It is pouring. The first atmospheric river of the year is upon us and that means rain, lots and lots of rain.I thought I'd use the chance to see if the Service Canada office was less busy. We're lucky to have a federal government office right up the hill from us. I walked to Royal Avenue and turned the corner.
Unlike a previous attempt, there was no queue waiting in the hallway today. I walked directly to the receptionist and then right on to an agent.
You see, I applied for my Old Age Security pension online right after I turned 64 plus a month. However, some mandatory paperwork must be processed too. I have a number of months before I get to 65, but I thought it prudent to start the process plenty early.
Today the agent needed to scan some IDs, such as my driver's license, and passport in addition to other paperwork like our marriage certificate. This info was verified and will be sent on to the head regional office in Victoria, BC. By bringing the items to the Service Canada outlet, they did the scanning, verification, and shipping for free.
Today was an easy, quick, comfortable, and rather pleasant experience.