Sponsorships: Spouses, Common-law partners, Conjugal partners
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Requirements
Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada are able to sponsor their spouses, common-law partners, conjugal partners and dependent children through Canada’s Spouse Sponsorship program. For 2011, out of the 268 000 new permanent residents of Canada, 68 000 will be spouses and children that apply through the family class.
The spousal relationship must be real. The marriage must not be of convenience just for immigration purposes in order to obtain the permanent residence for Canada. The sponsor and the sponsoree (husband or wife) must provide proof of their relationship. This is a key point of the spousal visa application. We assess every case in order to evaluate how best to support it.The Canadian sponsor must be at least 18 years of age.
The sponsor must sign an agreement that states that he/she will be financially responsible for their spouse for three years;10 years for a dependent child, or until the child turns 25, whichever comes first.
The sponsor should not have failed to provide financial support in a previous sponsorship, they should also not have alimony debts or any immigration debts.
The sponsor should not be receiving social assistance other than for a disability. Employment Insurance or other loans for study are not considered social assistance in this case.
The sponsor should not be in prison or have committed a crime (A pardon must be issued for people that have committed a crime).
The sponsor should not have declared bankruptcy (If the bankruptcy has been released then the sponsor can apply).
The sponsor and the sponsored person (husband or wife) must have a clean criminal record or the appropriate pardons should have been granted.
** Canadians citizens or permanent residents of Canada residing in Québec must also process their paperwork with Immigration Quebec.
Relationships: Spouse / Common law / Conjugal Partnership;
Spouse: The applicant (husband or wife) must be legally married to a Canadian Citizen or permanent resident of Canada. A legal marriage -not only for immigration purposes-.
Common law: You and your partner (same-sex or opposite sex) must have lived together for at least one year continuously. The application must be well supported by showing documents such as joint bank accounts, joint rental receipts, joint utilities bills, etc. Some fiancée/fiance relationships may fall in this category.
Conjugal Partner: Same-sex or opposite sex partners who have had a conjugal relationship for at least a year (you depend on each other and there is the same level of commitment as a marriage) but for exceptional circumstances they have not been able to live together. For example because of an immigration barrier, marital status (living in a country where divorce is not possible) or sexual orientation. The application must be well supported by showing that you have had a strong relationship but have not been able to live together.
Some fiancée/fiance relationships may fall in this category.
Dependent children.
In order for a son or a daughter to be considered dependent they must be under 22 years of age, or over 22 years of age but depend substantially on a parent for financial support for studies or because of a disability.
The process:The process is slightly different for the applications processed in Canada and outside Canada:
The sponsor’s application, the sponsoree’s application and the proof of the medical exams of the sponsoree are sent to an Immigration Canada office in Canada (Mississauga for visa applications from abroad / Vegreville for visa applications in Canada).In Canada applications: once the sponsor’s application is approved, if requested the open work permit will be issued. The other part of the file will be processed in approximately 12-14 months.Outside Canada applications: once the sponsor’s application is approved the file is forwarded to the visa office abroad. The sponsoree application is processed and the visa will be issued in approximately 6-12 months.
Things to consider: In order to sponsor a spouse or dependent children the sponsor does not have to meet any financial requirements, however he/she should not be receiving social assistance other than for disability.
Even though there is no a fiancée visa or a fiancée sponsorship, they may qualify under the common law partner or conjugal partner category.
A relationship is considered ineligible:
-if the sponsoree is under 16 years of age-if the sponsor or the sponsoree in the last year have lived with another person
-if the sponsor immigrated to Canada and in his/her application did not include you even though you were already his/her spouse
-if three years have not passed since a previous spouse was sponsored to became a resident of Canada.
Our services
Thorough assessment of your spouse sponsorship case
Full consultancy assistance:
Personalized Service: we will guide you step by step on: Filling the forms with your general information
Checking every document to support your application properly
Checking for errors, omissions, contradictory information, completeness Proactively preventing potential problems Coaching you for an Immigration interview if required Permanent communication in order to answer any question regarding your Immigration case Tracking the progress of your spouse visa application Usage of the latest technology in order to assist you as soon as possible Services offered in English, Spanish and French. 100% Honest, you will be informed of your real possibilities of success and potential problems. No hidden fees Representing your case before Citizen & Immigration Canada All the services are provided by Certified Canadian Immigration Consultants
