Indian and Latina couple. Can I really sponsor her?

[salsaandchips]

(I'm reposting this because my old post got deleted). Thanks @armoured for your detailed answer (please feel free to copy and paste your reply to help others). I will wait for some more responses.

Perhaps this is a bit a unique situation. I'm an immigrant to Canada from India. I moved here through Express Entry a few years ago and recently got my citizenship and passport. I am dating this girl I met online on a Spanish language learning app; she is from Colombia by the way. We've been dating for a few years now and I've been to Colombia a few times to see her. Now that I'm a citizen, I'm really keen on getting her to Canada as things in Colombia aren't that great.

I've been reading a lot on this lately and apparently IRCC doesn't like it when you get married in court without a ceremony. The problem is that both of us are massive introverts and we were wondering if we really need to have a full wedding ceremony? Also another thing is that I am not willing to do any ceremony in India because I don't get along well with my family in India and we don't really stay in touch. Will this be a problem for IRCC because unfortunately many Indian men have the stereotype of "mommy's boy" for life and IRCC could be wondering how I'm marrying this girl without doing any ceremony in India or having my family participate in it.

We both genuinely love each other and I have years worth of chats and photos as evidence but I'm worried about the marriage thing. Also a bit worried since Indians don't often marry outside of their religion. What can I do to make my application go smoothly?

 

[armoured]

(I'm reposting this because my old post got deleted). Thanks @armoured for your detailed answer (please feel free to copy and paste your reply to help others). I will wait for some more responses.

Ah, like the wind, it is gone now.

Also a bit worried since Indians don't often marry outside of their religion.

Apart from the suggestions I put in the other thread that's gone now, just this one comment: what makes you think Indians don't marry outside their religion? Pretty common, esp in Canada - plenty of secular Indians who don't care either way. At any rate, I don't think you need to be defensive about that - just state it as not a thing for either of you.

 

[bobowife]

You don’t need a lavish ceremony with friends and family. You can do a private one with one witness

 

[armoured]

You don’t need a lavish ceremony with friends and family. You can do a private one with one witness

While I agree with this - it is possible, and not necessarily fatal to an application - having a modest ceremony with at least SOME friends or family attending can help. If you're estranged from your family, have some friends or those members of famly who are supportive, etc. If you can't afford to do a lavish wedding, have a meal at a restaurant with a smaller group of friends afterwards. And get some photos.

 

[salsaandchips]

While I agree with this - it is possible, and not necessarily fatal to an application - having a modest ceremony with at least SOME friends or family attending can help. If you're estranged from your family, have some friends or those members of famly who are supportive, etc. If you can't afford to do a lavish wedding, have a meal at a restaurant with a smaller group of friends afterwards. And get some photos.

Yes, we can do that in Colombia probably. We can have some family members present. But it's not possible as you've mentioned to have a whole bunch of people and do a full religious ceremony. But a small one is possible. Hopefully my visits to her country and the time we spent together will convince IRCC.

 

[armoured]

Yes, we can do that in Colombia probably. We can have some family members present. But it's not possible as you've mentioned to have a whole bunch of people and do a full religious ceremony. But a small one is possible. Hopefully my visits to her country and the time we spent together will convince IRCC.

You do what you can, of course. But keep in mind, I've nowhere said numbers, nor a full religious ceremony. Just try to do some even modest event - a plain civil ceremony with a half dozen people that you know followed by a celebration, dinner or even drinks or whatever, with say 20 people looks a LOT better and more convincing than just a civil ceremony with witnesses that don't know you (witnesses-for-rent). Get some photos, have fun while you're at it.

This is, by the way, a pretty normal 'secular' marriage arrangement in Canada too.

 

[salsaandchips]

You do what you can, of course. But keep in mind, I've nowhere said numbers, nor a full religious ceremony. Just try to do some even modest event - a plain civil ceremony with a half dozen people that you know followed by a celebration, dinner or even drinks or whatever, with say 20 people looks a LOT better and more convincing than just a civil ceremony with witnesses that don't know you (witnesses-for-rent). Get some photos, have fun while you're at it.

This is, by the way, a pretty normal 'secular' marriage arrangement in Canada too.

My apologies, you're right, you didn't mention that. I was conflating your answer with another answer I got in a different internet forum. She certainly has a bigger friend circle than me so I guess we can organize something. It might be weird for IRCC to see that no one from my family has arrived but then again Colombia is far away and not many Indians are willing to take the trip. I guess I will preclear some of their doubts in a letter of explanation to IRCC so they can also understand my situation and mentality.

 

[andrews17]

You don't need a religious ceremony to get married in Colombia. You can have just a casual ceremony with a someone like a notary or a lawyer that can "legally" marry you.