Financial requirements for sponsoring a spouse

[j_i_m]

My Canadian friend has lived overseas most of her life, and got married a non-Canadian 10 years ago. They have a child together and have assets and jobs in their current country of residence.

She wants to move back to Canada with the child, and wants to sponsor her husband so he can be a permanent resident. I have a few questions and I would really appreciate your help, as the answers will help her determine her course of action:

1- Is it possible for her to file the sponsorship application from her current country of residence, *before* she moves to Canada? She has no assets or job yet in Canada. Athough she's hoping to get her "ducks in a row" before moving (find a job, rent a place), there is no way for her to guarantee that she will have those locked in before she files the sponsorship application, and before her relocation.

2- What kind of financial guarantees are required for a spousal sponsorship? The CIC website does not seem to be super clear about those. As mentioned above, while she has a job and assets, they are overseas, not in Canada. So I'm unclear about what she actually needs to have in place (financially and income-wise) in Canada before she can file the sponsorship.

Thanks in advance

 

[esam99]

1. yes
2. she has to proof that she is able to support her husband for few months

 

[armoured]

My Canadian friend has lived overseas most of her life, and got married a non-Canadian 10 years ago. They have a child together and have assets and jobs in their current country of residence.

She wants to move back to Canada with the child, and wants to sponsor her husband so he can be a permanent resident. I have a few questions and I would really appreciate your help, as the answers will help her determine her course of action:

She will need to show that she has serious intent and preparations to move to Canada. She can file before she has 'everything' but can expect requests for more info/preps later in the process.

Does the husband have a visitor visa/from visa waiver country?

For resources to support, savings and ability of spouse to work and support can be taken into account. There are no specific amounts for either rquired for this type of application - but rather a 'plan' on how she intends to do so.

 

[armoured]

There is some useful (I think) discussion in this thread that perhaps would be useful for your friend:

https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/citizen-wanting-to-sponsor-non-canadian-husband-but-not-living-in-canada.725021/

To be clear, the biggest hurdle your friend may face - because you say she has been living overseas 'most of her life' - may not be the financial aspects (as you say they have assets, presumably including savings and property, jobs) - is how serious she is about moving.

The context is that Canadian policies attempt to discourage people from getting PR status without actually moving to and residing in Canada (i.e. attempting to just get a "PR card of convenience." For spousal applications, the financial tests are undefined and relatively minimal - no specific minimum requirements.

So for your friend what this means is: she doesn't appear to have many/any ties to Canada. That's why I asked if her spouse has a visa/visited Canada/etc.

Specific things she can look at / consider: get a visa and visit Canada with her spouse. Open a bank account and transfer some money there and related things (use the account a bit and start to get prepared). Look for jobs. Look for property (to rent or own). Look into schools (if children). Etc.

Personally I suspect that having a visa and visiting may actually be the single most important aspect (but it's my speculation). Partly for the obvious reason that (if your friend doesn't know) - if they have a visa and visit a few times, it would be relatively simple to visit and apply 'inland' (from within Canada).

Despite complaints and slow processes, IRCC staff are not stupid and know this. The main limitation of applying inland vs outland (before they arrive ie as a Canadian citizen residing abroad) is that the spouse would not be able to work (and health care and other administrative matters also may need longer waiting periods) from the first day of arrival.

Your friend's timeframe and financial capacity for moving to Canada also matters, of course. But there may be a significant advantage to getting a visa and visiting first - regardless the process is not quick. Of course, if that's not possible (eg a visitor visa app is refused), well, then there's no choice. But as a Canadian citizen your friend can visit on her own and start to accumulate some of the things she will eventually need anyway.

Again, to be direct: if your friend has never lived in Canada as an adult and has no/few connections to Canada, it's a pretty good reason for IRCC to be skeptical. So that's something she can address.

 

[j_i_m]

There is some useful (I think) discussion in this thread that perhaps would be useful for your friend:

https://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/threads/citizen-wanting-to-sponsor-non-canadian-husband-but-not-living-in-canada.725021/

To be clear, the biggest hurdle your friend may face - because you say she has been living overseas 'most of her life' - may not be the financial aspects (as you say they have assets, presumably including savings and property, jobs) - is how serious she is about moving.

