How to Bring Your Spouse to Canada
How to Bring Your Spouse to Canada
Your question for today can be – how to bring your spouse to Canada? Then, you should know more about the Spousal Sponsorship program. Applying to this program, you can sponsor your spouse, and they can get permanent residence status in Canada.
Requirements
Investigating the question on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you should check the eligibility requirements for the sponsors. If you want to bring your spouse to Canada, you need to be an 18 and more years old Canadian citizen or a permanent resident. You should also prove that you are going to live in Canada when your spouse gets permanent residence. However, you cannot apply for the spousal sponsorship program if you are a permanent resident living outside Canada. Additionally, the question on how to bring your spouse to Canada includes the condition where it is stated that you cannot receive social assistance if you want to become a sponsor. Moreover, you have to prove that you can provide for the basic needs of your spouse in Canada.
Analyzing the question on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you need to check the eligibility requirements for your spouse. To begin with, your spouse must not be inadmissible to Canada. Also, your spouse has to be at least 18 years old, and your relationship must be genuine. In other words, you did not get married to apply for the spousal sponsorship program. Your opposite or same-gender marriage should be recognized for immigration purposes. It means that your marriage should be legally performed in Canada or legally recognized in the country where it took place and in Canada.
Studying the question on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you need to choose the class of the application. If you are sponsoring your spouse, you may apply under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class or the Family Class. You must specify the class of application on the checklist as the covering page for your application package. You should apply under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class if your spouse lives with you in Canada, has valid immigration status in the country, and they consider applyin for an open work permit in Canada. It will allow your spouse to work in Canada while the application is being processed. You have to apply under the Family Class if your spouse lives outside Canada, or they currently live with you in Canada but do not plan to stay in the country while the application is being processed. Additionally, you can appeal the decision of the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) if you apply under the Family Class.
Deciding on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you need to know what documents you have to submit and how to do it. The first step should be to get your application package. It includes a checklist, forms, and instructions on how to bring your spouse to Canada prepared by IRCC. The checklist is an important part of your application package since it explains to you which forms you need to complete, lists all documents you must gather, and links you to detailed instructions on how to fill out the documents.
The second step is to fill out the required forms. You need to submit all forms that are listed on the checklist on how to bring your spouse to Canada.
The third step is to gather all documents listed on the checklist. You need to remember that an immigration officer will return your application if it is incomplete or it includes unsigned forms or documents. If you cannot submit a document listed on the checklist on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you must give a detailed explanation of why you cannot do it. Otherwise, your spousal sponsorship application will be returned to you as incomplete.
Moreover, you ought to provide certified copies of the original documents listed on the checklist on how to bring your spouse to Canada and their English or French translation. This condition applies if your documents are issued in a language other than English or French.
One more point is to check for country-specific requirements. You may be required to complete additional documents based on where your spouse currently lives. For instance, IRCC has certain requirements for documents issued in other countries, such as identity documents, birth certificates, and child custody documentation.
IRCC also requires originals of certain documents for some countries. If it is applied to your situation, you must submit not copies but the original documents. Your application will be returned as incomplete if you do not submit original documents. You can check whether you need to submit original documents in the checklist on how to bring your spouse to Canada.
Your spouse also ought to provide a valid police certificate for any country other than Canada in which they spent six or more months consecutively since the age of 18. Additionally, the guides on how to bring your spouse to Canada mention that your spouse needs to appear in person to give their fingerprints and photo at the nearest biometrics collection service point. They need to do it after they pay the processing fee and receive a biometrics instruction letter (BIL).
The last step is to pay the processing fees and submit your application package by mail or courier service. All guides on how to bring your spouse to Canada recommend making a photocopy of the application for your records.
Preparing your application for submission to IRCC, you need to place the documents in the right order.
- The checklist.
- The work permit application form and a separate processing fee payment receipt if you apply under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada class.
- All required barcode pages.
- All supporting documents, in the order they are listed on the checklist on how to bring your spouse to Canada.
Fees
When you study how to bring your spouse to Canada, you need to learn more about the application processing fees. In total, the sponsorship application costs 1,050 CAD. The processing fees include 500 CAD for the right of permanent residence service, 75 CAD for the sponsorship service, and 475 CAD for the principal applicant processing service. You need to pay for the fees online and include a copy of the receipt with your sponsorship application. Additionally, your spouse has to pay the biometrics fee of 85 CAD.
All information of IRCC on how to bring your spouse to Canada specifies that you ought to pay the right of a permanent resident fee when you submit the application. This fee will be refunded if your spouse does not get permanent resident status in Canada. Obviously, you can pay this fee before your spouse becomes a permanent resident. However, this may cause application processing delays.
Processing information on how to bring your spouse to Canada, you can be interested in immigration perspectives for your spouse. If you sponsor your spouse under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class, they can apply for an open work permit. Thus, the information about the work permit also should be assessed when you decide how to bring your spouse to Canada. The processing fee of the work permit application is 155 CAD. The immigration officer needs about four months to process the application. It means that your spouse can work in Canada during the sponsorship application processing. However, they must start to work when they get a work permit and maintain legal status as a temporary resident in Canada. If your spouse already has a work permit, they can continue to work as long as they keep their status as a worker.
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