My girlfriend (Canadian citizen) and I (American citizen) have been dating for 9 months, and in June it will have been a year. I'm going to be working full-time in Seattle this summer and she lives in Vancouver, and we're most likely going to be spending weekends together in Vancouver (with me as a visitor) and weekdays when she doesn't have class together in Seattle (with her as a visitor).
Last year, I spent a week with her in Vancouver in August right when my internship ended. Then from the middle of October - January 2nd we stayed in an Airbnb together in Vancouver since I was able to do all of my classes for that semester remotely from anywhere. We've had no breaks or gaps in our relationship, and even if we don't begin to pursue my sponsorship immediately after we've been together a year, we will most likely begin to try and find ways for me to have long-term legal residency in Canada within the next year/year and a half.
I'm wondering if I would qualify for Conjugal Partner Sponsorship since it seems like we would fit all of the criteria. I live outside of Canada, we'll have been in a conjugal relationship together for more than a year, and the reason why we can't live with each other all the time is just the immigration barrier. I could even get approval from my job to work remotely in Vancouver, but I'd have no way to legally stay there longer than the 6 months a visitor is typically allowed to.