Help finding reference in IRPA stating eligibility for sponsoring my common-law

[calypsomama]

Hello,
I'm writing a cover sheet for the sponsorship application for my common-law partner. I'm a Canadian citizen by birth, both of us living abroad. On the cover sheet for our application I would like to point out the relevant clause stating that I'm eligible for sponsorship which I'm having trouble finding.
Can anyone help??

Also, where on the IRPA can I find mentioning that while sponsoring a common law partner there is no no minimum income necessary
Thanks!!

 

[brucem]

Hello,
I'm writing a cover sheet for the sponsorship application for my common-law partner. I'm a Canadian citizen by birth, both of us living abroad. On the cover sheet for our application I would like to point out the relevant clause stating that I'm eligible for sponsorship which I'm having trouble finding.
Can anyone help??

Also, where on the IRPA can I find mentioning that while sponsoring a common law partner there is no no minimum income necessary
Thanks!!

You don't really need to do this, as long as you include the proof required to show your canadian citizenship which is on the checklist, and you meet the criteria to sponsor which can be found on the guide under sponsorship eligibility you will be fine....don't make extra work for yourself! CIC doesn't care if you know the act they just care that you show the proof.

Although there is no financial requirement you do have to indicate how you will support you and your partner when you return to Canada. We included pay stubs, letters from relatives and bank statements. Although my wife hadn't workd in Canada for 7 years we also included an option c printout, probably not necessary though. Again there is a statement on the guide under sponsorship eligibility which talks about financial requirement being only applicable to dependent children..who have dependent children. The rest of the financial info is on IMM5491 the document checklist.

 

[calypsomama]

Thanks brucem for your response and your concern! i know I dont need to do this but i really would like to have this info... Thanks

 

[scylla]

I personally think this is a bad idea as it may cause the officer to place greater focus on evaluating your financial situation (it's unusual to write a cover letter and extremely unusual to quote an IRPA). While there is no minimum income required to sponsor a spouse, you can actually be refused as a sponsor if the officer has concerns you may have issues financially supporting your spouse once they arrive in Canada. Once in a while we see these refusals here (rarely but it does happen) for Canadians who are on disability and are sponsoring their spouses to come to Canada. This isn't your situation at all and there should be 0% chance of refusal for you based on income. I would avoid drawing unnecessary attention to something that isn't a problem. Don't make your application stand out from all of the thousands of others they've received just like yours. If you do insist on including all of this in the cover letter, I don't think you're risking being refused - however I do think you're risking causing the officer to potential examine your financial situation closer, potentially request additional documents from you, and potentially delay the processing of your application.

 

[Alurra71]

I kind of agree with Scylla here. While there is no rule saying you shouldn't do this, it would certainly be out of the ordinary to do this and it might trigger a negative reaction on the part of the VO.

Just remember your VO does this for a living. Your job is to ensure that you include ALL of the required documents and present the very best possible application for the officer to look at. Don't give them a reason to scrutinize your application any further than they will.

I think if I looked at applications day in and day out and came across a cover letter stating these rules and regulations I might personally get offended that you, an applicant, would presume to tell me the rules and regulations for the job in which I was hired to do. I would also be inclined to think that you had something to hide since you were making a point of trying to tell me what the rules were so I would be looking harder to figure out what you were trying to keep from me.

Of course, these are just my thoughts and this is your application and you should put it together how you wish to do it.

Either way, best of luck to you!

 

[scylla]

I would also be inclined to think that you had something to hide since you were making a point of trying to tell me what the rules were so I would be looking harder to figure out what you were trying to keep from me.

This was exactly my thought as well.

 

[calypsomama]

I understand your point about not wanting to draw access attention.. The idea came from several immigration attorneys' websites that had strongly recommended a cover sheet and also mentioned that they refer to the relevant legal text unknowing who will be checking the application..

 

[ashia]

You will find on this forum many cases in which lawyers were not giving the best advices. Few times i saw them even screwing somebodie's case. Me myself I heard two lawyers saying complete b****t about common law case, it was clear they didnt not know even simple basics you can find in guides and forms.
So, think about it again, read this forum a lot, just to discover cases when lawyers were giving bad advices, and taking lots of money for them.
It is all your decision, but too many stories about lawyers I read here. It is actually very pessimistic :/

 

[canadianwoman]

I would expect a lawyer who is preparing an appeal to cite supporting legislation and cases. A sponsor who is preparing his or her own application does not need to. In fact, I think it would surprise the visa officer a great deal.
Prepare the application as if you know the regulations - but don't mention them.

 

[surleplateau]

I think you are making more work for yourself than necessary, and I think that line on the lawyer's website is just to use legal jargon and references for the sake of sounding important... Just consider that hundreds and thousands of people succeed every year with their PR paperwork without requiring legal citations or a lawyer's expensive aid.

That said, if you want to find it for yourself, I think you are better off contacting either immigration lawyer directly or a law library / law librarian. You can check with your local university or law school library. Or try contacting a law library in Canada.