Help please
- Thread starter lifeisnotfair
- Start date
I’m a bit confused. Should A report this or not? Even if A reports, it seems like there won’t be much that can be done. Does Canadian immigration not take these cases seriously, or is it just hard for them to handle because of the high number of immigrants? I’m trying to understand what the best next step is, but it feels like reporting might not change anything. Could you help clarify?
Thank you.
Please confirm if A should contact Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre or CBSA to file for “a marriage of convenience”? Or both ? How about IRCC?
Is this the right category for reporting “marriage of convenience”
It's entirely your choice if you submit a report or not. This is a decision you need to make.
It's up to CBSA whether they do anything with the report depending on the details and any evidence submitted, i.e., if they feel there is enough of a case to pursue and investigate.
No one here can tell you if CBSA will do something or not if you file a report. There is no way for us to know that.
FYI - You'll continue to be financially responsible for him for three years after the date he landed and became a PR. A lawyer cannot remove this obligation. You agreed to this obligation when you signed the sponsorship agreement. This means that if he goes on social assistance / welfare, you will be responsible for paying this money back.
It's up to you. IRCC takes this seriously, but to strip someone of PR status there is due process required, i.e. lawyers and court. If the allegations aren't substantiated clearly, it's just going to be a waste of time and resources for them. If a case looks more like a personal matter between a couple (and many do to outside observers who are not involved and have to listen to both sides), it's a poor prospect for enforcement - the evidence just isn't there.
To underline again: the immigration system's enforcement function is NOT interested in resolving personal matters and relationship problems. They won't be interested in the long-form version of A/B relationship issues: only clear evidence of fraud and fraudulent intent.
Even when they can revoke PR status, then there's the whole issue of whether someone can be deported and how much that costs (it's far from automatic); again, due process and resources. Priorities are (of course) clear criminality and the dangerous.
Thank you for explaining everything. From your opinion, feel free to say what you think is right. I know it takes time, a good lawyer, and of course money to cover the costs, but is it worth starting this process? Because from B’s side, B doesn’t seem to have any issues and don’t care about anything. Via just keep being busy with work and saving money. It’s just me who is upset that B keeps postponing our marriage and doesn’t plan anything. It’s not just my wedding it’s our wedding and our life, so B does have responsibilities. It’s not only about setting up wedding plans, but also other important things in life that need his attention and time, which B is not caring about. Even if we go through the investigation, B may still say, ‘I’m not refusing to marry her, but I just won’t set the date.’ From my opinion, and please correct me if I’m wrong, this seems like a mostly personal matter and there’s no fraud or anything.
A few different points:
-you do not need a lawyer to report anything to IRCC, they will do things on their own. You would just send in information on your own. If you're hiring a lawyer, it would only be for your own civil protection. Generally you would not need to do much if you did not live together or have financial arrangements with each other beyond gifts. You could still get a short consultation if you wanted to, i.e. just to confirm.
-Hypothetically if IRCC were to act and get someone out of the country, it would reduce your potential financial risk with respect to the guarantee you wrote as a sponsor.
-If you're asking my opinion, all I have to go on is the narrative above. If that is the extent of the evidence you have - the history - then there is very little there upon which IRCC could act.
If that's your opinion, it would be hard for anyone else to disagree with you. That doesn't mean that all is well in the relationship, nor exclude that one is taking advantage of the other in some way. Just that the legal test for 'fraud' is very much higher.
Apart from the likelihood that IRCC will do something (probably low), I'd emphasize this: IRCC's process is absolutely the wrong place to look for 'justice' or to set things right. Very often (in my opinion), the right answer is for the wronged party to move on with their life, and certainly to drop any idea of getting IRCC to fix things or punish the other person.
But that's going to be the extent of my personal/relationship advice.