Common Law Sponsorship - Proof of Cohabitation PLEASE HELP!!

[S1F5]

Hello everybody,

I would be VERY grateful if someone could give us some advice on what else we can use for proof of living together - we have almost completed our forms but have recently realized we are stuck on proof of living together.

Ill try to keep this as short as possible. I am Canadian and am sponsoring my boyfriend from the UK - we are both currently living in Rome, Italy where we met and have been together since June 2011 and living together since September 2011. The problem is, and I am not sure if anyone knows the situation in Rome - but landlords here don't want to register their apartments as rentals so they don't have to pay taxes so they don't give out contracts. This was fine for us before as we weren't sure how long we were going to stay so we were fine with no contracts. Now however that we need some proof of living together our landlords (in the 2 places we have lived) refuse to give us any proof because they say its too big a risk they will get caught. On top of that we pay cash and the bills remain in the name of the landlord and are included in the price of the apartment. To make matters worse, the Italian mail is terrible and since we have both lost important documents in the mail before we get our mail sent to work (we work together) ...our finances are joined but since our work also pays us in cash we usually pay cash...he has a bank account which we are going to try and add my name to (will this work)
Is there anything else we can use? will notorized letters work ? from friends and family? our bosses know about our relationship...also our contracts at work have our address on them..could we use that? what else could we use? its a terrible situation because we really do live together - just everything here is done with cash so its hard to prove anything...

please help!! I want to go home!!

 

[Rob_TO]

Here's what i would do in your case:
- definitely include the work contracts that show the same address for both of you. Hopefully there is some date on the contract that shows it goes back to Sept 2011.
- also definitely include a few letters from close family, friends and co-workers that can vouch you have been living together all this time
- if you have a credit card, get your boyfriend added as an "authorized user" (or vice versa if he has one). Basically they will send you a second card in the other persons name, and on the monthly bill both your names will show up.
- do you not have ANYTHING that is mailed to your address?? Just including mail being sent to either of you at the same address is good proof. Both of you might want to change your address with your bank/credit card/cell phone provider right now... just for the sake of getting some mail
- get some cheap term life insurance for a small amount, where each of you is named the sole beneficiary of the other
- Change your CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) status to common-law. You can do this through their website instantly if you have an online account, then print off the page that shows common-law status, and the effective date you became common-law.


It's not really required to show absolute proof of the day you both moved in together. In my case my girlfriend just moved in with me and as i already had a mortgage, she was not able to be added to it so everything was always only in my name (even to today). So we could have picked any date as the move-in day as there was nothing proving the exact day. But including enough other proofs, and it should be ok.

 

[S1F5]

Rob_TO

Thanks so much for your reply - it is very much appreciated....and you have some great ideas...I will definitely do the CRA thing right now - what information do I need? will it show the date from today or do I enter the date from when we became common law...As for the mail I can definitely get some things sent to us now somehow but will it look weird if its all dated very recently and none from the past and our old apartment? we do grocery shop using my visa so if I added him to that account we could show that....

Thanks again!! very useful

 

[Rob_TO]

Hmm the CRA change is only possible if you have a "my account" already with them that lets you access and change tax info online. http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/myaccount/ . If you don't already have an account it's a bit of a pain to set-up as they need to mail you your login authorization (prob to an address in Canada) before you can do anything. You will need your SIN and previous years tax info. The marital status page will show the date you became common-law.

Definitely get him an authorized user card for your visa. He should get a 2nd card with different numbers that will be linked to your account and bill. Of course this process takes several weeks as well, plus waiting for a bill to come to submit with your app would delay you sending it off by another month or 2.

If you never got any mail at your old address, there isn't much you can do about it now. Your best bet here is you and your bf's contracts at work that show your common address. You should also include a separate letter that explains the housing situation in Rome, just like you said here. Hopefully the VO will consider all your other proofs of the common-law relationship and accept your word on the date you officially started living together.

 

[S1F5]

Ok I will have to find all this out...hmmm its proving to be much more complicated than we had thought...and we actually are living together!! I guess we are going to need patience...thanks again for the ideas! its very much appreciated!

 

[Sweden]

Ok I will have to find all this out...hmmm its proving to be much more complicated than we had thought...and we actually are living together!! I guess we are going to need patience...thanks again for the ideas! its very much appreciated!

