Hello!
I am a newly landed PR, having just gone through the US-Canada common-law sponsorship last year, so I understand how daunting this appears at the beginning.
Just breath.
It's all doable by you and your partner, assuming you guys have a good grasp of English/French (and don't have any criminal issues or child custody battles with exes)!
Please read:
How can my common-law partner and I prove we have been together for 12 months? It's from CIC directly. Take note at the bottom that it says "You do
not need to include
all these items to prove your relationship is real."
So do the ones that are easiest and most applicable to your situation, in my opinion.
b.Is it easy to find places to live that we could add my name to the lease even tho i wont be able to work?
This is entirely dependent on your location and your landlord. If you can get on the lease together, that really is a great piece of evidence to have. If you can't, I would submit a letter as proof of your relationship (the actual section of YOUR checklist, please read it carefully) that explains that you tried to do this but was refused by the landlord/management.
If you have enough other proof, it
should be okay.
Remember, 12 months of proof, no interruptions.
I printed out 12 months of phone and utility bills that showed we both lived at the same address. We didn't actually have much with both our names in the address, so I submitted 12 months for me and the same 12 months for my partner at the same address.
2.Is it okay that half of the time we're in the states?
It should be fine as long as it does not interrupt your 12 months together. A break of one-month apart will probably not be accepted by CIC.
3.After we hit the 12 months what do we do?
a.Do we need a lawyer for the application or for anything else?
b.If we do and we're approved what am i considered at that point
c.Can i start working after the year and we achieve common law?
3. Gather up the evidence and documents you've been carefully setting aside during your 12-months of cohabitation (non-stop!) and submit your Family Class - Common-Law application for PR to CIC!
3a. No, the vast majority of couples don't need a lawyer, especially US-Canada, unless you have some criminal history or something else difficult (child custody issues with an ex?).
3b. I'm not sure I understand your "if we do" -- if you do what? If you submit your application, then you are simply considered the Principal Applicant, and your Canadian common-law partner is considered the Sponsor. Keep that in mind when you read and fill out the forms. Some are from the perspective of the Sponsor. Others are from the perspective of the Principal Applicant.
3c. Common-law status does not grant you the right to work in Canada. Only a work permit, PR status, or Citizen status does. You'll see some couples on this forum have applied INLAND and have an Open-Work Permit during their wait time. But their wait time is 24+ months! DON'T DO INLAND IF YOU ARE US-CANADA!!!! Why wait 24+ months when you can have it all done in less than one year? Seriously, you'll be kicking yourself for doing Inland thinking you're okay with waiting more than twice as long once you see people getting their PR while you are in LIMBO with no update for a very long time.
My application took 10 months, and I suspect mine was a tad slow (other US-Canada can get done in 6-8 months) because of holidays (+1 month) and CSQ (Quebec requirement +1 month).
The only think you can do to get a sense of the "real-time" is the self-reported spreadsheet that is shared here.
Breath. Read the checklist for each part (Sponsor's checklist and Applicant's checklist). Keep those two roles in mind when you read the forms. It will start to make sense if you can read them with a clear mind.
P.S. One more thing that isn't apparent from looking at the forms and the official website. You can absolutely apply OUTLAND (much faster) while you stay *in* Canada on an extended visitor/temporary resident visa. You can apply online ($100 with CIC) to extend your stay in Canada and explain your purpose, and as long as you and your partner show sufficient funds for your stay, you can remain together while your application is being processed by CIC. You can even request a whole year (they will decide for themselves how much to give). I've had 2 extensions (first one was for 6 months when I thought that was the max I was allowed!, the second one I asked for 1 year and got what I needed, 11 months +the 1 month of waiting for my extension to be processed).