The context is that Canadian policies attempt to discourage people from getting PR status without actually moving to and residing in Canada (i.e. attempting to just get a "PR card of convenience." For spousal applications, the financial tests are undefined and relatively minimal - no specific minimum requirements.

So for your friend what this means is: she doesn't appear to have many/any ties to Canada. That's why I asked if her spouse has a visa/visited Canada/etc.

Specific things she can look at / consider: get a visa and visit Canada with her spouse. Open a bank account and transfer some money there and related things (use the account a bit and start to get prepared). Look for jobs. Look for property (to rent or own). Look into schools (if children). Etc.

Personally I suspect that having a visa and visiting may actually be the single most important aspect (but it's my speculation). Partly for the obvious reason that (if your friend doesn't know) - if they have a visa and visit a few times, it would be relatively simple to visit and apply 'inland' (from within Canada).

Despite complaints and slow processes, IRCC staff are not stupid and know this. The main limitation of applying inland vs outland (before they arrive ie as a Canadian citizen residing abroad) is that the spouse would not be able to work (and health care and other administrative matters also may need longer waiting periods) from the first day of arrival.

Your friend's timeframe and financial capacity for moving to Canada also matters, of course. But there may be a significant advantage to getting a visa and visiting first - regardless the process is not quick. Of course, if that's not possible (eg a visitor visa app is refused), well, then there's no choice. But as a Canadian citizen your friend can visit on her own and start to accumulate some of the things she will eventually need anyway.

Again, to be direct: if your friend has never lived in Canada as an adult and has no/few connections to Canada, it's a pretty good reason for IRCC to be skeptical. So that's something she can address.

Thank you for the detailed input. You've helped us validate the path she's on, and consider the other dependencies. I really appreciate it.

You're absolutely right about the importance of showing intent to move. She has family members here, and she is busy getting contacts established with potential employers, while scouting for daycares (she has a young child). She would need to have a number of these elements established/ demonstrated in her application.

You raise a really good question about her husband. Currently, he does not have a current tourist visa to Canada. He is considering applying for one asap (before she completes and submits the sponsorship application). Can you confirm this is the right of action? The rationale is that with a tourist visa in hand, he would be able to visit while his papers are progressing. Also, best to have the visa before the sponsorship application is filed, as he may be able to avoid sceptical questions from a visa agent.

I really like the idea of getting her to visit briefly to establish bank a back account and some roots asap, to bolster her application. Thanks again

 

[armoured]

You raise a really good question about her husband. Currently, he does not have a current tourist visa to Canada. He is considering applying for one asap (before she completes and submits the sponsorship application). Can you confirm this is the right of action? The rationale is that with a tourist visa in hand, he would be able to visit while his papers are progressing. Also, best to have the visa before the sponsorship application is filed, as he may be able to avoid sceptical questions from a visa agent.

Has he visited Canada before? Had visas before? While married to the spouse?

While it's not automatic it's not surprising that those who have had visas before (assuming no major changes or over-stays) have much higher rates of acceptance.

But at any rate my view is yes, better to apply for a tourist visa first. That would make it possible for him to visit while it's being processed as while as other possibilities (including applying inland).

 

[bryndog1950]

My Canadian friend has lived overseas most of her life, and got married a non-Canadian 10 years ago. They have a child together and have assets and jobs in their current country of residence.

She wants to move back to Canada with the child, and wants to sponsor her husband so he can be a permanent resident. I have a few questions and I would really appreciate your help, as the answers will help her determine her course of action:

1- Is it possible for her to file the sponsorship application from her current country of residence, *before* she moves to Canada? She has no assets or job yet in Canada. Athough she's hoping to get her "ducks in a row" before moving (find a job, rent a place), there is no way for her to guarantee that she will have those locked in before she files the sponsorship application, and before her relocation.

2- What kind of financial guarantees are required for a spousal sponsorship? The CIC website does not seem to be super clear about those. As mentioned above, while she has a job and assets, they are overseas, not in Canada. So I'm unclear about what she actually needs to have in place (financially and income-wise) in Canada before she can file the sponsorship.

Thanks in advance

Does her child have a certificate of Canadian Citizenship? If not, she should apply for one as soon as possible.