Use of wrong address for proof of cohabitation (common law sponsorship)?

[Lys01]

Hello, my partner (Canadian citizen) and I (living in Canada with a working-holiday visa) are applying for PR via inland common law sponsorship. I arrived in Canada on July 22nd 2022 and been living together since. We are having issues with how to provide Proof of Cohabitation.

All of our important documents (bills, goverment documents, etc) are sent to my partner's parents address (because it's safer for us to get them mailed there). We live in a apartment but only my partner is on the lease. I wonder if I should just provide these documents and write a letter to explain why the address is not the residential one? Do you think we would get rejected even after explaining? If we change the address on all the documents I assume it would be too late now? My visa is expiring on July 2024.

We are really stressed out about it and don't really know what to do. Thanks.

 

[ERCAN]

Don't be stressed, get married, avoid the hassle altogether.

 

[canuck78]

Hello, my partner (Canadian citizen) and I (living in Canada with a working-holiday visa) are applying for PR via inland common law sponsorship. I arrived in Canada on July 22nd 2022 and been living together since. We are having issues with how to provide Proof of Cohabitation.

All of our important documents (bills, goverment documents, etc) are sent to my partner's parents address (because it's safer for us to get them mailed there). We live in a apartment but only my partner is on the lease. I wonder if I should just provide these documents and write a letter to explain why the address is not the residential one? Do you think we would get rejected even after explaining? If we change the address on all the documents I assume it would be too late now? My visa is expiring on July 2024.

We are really stressed out about it and don't really know what to do. Thanks.

The fact that you aren’t both on the lease and that your partner has their mail sent to their parents makes things more complicated. Are you planing on getting married? Soon? If so getting married? Does your partner have any mail going to your current address? What about bills that you may pay without actually being sent to your home? You may receive a digital copy but it would still contain the date and your address.

 

[Flyingfast]

I agree with the getting married route.

 

[Edmegbc]

If it’s a short marriage (less than 2 years) you still have to provide a lot of
Proof of cohabitation etc, but it could make it slightly more straightforward.

 

[Lys01]

The fact that you aren’t both on the lease and that your partner has their mail sent to their parents makes things more complicated. Are you planing on getting married? Soon? If so getting married? Does your partner have any mail going to your current address? What about bills that you may pay without actually being sent to your home? You may receive a digital copy but it would still contain the date and your address.

The only mail that goes in our address is some packages. For the bills, we only recently changed the address for the phone bill and our bank accounts (not join). We didn't get any bank statements with the new address yet since it's pretty new.
We talked about getting married but I'm worried that could be seen as a red flag if we apply for spousal sponsorship right after..

If it’s a short marriage (less than 2 years) you still have to provide a lot of
Proof of cohabitation etc, but it could make it slightly more straightforward.

Would it be more straightforward because we wouldn't need to prove at least 12 months of cohabitation?

 

[Edmegbc]

The only mail that goes in our address is some packages. For the bills, we only recently changed the address for the phone bill and our bank accounts (not join). We didn't get any bank statements with the new address yet since it's pretty new.
We talked about getting married but I'm worried that could be seen as a red flag if we apply for spousal sponsorship right after..

Would it be more straightforward because we wouldn't need to prove at least 12 months of cohabitation?

No, if uou read the checklist it asks for a number of things to be checked, living together, married less than 2 years, children and if it’s your first marriage.
you Need to be able to prove Relationship is genuine and for common law that’s proof of cohabitation. It’s not too far different for marriages less than 2 years no children.
look at the application package to understand what would be expected
We are spousal applicants but had to prove we live together and used things such as joint bills, bank statements and solo bills to same address. If you can’t provide that for common law then you will have a challenge

 

[armoured]

We talked about getting married but I'm worried that could be seen as a red flag if we apply for spousal sponsorship right after..

Shouldn't be if the relationship is as long as yours.

Would it be more straightforward because we wouldn't need to prove at least 12 months of cohabitation?

Yes. Instead of proof of cohabitation for 12 months being a minimum critical criterion by statute, in which quality matters and will be rejected if not met, if you're married, that evidence is just proof of relationship.