Hey S1F5,

I lived in Italy for 4 years, and I can understand the situation - been in a similar situation myself.

What I could recommend is to talk to your landlord, and ask them to give you at least a "contratto in comodato d'uso" for the time that you were there. basically it is a document that some landlord make tenants sign saying that they are staying in the house for free (which is usually not true but paid in cash so no trace)... Explain that it is important for you and your visa to Canada, and be "firm" about it.... lot of landlords get away with not declaring anything, and of course given the situation in Rome with accommodation, as a tenant you don't have much power to get anything out of them.... depending on your relations with the landlord, you might be able to get that from them by being "nice", and if not, then let them know that you really need the paper, and you are willing to talk to a lawyer about that. They will be scared most of the time because it is illegal to rent without declaring anything, and they will probably accommodate your demands... most people that go to court with their landlords win, and the landlords know that, because it's not difficult to prove that you have lived there, even if you don't have proofs - the police can go around and ask neighbours, and shopkeepers, and it's easy to confirm for them... so the landlords usually will suddenly listen much more attentively and be more willing to "help" that way.
If you need, I can look up a format ( I use to have one) and send it to you. If you need more info - don't hesitate to send me a PM.
Good luck,
Sweden

 

[S1F5]

Hey S1F5,

I lived in Italy for 4 years, and I can understand the situation - been in a similar situation myself.

What I could recommend is to talk to your landlord, and ask them to give you at least a "contratto in comodato d'uso" for the time that you were there. basically it is a document that some landlord make tenants sign saying that they are staying in the house for free (which is usually not true but paid in cash so no trace)... Explain that it is important for you and your visa to Canada, and be "firm" about it.... lot of landlords get away with not declaring anything, and of course given the situation in Rome with accommodation, as a tenant you don't have much power to get anything out of them.... depending on your relations with the landlord, you might be able to get that from them by being "nice", and if not, then let them know that you really need the paper, and you are willing to talk to a lawyer about that. They will be scared most of the time because it is illegal to rent without declaring anything, and they will probably accommodate your demands... most people that go to court with their landlords win, and the landlords know that, because it's not difficult to prove that you have lived there, even if you don't have proofs - the police can go around and ask neighbours, and shopkeepers, and it's easy to confirm for them... so the landlords usually will suddenly listen much more attentively and be more willing to "help" that way.
If you need, I can look up a format ( I use to have one) and send it to you. If you need more info - don't hesitate to send me a PM.
Good luck,
Sweden

Thanks so much for your reply! I am happy someone understands our pain! this is a very good idea - I will definitely ask our old landlord if he would do this for us (I already asked him to make some form of contract at least saying we lived there but he said it was too big a risk - he's a nice guy though so I would rather try and be nice about this whole thing so hopefully he will agree to this type of contract)
Question - after sending these documents do they actually check up on anything? would they go to the apartment and find him and ask? or is it just that they need to know just to prove our relationship is legit? I feel if i have more information about what they will do with the info I could maybe convince him easier. Also we are trying to get it processed though London (bc thats where my bf is from) and not Rome so no one in Rome will even likely be involved.
Also if you could send me the format of one of these contracts I would very much appreciate it because then I can send it to him and he can read it and then maybe will be more likely to help us out. My email is sarah.elizabeth.f@hotmail.com

Thanks again SO much - this was a very useful reply

 

[S1F5]

I lived in Italy for 4 years, and I can understand the situation - been in a similar situation myself.

SWEDEN : I also just noticed that your application was processed through LONDON - but you were living in Rome right? are you from the UK? (or sweden as your name says ?) I was wondering since my bf is from the UK we want our application to be processed in the UK is there a way we can request this or a place on the form we must write it?

thanks again!

 

[SchnookoLoly]

When you're filling out the forms I think there's a spot where you specify which office you want to apply through - but it's just if you want it done inland or outland, the processing office will be wherever he is from (else everyone would just choose London as it's pretty quick [mine was done in 2 months!], whereas other outland offices are way slower).

I suggest having a look over at British Expats as well - the forum is all for applications between Canucks and Brits, so you might find more Brit-specific information there (and lots of people who have lived elsewhere abroad). http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=33

Good luck!

