applications online

The CEO of the Canadian Association of Professional Immigration Consultants (CAPIC), Dory Jade, says he received up to 20 complaints this past fall about IRCC and "missing" documents.

CAPIC complained to