A Step-by-Step Guide to Canada’s Spousal Sponsorship Canada

Bring your spouse to Canada through Canada Spousal Sponsorship Program. A step-by-step guide to Spouse Visa Canada.

Numerous Canadian citizens and permanent residents sponsor their foreign spouses and partners for Canadian immigration each year via the Spousal Sponsorship program. This special Spouse Visa Canada helps speed up their journey to the country and enables them to reunite with their partner. Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents can use the following guide to understand the Spouse PR Canada program and the Spouse Visa requirements.

What is Canada’s Spousal Sponsorship Program?

The Spousal Sponsorship or Spouse Visa Canada enables Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor their foreign spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner for Canadian permanent resident status. This program goes by many unofficial names, such as the Canada Marriage Visa, Canada Fiance Visa, or Common-Law Sponsorship Canada. However, the goal is always to help the sponsor’s partner attain permanent residence.

Canada Spouse Visa Requirements

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Difference Between a Spouse, Common-Law Partner, and Conjugal Partner

Before discussing the Canada Spousal Sponsorship Program, it is essential to understand Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) definitions for a spouse, common-law partner, and conjugal partner.

Who can be considered a Spouse in Canada?

IRCC defines a spouse as someone that is:

  • 18 years old or older
  • Of either sex.
  • Legally married to a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
  • Note that same-sex marriages performed within Canada are valid for spousal sponsorship.
  • If the marriage took place outside of Canada, it must be valid under the law of the country where it took place as well as under Canadian federal law.
  • Same-sex marriages that took place outside of Canada are not valid for spousal sponsorship, but an application can be made under either the common-law partner or conjugal partner categories if such a relationship can be proven.

Who is called a Common-Law Partner in Canada?

IRCC classifies a common-law partner as someone that is:

  • 18 years old or older
  • Of either sex
  • Not legally married to the Canadian citizen or permanent resident
  • Has been living with the Canadian citizen or permanent resident continuously for a minimum of 12 months.

Who can be considered a Conjugal Partner?

IRCC classifies a conjugal partner as someone that is:

  • 18 years old or older
  • Of either sex
  • Not legally married to the Canadian citizen or permanent resident
  • In a relationship Canadian citizen or permanent resident for a minimum of 12 months
  • Living outside Canada
  • Exceptional circumstances beyond their control have prevented the applicants from qualifying as common-law partners or spouses, such as immigration barriers or legal restrictions limiting divorce or same-sex relationships.
  • This can require a demonstration of emotional ties and intimacy, financial closeness, such as joint ownership of assets or mutual financial support, and efforts to spend time together and reunite.
  • Conjugal partners can be either opposite-sex or same-sex.

Canada Spouse Visa: Sponsor Requirements

To sponsor your partner through Canada Spousal Sponsorship or Spouse Visa, you must be:

  • A Canadian permanent resident or citizen.
  • At least 18 years old.
  • Presently living in Canada or planning to return after your partner has become a permanent resident.
  • Able to support your partner’s financial needs for a minimum of three years.
Canada Spouse Visa Application

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Spousal Sponsorship Canada: Step-By-Step Process

Here is a step-by-step process for Canada Spousal Sponsorship Visa Program.

STEP 1: Determine your eligibility

Prospective sponsors should understand the relevant requirements if they sponsor a partner inside or outside Canada.

  • Inland Spousal Sponsorship Canada is for partners that are living inside Canada. Such partners must possess valid temporary resident status in the country and must be living with their sponsor throughout the application process.
  • Outland Spousal Sponsorship Canada is for partners that are living outside of Canada. Such partners can enter or exit Canada during the application process if they come from a visa-free country.

STEP 2: Obtain the Application Package for Spousal Sponsorship

The first step in the Spousal Sponsorship Process is downloading the Spouse Visa Application Package. You can use the checklist provided in the package to identify the documents required for Spousal Sponsorship Canada.

STEP 3: Complete Online Application

Gather all the required documents mentioned in the previous step and complete your online application as mentioned on the IRCC’s website. The principal applicant must fill out all the digital forms online. Additional supplementary information about your travels and other documents are required to prove the genuineness of the relationship in Canada Spouse Visa.

STEP 4: Pay Application Fees for Spousal Sponsorship

After completing the online application for Canada Spouse Visa, you must pay application processing fees totalling 1,080 CAD. Out of which 75 CAD is the Spousal Sponsorship Fee, and 490 CAD is the principal applicant fee. The remaining 515 CAD is for the right of permanent residence fee.

STEP 5: Submit Spouse Visa Application

After carefully checking your Canada Spousal Sponsorship application, you can submit it. After that, IRCC will send the application for permanent residence.

STEP 6: Apply for Permanent Residency

Once your Canada Spouse Visa application is approved, your partner can apply for permanent residency.

Canada Spouse Visa Fees

The total Canada Spousal Sponsorship fees vary with the number of sponsored family members:

  • Sponsorship fee: 75 CAD
  • Principal applicant processing fee: 490 CAD
  • Right of permanent residence fee: 515 CAD
  • Additional fee if include a dependent child: 155 CAD/ child
  • Biometric Fee: 85 CAD/person

Canada Spousal Sponsorship Processing Time

The processing time is approximately 12-20 months for both inland and outland applicants. However, the exact Spousal Sponsorship processing time can only be determined on the IRCC official web page.

How ELAAR can help you?

The method to sponsor your spouse in Canada can be complicated. However, thousands of Canadian citizens and permanent residents are able to complete the process mentioned above with the help of trusted Regulated Immigration Consultants at ELAAR. Please reach out to us for assistance with spousal sponsorship inside or spousal sponsorship outside Canada. Our team understands the requirements for this program and can guide you through the application process.

FAQs: Spousal Sponsorship Canada

Here are some frequently asked questions about Spousal Sponsorship Canada.

Do I have to include proof of my relationship with my spouse or partner during the sponsorship process?

You will need to include proof that you have a genuine relationship with your spouse or partner during the application process. If the partner currently lives with you in Canada, you can show proof in the form of:

  • A marriage certificate if you are married.
  • A shared bank account where both your and your partner’s addresses are shown to be the same.
  • Property rentals and leases showing both you and your partner’s names.

In addition to the above, applicants should also include photos that show them and their partners together. This includes wedding photos, holiday photos, or pictures where both individuals are present alongside family and friends.

The sponsor and their partner should also provide individual “relationship narratives” that describe how they met and how their relationship progressed up to the present day.

What is the processing time for spousal sponsorship?

The processing time is approximately twelve months for both inland and outland applicants.

Is there a spouse visa Canada for students?

There is no special spouse visa in Canada for students. Spouses and partners who wish to study in Canada while their sponsorship application is processed must apply for a study permit separately.

Can I sponsor a partner who is studying in Canada?

It is possible to sponsor a spouse who is studying in Canada and holds a valid study permit. This partner must maintain their temporary resident status in the country throughout the duration of the sponsorship process.

It is possible to sponsor a spouse who is studying in Canada and holds a valid study permit. This partner must maintain their temporary resident status in the country throughout the duration of the sponsorship process.

Start Your Spousal Sponsorship Application Process

Settle with your spouse or common-law partner in Canada through the Spousal Sponsorship / Spouse Visa Program.