Applying for permanent residency while on a private visitor visa?

[sensfan15]

So I was in China for 2 years and met my girlfriend there. We got her a private visitor visa last summer with no problems. We have been together for a year and a half. I have had to leave China because of a family illness.

We want to get her here on another private visitor visa and then get married while she is here. Then apply for permanent residency while on this private visitor visa. Is this possible or is it a waste of time. What would the correct "path" be to do this?

Thanks for any info =)

 

[Sweden]

If you can get her a visa to come to Canada, you can get married, then apply for PR. In your case, because your future wife is not from a visa-exempt country, it probably makes more sense to apply inland. If you send the application before her visitor visa expires, and include an Open Work permit, then she won't have to renew her visitor visa, she will have implied status. However, with inland, she can not leave the country for the duration of the application - currently 14 to 16 months, even for family emergencies etc.

You might want to start reading the first post by leon, Spousal Sponsorship, to give you an overview (only the first page, not the 700 after that!).
Good luck,
Sweden

 

[akash aluwala]

hey am 4m INDIA , i got admission in george brown college (wireless networking ) a PG course .,
i hav got 13 backlogs with repetition in my graduation with 64% aggregate(C.S.E).,IELTS score of 6.5 with no band less than 6.,10th - 76% ., 12th - 67% ,., paid off my complete tution fees as well as CAD$ 10,000 for my living expenses , what are my likely chances towards visa ? plz some1 help me out ., am nervous all d tym ((((((((

 

[sensfan15]

Sweden,

Thanks for that. What are the applicable forms for applying inland? Is it the Application for Permanent Residence from within Canada – Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada class (IMM 5289) form?

 

[gongdi]

Yes. Get her a visitor visa and apply inland. I am acquiring cobwebs waiting for information regarding my wife's status here in Beijing. ???

 

[sensfan15]

OK. Another question: She is applying for her visa now. Apparently it should be easy to get another one since she already got one before and abided by Canadian law and left the country when she indicated. However, on my invitation letter should I indicate that we plan on getting married in Canada?

 

[frege]

OK. Another question: She is applying for her visa now. Apparently it should be easy to get another one since she already got one before and abided by Canadian law and left the country when she indicated. However, on my invitation letter should I indicate that we plan on getting married in Canada?

My view on this is that the safest thing is to state your intention of marrying. (Though I've heard others say the opposite here on the forum.) This will certainly be positive for your sponsorship application. The visa application will be part of the record CIC will look at when they're processing the sponsorship application.

In practice, it is possible it will cause concerns for the visitor visa, but I think it's best to be honest. In theory, a person is allowed to enter Canada as a visitor even if they intend to apply for permanent residence. It has to be clear that they intend to leave Canada if the PR application is turned down.

By the way, if you and your fiancée have lived together for at least 12 months, then you will be considered common-law spouses under Canadian immigration law. This will need to be declared in the visa application. Also, in this case you can already sponsor her in the common-law category.

 

[truesmile]

By the way, if you and your fiancée have lived together for at least 12 months, then you will be considered common-law spouses under Canadian immigration law. This will need to be declared in the visa application. Also, in this case you can already sponsor her in the common-law category.

This point cannot be over-emphasized. Do NOT attempt to circumvent this detail, she could end up being forever excluded from the Family Class if you do.

 

[frege]

This point cannot be over-emphasized. Do NOT attempt to circumvent this detail, she could end up being forever excluded from the Family Class if you do.

No - this is only if he had become a permanent resident without declaring her. That's not the case here, since they met in China recently, and he may well be Canadian by birth anyway. However, it is possible that this would cause problems regarding credibility in the sponsorship application.

 

[sensfan15]

Yeah I am a Canadian citizen so it does not apply. We also were not living together for a year anyways.

I just want to confirm that the correct application package to use while she is in Canada is the: "Application for Permanent Residence from within Canada – Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada class (IMM 5289)"....is this correct?

 

[Sweden]

If you go the Inland route, then yes, that's the correct one. You could also chose to apply outland while she waits with you in Canada. She would not get implied status, but she will be able to leave the country if she needs to. Be aware that if she applies inland, and something comes up ( family etc.), she can not leave Canada ( well, she can, but if she is denied entry on the way back, her application will be deemed abandoned... that's something to consider). Inland applications time are for now 6 months stage 1 + 8 months stage 2, but stage 1 seems to be getting longer as some October applicants are still waiting to hear back - so I would say 16 months at least would be a reasonable timeframe.

download the whole package, not just one form, here http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/spouse.asp

 

[frege]

Yeah I am a Canadian citizen so it does not apply. We also were not living together for a year anyways.

I just want to confirm that the correct application package to use while she is in Canada is the: "Application for Permanent Residence from within Canada – Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada class (IMM 5289)"....is this correct?

If you choose to do an inland application, that is correct. What you've given is the form number for the instruction guide, not for the application itself. The application package is here:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/spouse.asp

If you choose "outland", it will be a different package. (If she's in Canada, you can pick either kind.)

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/fc.asp

Inland would allow her to stay in Canada until a decision was made on the application. Outland might be faster, and has better appeal rights if you're turned down, but wouldn't allow her to stay in Canada while waiting.

CIC now says Stage 1 on an inland application takes 10 months, and Stage 2 a further 8 months. On an outland application through Beijing, the whole thing takes about 10 months at the top end.

However, after Stage 1 on an inland application, you get some rights such as a work permit, health care, and - in some provinces at least (including Ont. and Que.) - in-province tuition at university.

If an inland application is considered suspect, then Stage 1 approval may not be granted for a long time. It sometimes takes two or three years to have the interview. On an outland application, an interview happens quicker, and you can appeal a rejection more easily.

In your situation, an inland application probably sounds like the better option overall.

 

[sensfan15]

When she applies for permanent residency will she need to get a visa extension when her private visitor visa expires? How do you go about applying for an extension? Or does her visa become nullified once she applies for PR?

 

[frege]

When she applies for permanent residency will she need to get a visa extension when her private visitor visa expires? How do you go about applying for an extension? Or does her visa become nullified once she applies for PR?

If she applies outland, then the two applications are on completely separate tracks - the outland application doesn't give her any rights until she actually becomes a PR. So in that case, yes, she needs to extend her stay.

If she applies inland, then she includes an open work permit application with the PR application. This automatically extends her visitor status until she either:

- gets the OWP, which will happen after a successful Stage 1;
- has the PR application rejected.

If she doesn't include an OWP application (and there's no reason not to, except if she wants a study permit instead), then yes, she'll need to keep applying for extensions.

In cases where there is some suspicion or a need for an interview, it can happen that you never get Stage 1 approval until two or three years later. When that happens, your wife is just a visitor for the entire time and can't work or study.