Quick guide to spousal applications for Canada immigration

In a News Release dated September 24, the Canadian government has announced “action to speed up spousal application processing”, thereby helping families build their lives together in Canada.

By leveraging new technology and increasing the number of decision-makers on spousal applications, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada [IRCC] intends processing spousal applications more quickly, reducing couples’ wait times.

Along with introducing facilitative biometric measures, IRCC will also be piloting, in the near future, technology for conducting interviews remotely with the applicants.

As per the News Release, IRCC “aims to accelerate, prioritize and finalize approximately 6,000 spousal applications each month from October until December 2020”.

When taken along with the applications processed so far this year, these 18,000 spousal applications for Canada by the end of 2020, will “lead to about 49,000 decisions by the end of this year”.

Who can be sponsored for becoming Canada permanent residents?	If the sponsor is eligible, they can sponsor their spouse, partner or dependent children.
Fees	Spouse or partner – from CAD 1,050 Child – from CAD 150
Processing time	12 months [when the person to be sponsored is living outside Canada]. The processing time includes the time needed for giving biometrics and for the assessment of the sponsor as well as the person being sponsored.
Who can be sponsored in a spousal application?	Spouse, legally married to sponsor and at least 18 years’ old. Common-law partner, at least 18 years’ old, not legally married to but living with sponsor for past 12 consecutive months. Conjugal partner, at least 18 years’ old, not legally married to but in a relationship with the sponsor for the past 1 year, living outside Canada but unable to marry the sponsor or live with them in their own country due to legal and immigration reasons.

Eligibility for a sponsor includes their being a minimum of 18 years of age. The person sponsoring must also be either – a Canadian citizen / permanent resident, or registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act.

The sponsor must be able to provide financially towards meeting the basic needs of the person sponsored by them.

When applying for sponsoring someone – spouse, partner, or child – there are 2 applications that will have to be submitted together and at the same time.

The sponsorship application as well as the Canadian permanent residence application for the person being sponsored will have to be submitted together.

Basic 4-step process for sponsoring [spouse, partner, or child]

STEP 1: Getting the application package from IRCC.

STEP 2: Payment of application fees.

STEP 3: Submitting the application.

STEP 4: Sending additional information during processing.

After the spousal application is successful, each couple will be required to continue fulfilling certain obligations. The sponsor will be financially responsible for the sponsored person for 3 years. The person that has been sponsored is forbidden – for 5 years – from sponsoring anyone on their own. If you are looking to Work, Study, Invest, Visit, or Migrate to Canada, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No. 1 Immigration & Visa Company. Which PNP can get me to Canada quickest?