Spousal Sponsorship

Sponsoring a Spouse or Partner: Overview

Individuals looking to bring their significant others to Canada to live with them may consider sponsoring them for permanent residence. As long as the relationship is genuine, the couple intends to live in Canada, and all the below requirements are met, it may take about a year for the sponsored person to become a Canadian permanent resident.

Spousal/Partner Sponsorship: Eligibility Requirements

• ‍Sponsor: Sponsors must be at least 18 years old, Canadian citizens or permanent residents, or registered Indians in Canada. Certain conditions would make an individual ineligible to sponsor, such as those who failed to pay family support payments, an immigration loan, or a performance bond, failed to provide financial support for the basic needs of a previously-sponsored relative, and this relative received social assistance, is under a removal order, is in jail, penitentiary, reformatory, or prison, receives social assistance for a reason other than a disability, is an undischarged bankrupt, was convicted of a violent or sexual offence, or an offence that caused bodily harm to a relative or attempted or threatened to commit any of these offences, was sponsored through marriage and became a permanent resident less than five years ago, or sponsored a previous spouse or partner and three years have not passed since this person became a permanent resident.‍
• Relationship: Spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner are covered. A spouse includes a husband or wife to whom a sponsor is legally married. Common-law partners are those who are not legally married but have been living together for at least one year, continuously and without any long periods apart. Either can leave the other just for a short and temporary period and only for family, work, or business reasons. Unlike a marriage or a common-law partnership, a sponsor cannot marry or live together with the conjugal partner because of barriers beyond their control, such as immigration barriers, religious reasons, sexual orientation, war, etc. Still, for a conjugal relationship, a significant degree of attachment for at least one year must be proved. A conjugal partner can only reside outside Canada, separately from the Canadian citizen or permanent resident.‍
• Sponsored Person: A sponsored person must be at least 18 years old, in a genuine relationship with the sponsor (i.e., wasn’t entered into just to gain permanent resident status in Canada). A bad faith marriage, or one not genuine in other words, is one of the most common reasons for spousal sponsorship refusal, and the individual must be admissible to Canada (i.e., in good health, financial standing, and on security grounds).

Spousal/Partner Sponsorship: Documents, Application Process, and Timeline

The Spousal/Partner Sponsorship application will include the following main documents:

• Immigration application forms.
• Documents proving a sponsor’s status in Canada (citizen or permanent resident, e.g., passport, permanent residence card, etc.).
• Documents proving a sponsor’s residence in Canada (if applicable, e.g., a bill, statement, etc.).
• Documents demonstrating the good financial standing of the sponsor and the sponsored person (if applicable, e.g., employment letter, notice of assessment, savings).
• Proof of a sponsor meeting the low-income cut-off (if applicable).
• Proof of the end of a previous relationship for either a sponsor or a sponsored person if they had any before starting their relationship (if applicable, e.g., divorce certificate, separation agreement, etc.).
• Proof of a genuine relationship between the sponsor and the sponsored person (e.g., marriage certificate, photos, letters of support, joint assets, rent agreement, etc.).
• Sponsored person’s passport, birth certificate, immigration status documents (if applicable, e.g., student visa, work permit, etc.).
• Police clearance certificates.
• Medical examination.
• Digital photo.
• Application processing fees payment receipt.

This is a basic list of supporting documents that will be required. Depending on the unique circumstances of the case, an individual set of additional documents can be advised.

The Spousal/Partner Sponsorship Application must be submitted online and will include all application forms and supporting documents for the sponsor and the sponsored person, submitted at the same time.

First, the Canadian immigration officer will assess the sponsor’s eligibility to sponsor their spouse or partner, which is the first stage in the process. If approved, their spouse’s or partner’s application for permanent residence will be assessed during the second stage.

Spouses or partners in Canada, while their application for permanent residence is in process, should maintain their legal status, especially if they submitted an inland application under the Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada Class. In this case, processing time is typically up to one year. Those who applied while outside of Canada by submitting an outland application under the Family Class typically experience a processing time of a year or longer. When the intended destination is in the province of Quebec, the processing time would be about two years or longer, as the process involves one extra step of submitting an undertaking to the Ministry of Immigration, Francisation, and Integration.

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