Geting married X time before sending the aplication

[Rob_TO]

Hi all, i'm Canadian but i live in Portugal since i was 9, i'm 23 right now.

I have a girlfriend (She is Portuguese) for 2 years and i want to move with her to Canada to have a better life.

My question is, is it a problem if a marry her some weeks before a send the application to sponsor her as my spouse?
Will they deny it thinking its a fraud?

In general 2 years is plenty of time to be together, before getting married. That in itself is not suspicious at all. However CIC will NOT just take your word for it. If you can't show proofs and evidence to support it, then CIC might not believe it.

A simple wedding is ok, but what is essential is that as many friends and family can attend as possible. If not the ceremony itself, then to some reception or dinner afterwards. You want as many photos of the wedding/reception as possible with the newly married couple, together with different friends/family.

Also in order to convince CIC that you have indeed been dating for 2 years, it would be good if you can present some proofs that date back to 2 years ago. This could be emails from when you first started dating, early phone records showing lots of calls made, dated receipts from trips or buying things for each other, letters given for b-day or anniversary, testimonials from friends/family that mention when you started dating, etc etc.

Some other proofs you can start to think about are joint finances. Get a shared credit card, joint bank account, or life insurance with each other listed as beneficiary.

 

[Mike.L]

I would like to thank all of you for your advices

I'm thinking of marrying in Portugal and moving with my girl to Canada a few weeks after, she can stay for 6 months as a tourist and while we are there, I'll apply to sponsor her.
Meanwhile I'm going to try to extend the tourist visa to 1 year, hopefully the VO will process everything until then.

What do you guys think? Can i do this or will there be a problem with the CIC?

 

[canadianwoman]

That should be fine. Many spouses wait out the time visiting in Canada. She is visa exempt, so will almost certainly be allowed in. It would be best if she gathered proof of her ties to Portugal, just in case: a return ticket, proof of a job or studies, etc. If you send in the application before she comes to Canada, she can then show the border agent proof of the application (the receipt, or the sponsor approval, or just a copy of the application; the receipt is the best, and actually you can pay before you send in the application). Many people on the forums have been let in with no problem in this situation.
Applying right after you get married is fine. In your case, waiting a while would also be OK, because you would both be in Portugal. Waiting a long time after marriage when the two are not living together looks bad.