Spouse Open Work Permit Refused - Please Help

[vancouver8866]

Hello, I need some advice.

I am from India, and working in Canada on a work permit.

I got married in India to my wife in January 2019 and applied for spouse open work permit for her, which got refused, I had sent pictures of my court marriage as well as chat and call logs, marriage certificate, and pictures from outings and family events.

We got married in a simple court ceremony and we are planning to have a large traditional ceremony and reception later this year, which are already booked well in advance, I have booked my travel as well.

I received a refusal on the following grounds:

• The officer was satisfied that my marriage is legal but was not satisfied that it is genuine.
• The officer was of the view that me and my spouse were not wearing the outfits that are normally worn by a bride / groom in my region
• There were few attendees at my wedding and questioned whether the marriage had been "publicized socially"
• I left India shortly after marriage

I am feeling very helpless, what do you suggest should be the next steps for me, should I appeal this refusal? Or should I reapply, if I reapply then should I wait for the traditional ceremony or is the proof of planning these enough?
My marriage is 100% genuine and I'm not sure what I can do to convince the visa officers?

Any help and advice would really be appreciated!

 

[scylla]

Hello, I need some advice.

I am from India, and working in Canada on a work permit.

I got married in India to my wife in January 2019 and applied for spouse open work permit for her, which got refused, I had sent pictures of my court marriage as well as chat and call logs, marriage certificate, and pictures from outings and family events.

We got married in a simple court ceremony and we are planning to have a large traditional ceremony and reception later this year, which are already booked well in advance, I have booked my travel as well.

I received a refusal on the following grounds:

• The officer was satisfied that my marriage is legal but was not satisfied that it is genuine.
• The officer was of the view that me and my spouse were not wearing the outfits that are normally worn by a bride / groom in my region
• There were few attendees at my wedding and questioned whether the marriage had been "publicized socially"
• I left India shortly after marriage

I am feeling very helpless, what do you suggest should be the next steps for me, should I appeal this refusal? Or should I reapply, if I reapply then should I wait for the traditional ceremony or is the proof of planning these enough?
My marriage is 100% genuine and I'm not sure what I can do to convince the visa officers?

Any help and advice would really be appreciated!

Appealing is long and expensive and unlikely to work.

I would recommend waiting until after you have a traditional marriage. The problem is your simple court marriage. This is extremely unusual and casts doublt that your marriage is genuine. This is reinforced by the fact that you left India quickly after your marriage.

 

[PAINKILLER28]

when I applied for anything and IRCC asked for marriage status , I simply provide a notarized and translated copy of my marriage certificate , no pictures, no explanation or anything else and it never caused any problem for me or my wife. I suppose the problem is the length of your marriage , also the fact that you left your wife shortly after getting married . is your wife in your home country ? if she is , I would have suggested that you apply for a TRV for her first and a work permit when she is already in Canada .

 

[canuck78]

when I applied for anything and IRCC asked for marriage status , I simply provide a notarized and translated copy of my marriage certificate , no pictures, no explanation or anything else and it never caused any problem for me or my wife. I suppose the problem is the length of your marriage , also the fact that you left your wife shortly after getting married . is your wife in your home country ? if she is , I would have suggested that you apply for a TRV for her first and a work permit when she is already in Canada .

They had a court marriage to try and apply for the work permit earlier. CIC is aware that a court wedding in,what I am guessing an arranged marriage, would be highly unusual. CIC is right there is a large traditional wedding planned. They should apply after the wedding ceremony. They should have just skipped the small ceremony. The large wedding will be considered their wedding date by both the couple and their family.

 

[PAINKILLER28]

They had a court marriage to try and apply for the work permit earlier. CIC is aware that a court wedding in,what I am guessing an arranged marriage, would be highly unusual. CIC is right there is a large traditional wedding planned. They should apply after the wedding ceremony. They should have just skipped the small ceremony. The large wedding will be considered their wedding date by both the couple and their family.

I didn't assume anything since I don't know anything about their culture , I was simply stating what happened according to my very own experience .

my home country is similar , the traditional ceremony is considered to be the real deal but it has no legal effect , the only official document to show is the marriage certificate . also ,the date we register the marriage and the date of the ceremony are usually months apart . and in my case , we can only use the certificate , right ?

 

[vancouver8866]

when I applied for anything and IRCC asked for marriage status , I simply provide a notarized and translated copy of my marriage certificate , no pictures, no explanation or anything else and it never caused any problem for me or my wife. I suppose the problem is the length of your marriage , also the fact that you left your wife shortly after getting married . is your wife in your home country ? if she is , I would have suggested that you apply for a TRV for her first and a work permit when she is already in Canada .

Yes, she is in home country.

I applied first time without pictures and call logs, it got rejected. Then for second time, I gave additional documents like notarized declaration of maariage, call logs, pictures, etc. even then it got rejected due to above mentioned points.

I really doubt that TRV will get approved.

 

[canuck78]

I didn't assume anything since I don't know anything about their culture , I was simply stating what happened according to my very own experience .

my home country is similar , the traditional ceremony is considered to be the real deal but it has no legal effect , the only official document to show is the marriage certificate . also ,the date we register the marriage and the date of the ceremony are usually months apart . and in my case , we can only use the certificate , right ?

You need the marriage registration in your country but also need proof of the ceremony. In many countries couples don’t live together until the actual religious ceremony is performed. You need both to get approved to sponsor your spouse in many circumstances. In situations where couples have been dating for years, have lived together, etc. a small ceremony would not be a big deal especially in cultures where big weddings are not the norm.

 

[PAINKILLER28]

Yes, she is in home country.

I applied first time without pictures and call logs, it got rejected. Then for second time, I gave additional documents like notarized declaration of maariage, call logs, pictures, etc. even then it got rejected due to above mentioned points.

I really doubt that TRV will get approved.

a TRV is my suggestions what you should have done before you applied anything for her , in my opinion .

but you're right , after two refusal it's not very likely that she will be approved of a TRV . and I agree with @scylla in your case , the only chance you got is to apply again after your traditional ceremony and provide new proof for that application .

 

[PAINKILLER28]

You need the marriage registration in your country but also need proof of the ceremony. In many countries couples don’t live together until the actual religious ceremony is performed. You need both to get approved to sponsor your spouse in many circumstances. In situations where couples have been dating for years, have lived together, etc. a small ceremony would not be a big deal especially in cultures where big weddings are not the norm.

but the fact is that I always provide nothing else but a notarized marriage certificate and IRCC never refused my applications or asked for anything else .

perhaps it's because I got married in 2008 and that's long enough to be a real marriage without any doubt ?

 

[canuck78]

but the fact is that I always provide nothing else but a notarized marriage certificate and IRCC never refused my applications or asked for anything else .

perhaps it's because I got married in 2008 and that's long enough to be a real marriage without any doubt ?

Yes if you have been married for many years the ceremony is not as important.

 

[PAINKILLER28]

Yes if you have been married for many years the ceremony is not as important.

Thank you , that's very helpful .