Canadian Marriage and American unemployment

[willowtree]

Hi Everyone,
My partner and i are looking to get married and live in canada. I am canadian and my partner is american. She has received a nice package from her last job and is currently taking some time off while receiving unemployment from the US. Our plan is to get married and for me to sponsor her so that she can eventually get a job here as a teacher. My first (of many question i'm sure!) is, if we get married, which is ultimately the first step for her to be able to work here and eventually become a canadian citizen, does she need to have a canadian address? and if so, would this affect her unemployment in america? Ideally, we'd like to have that income while we are waiting for her to be able to work here. It's might be important to note we are a gay couple. Thank you in advance for any help you can provide us!

 

[YorkFactory]

See here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/spouse-apply-who.asp

If you're not married, you will need to get married somewhere that it's legal (MA, NH, CT, IA, VT, or Canada—they haven't added DC to the list yet). Then, you should apply for permanent residence (see the above link for forms and instructions). She does not need a Canadian address, but you do, or you need to show that you plan to move back to Canada if you don't currently live in Canada. You'd need to check with the state from which she's receiving unemployment to see if moving to Canada affects things (but she can't move permanently to Canada until she gets permanent residence, at which point she would be able to get a job in Canada).

 

[willowtree]

thank you York

i live in canada and she is in the US.
so the first course of action is to get married here in canada is my guess.
then do we apply for spousal sponsorship? and once she i have sponsored her we apply for perminent residence? at what point in the process is she allowed to work?

thank you so much for your help!
m

 

[ariell]

thank you York

i live in canada and she is in the US.
so the first course of action is to get married here in canada is my guess.
Yes, though you could get married in a state where same-sex marriage is legal.

then do we apply for spousal sponsorship? Yes, get married first, then apply to sponsor her.

and once she i have sponsored her we apply for perminent residence?
No. You are sponsoring her to become a permanent resident. Once the application is approved, she becomes a PR and then needs to apply for a SIN card. When you apply at a Government Canada office, they give you a SIN number right away so she could start working as soon as she has that. The SIN card itself will come in the mail in a couple weeks.

at what point in the process is she allowed to work?

thank you so much for your help!
m

 

[willowtree]

very helpful thank you!

 

[willowtree]

Hi All another question! once we apply for me to sponsor my american partner, does she have to live here?

 

[ariell]

No, she doesn't have to live here. She could of course since the US is visa exempt, so many US couples choose to live in Canada while their application is in process (assuming there are no issues crossing the border), but it's definitely not required. Once she gets her PR visa, she will have to "land" in Canada by the expiry date on the visa, but then she can leave again. And actually Canada is veeeery lenient in letting PRs live outside of the country and keep their status. You have to live at minimum 2 out of every 5 years in CAnada to maintain your status. So if a situation arose where she needed/wanted to live in the US for a period of time, she could as long as the she lives 2/5 years here. Good luck