Category: Spousal Sponsorship
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Video: True North Strong and Free: Rojas Family
Juan, Andres and hockey-playing 7-year-old Gabriel Rojas, all from Colombia, explain why they are proud Canadians: a beautiful country with seemingly limitless possibilities.
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Soon Spouses of Canadians Will Immediately be Granted Permanent Residency.
Within a timeframe of the next couple of months, Immigration Minister John McCallum is planning on introducing changes that would grant permanent residency to sponsored spouses. Sponsored spouses currently are granted only conditional permanent residency upon arrival in Canada, having to wait for two years to obtain permanent-resident status. This system was introduced by the…
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What documents are required for a spousal sponsorship?
When making a sponsorship application based on marriage or on a common-law relationship, a number of the specific documents are always required by immigration. The following is a list of documents that can constitute evidence that a couple has been in a bona fide relationship of marriage or cohabitation: Family memberships in clubs or associations,…
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Video: Tips for taking passport photos of babies
It can be challenging to take a good passport photo of a baby. Here are some important tips. Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada YouTube Channel
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Victim of Marriage Fraud?
Each year, hundreds of newly-married Canadians find that their dream of a marital bliss shattered through deception, manipulation and misrepresentation of foreign spouses who have come to Canada by duping the sponsor. Although the immigration department is vigilant in requesting and reviewing substantial documentation to assure the bona fides of the relationship, there are still…
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Can a spouse of an IEC candidate obtain a work permit too?
The International Experience Canada (IEC) program itself does not allow for ‘accompanying dependents’ however, the Act and Regulations do allow for dependents who meet specific requirements to apply for work / study permits. Spouses or common-law partners of IEC participants cannot be included as ‘accompanying dependents’ in the principal applicants’ work permit applications. Instead, spouses…
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What is a de facto family member?
Sponsorship is not just restricted to spouses or children. Occasionally a sponsored spouse may have an elderly relative or a member of the extended family living with them. They naturally want to have that person immigrate as well, but they do not fit the legal definition of a dependent. CIC describes such individuals as “…a…
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Are all spousal visas conditional?
The answer to that question is – No. Recently a client who was applying for permanent residence, based on sponsorship by a Canadian, was concerned about the conditional status of the visa. His concern was that the immigration department could at any time within two years after he obtained his permanent residence take his permanent…
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Can I switch between spousal, common law and conjugal, once I have applied?
When applying, applicants must indicate the category in which they are applying for immigration to Canada. Conjugal partners, common-law partners and spouses are all specific categories with specific requirements. There is no requirement for immigration officers to automatically re-assess an application by considering such an application in terms of a different relationship between the applicant…
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Assessing a Non-Genuine Marriage
Have you ever wondered how immigration officers conclude that a marriage is non-genuine? Officers must be satisfied that a genuine relationship exists. A marriage, common-law or dependent child relationships which are not genuine (or undertaken for the purpose of acquiring immigration) will be refused and officers are instructed to carefully examine documents that are submitted…