 

[Lys01]

No, if uou read the checklist it asks for a number of things to be checked, living together, married less than 2 years, children and if it’s your first marriage.
you Need to be able to prove Relationship is genuine and for common law that’s proof of cohabitation. It’s not too far different for marriages less than 2 years no children.
look at the application package to understand what would be expected
We are spousal applicants but had to prove we live together and used things such as joint bills, bank statements and solo bills to same address. If you can’t provide that for common law then you will have a challenge

Oh yes I know we still need the proof of cohabitation I just wondered if it still needed the 12 months period. And if we have prove that before we get married and after.
So should we just wait to apply and gather more proofs, change all our documents addresses while I'm staying in canada as a visitor after my visa expires?

Yes. Instead of proof of cohabitation for 12 months being a minimum critical criterion by statute, in which quality matters and will be rejected if not met, if you're married, that evidence is just proof of relationship.

On the checklist we still need the proof that we live together though. Is it just the 12 months period that wouldn't be required? I don't really worry about proving that our relationship is genuine etc, we have been in a long distance relationship for 5 years before I arrived in Canada.

 

[armoured]

On the checklist we still need the proof that we live together though. Is it just the 12 months period that wouldn't be required?

Correct, the proof of residing together for 12 months is not needed. You only need to show you live together for the in Canada class, and for that, just at the time you apply.

If you can get married and apply, the additional evidence of living together is mostly relationship evidence.

 

[Lys01]

Correct, the proof of residing together for 12 months is not needed. You only need to show you live together for the in Canada class, and for that, just at the time you apply.

If you can get married and apply, the additional evidence of living together is mostly relationship evidence.

My partner told me we don't need to prove 12 months of cohabitation under the common law partner in Canada class because it doesn't say so on the checklist. Only for the family class. I told him since both are common law you need to prove 12 months still. I don't have the checklist in front of me (at work atm) so I don't remember what it says exactly.

 

[armoured]

My partner told me we don't need to prove 12 months of cohabitation under the common law partner in Canada class because it doesn't say so on the checklist. Only for the family class. I told him since both are common law you need to prove 12 months still. I don't have the checklist in front of me (at work atm) so I don't remember what it says exactly.

Your partner is wrong. You will have to prove your cohabitation is in excess of 12 months if you apply as common law.

Again, by definition (construction) the in-Canada class is for those living together, whether married or common law. That's the sense in which you must show you are currently cohabitating.

Common law requires that you have cohabitated for 12 months consecutively (and that 12 month period can even be from some time in the past). And you must demonstrate that with sufficient evidence to qualify as common law.

 

[YVR123]

Hello, my partner (Canadian citizen) and I (living in Canada with a working-holiday visa) are applying for PR via inland common law sponsorship. I arrived in Canada on July 22nd 2022 and been living together since. We are having issues with how to provide Proof of Cohabitation.

All of our important documents (bills, goverment documents, etc) are sent to my partner's parents address (because it's safer for us to get them mailed there). We live in a apartment but only my partner is on the lease. I wonder if I should just provide these documents and write a letter to explain why the address is not the residential one? Do you think we would get rejected even after explaining? If we change the address on all the documents I assume it would be too late now? My visa is expiring on July 2024.

We are really stressed out about it and don't really know what to do. Thanks.

You should be aware that your parnter can't really use his parents' place as his "address". He can use it as the "mailing address" but for things like driver license or car insurance, that could have issue in the future for things like insurance claim.
I agree with the rest that you don't have good proof of 12 month co-habitation. You have some for your current address so getting married and applying would be more striaght forward.

 

[Lys01]

You should be aware that your parnter can't really use his parents' place as his "address". He can use it as the "mailing address" but for things like driver license or car insurance, that could have issue in the future for things like insurance claim.
I agree with the rest that you don't have good proof of 12 month co-habitation. You have some for your current address so getting married and applying would be more striaght forward.

In the form asking for the previous addresses he lived in the past 10 years, he put his parents' and our own but he wanted to put both as currently living because sometimes he goes there on the weekend to pick stuff up (like his meds prescription) and because all his docs are there etc. For the 'From/To' dates he left the 'To' blank for the parents address but shouldn't he put the date before he moved in to the apartment instead? I'm sorry if that's confusing but to me that would cause even more issues..

 

[scylla]

In the form asking for the previous addresses he lived in the past 10 years, he put his parents' and our own but he wanted to put both as currently living because sometimes he goes there on the weekend to pick stuff up (like his meds prescription) and because all his docs are there etc. For the 'From/To' dates he left the 'To' blank for the parents address but shouldn't he put the date before he moved in to the apartment instead? I'm sorry if that's confusing but to me that would cause even more issues..

He can't have two primary addresses. He needs to pick the one address where he is living primarily. Yes, you are right about the "from/to" address.