 

[S1F5]

When you're filling out the forms I think there's a spot where you specify which office you want to apply through - but it's just if you want it done inland or outland, the processing office will be wherever he is from (else everyone would just choose London as it's pretty quick [mine was done in 2 months!], whereas other outland offices are way slower).

I suggest having a look over at British Expats as well - the forum is all for applications between Canucks and Brits, so you might find more Brit-specific information there (and lots of people who have lived elsewhere abroad).

Good luck!

Great! thanks a lot for the reply SchnookoLoly! I will definitely check out those forums - Since we are not living in Canada right now I guess we will have to do outland - I have also heard outland in general is way shorter than inland...I'm happy to hear yours was processed to quickly we will definitely use London!!

Thanks again!!

 

[SchnookoLoly]

Great! thanks a lot for the reply SchnookoLoly! I will definitely check out those forums - Since we are not living in Canada right now I guess we will have to do outland - I have also heard outland in general is way shorter than inland...I'm happy to hear yours was processed to quickly we will definitely use London!!

Thanks again!!

Not a problem, happy to help! I would definitely recommend outland if you're not living in Canada, it is much faster to apply outland via London than to apply Inland. I've posted my timeline on my sidebar thingie... should give you a decent indication, mine seems to be pretty average or if anything on the slightly longer side as compared to most who have applied though London!

 

[S1F5]

Visa Office......: London
App. Filed.......: 25 Jan 2012
File Transfer...: 24 Apr 2012
Passport Req..: 26 Jun 2012
VISA ISSUED...: 21 Aug 2012
LANDED..........: 08 Dec 2012

this is helpful thanks...
so the file transfer date is when it was approved in Canada and sent to London correct? then whats the passport req? sorry I'm kinda new to this and don't know the exact process

thanks again

 

[frege]

this is helpful thanks...
so the file transfer date is when it was approved in Canada and sent to London correct? then whats the passport req? sorry I'm kinda new to this and don't know the exact process

thanks again

You're correct about file transfer.

Your boyfriend won't be getting a passport request. Passport requests are so they can put a permanent resident visa in your passport.

But if you're a citizen of a country with visa-free travel to Canada (like the UK), you don't get an actual visa. That's because you don't need to prove to the airline that you're allowed to travel to Canada. Instead, you get something called "confirmation of permanent residence". That's something you show to the border services officer when you arrive in Canada.

 

[SchnookoLoly]

this is helpful thanks...
so the file transfer date is when it was approved in Canada and sent to London correct? then whats the passport req? sorry I'm kinda new to this and don't know the exact process

thanks again

As frege said, transfer date is when we had sponsor approval and the file was sent from CPC-M to London.

My husband is from the UK so we didn't have PPR as such for the reasons frege said. Some people, however, have CIC London issue their COPR (Confirmation of Permanent Residency) directly; others, like us, had CIC London request a copy of my husband's full passport (photocopies of all pages) before they would issue COPR, so we had the extra step. There doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason between who has that request and who has COPR directly issued, but there you go.

So in our case, Sponsor approval was on 24 April; the email asking my husband to send copies of his passport was received on 26 June; we sent it all in about 3 weeks later; the actual COPR was issued on 21 August. We land next Saturday!

Hope that clears it up a bit...

 

[S1F5]

As frege said, transfer date is when we had sponsor approval and the file was sent from CPC-M to London.

My husband is from the UK so we didn't have PPR as such for the reasons frege said. Some people, however, have CIC London issue their COPR (Confirmation of Permanent Residency) directly; others, like us, had CIC London request a copy of my husband's full passport (photocopies of all pages) before they would issue COPR, so we had the extra step. There doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason between who has that request and who has COPR directly issued, but there you go.

So in our case, Sponsor approval was on 24 April; the email asking my husband to send copies of his passport was received on 26 June; we sent it all in about 3 weeks later; the actual COPR was issued on 21 August. We land next Saturday!

Hope that clears it up a bit...

Ok thats confusing but I think I understand...but whatever he will be getting (meaning which ever way the PPR happens in his case) means that he can live and work correct? Or is there another step after to get the work permit? Now I am remembering something about an extra payment to get the work permit at the same time as the residency...did I just confuse this even more?