How would you know if you owe for ex husband going on welfare no bills recieved

[needhimback]

can anyone answer this question please : how would one know if they owe the government for an ex spouse receiving welfare, am scared my ex husband might have collected welfare, but I was never ever notified or my income tax returns have ever been jeopardized. I am about to file to sponsor my husband and very disturb by this thought.

At the time my sponsorship for my ex husband was for 10 years, and the undertaking was up November 2011, and I have a strong believe that he was on it for a short period of time. I did have a inside source who works at welfare check him out for me, she indicated there was no paper work submitted to the government (cic) regarding me as his sponsor, and she couldn't confirmed whether or not he received any payments during that time but she did say he tried to apply before. I'm terrified as hell?? Praying that nothing comes up on me.

This man used me to come to Canada to begin with (that's a story on it's, own with many chapters) and he remarried and sponsored his new wife too I've moved on with my life many many years ago and meet my husband here in Canada back in 2009 and got married in April 2013 (my husband is now back home) and now I need to sponsor him to continue our life we once had together has husband and wife, but this fear haunts me, daily, can any one give advise or might know so answers....... I refuse to call cic to ask I'm just to scared to do so .........HELP

 

[brucem]

can anyone answer this question please : how would one know if they owe the government for an ex spouse receiving welfare, am scared my ex husband might have collected welfare, but I was never ever notified or my income tax returns have ever been jeopardized. I am about to file to sponsor my husband and very disturb by this thought.

At the time my sponsorship for my ex husband was for 10 years, and the undertaking was up November 2011, and I have a strong believe that he was on it for a short period of time. I did have a inside source who works at welfare check him out for me, she indicated there was no paper work submitted to the government (cic) regarding me as his sponsor, and she couldn't confirmed whether or not he received any payments during that time but she did say he tried to apply before. I'm terrified as hell?? Praying that nothing comes up on me.

This man used me to come to Canada to begin with (that's a story on it's, own with many chapters) and he remarried and sponsored his new wife too I've moved on with my life many many years ago and meet my husband here in Canada back in 2009 and got married in April 2013 (my husband is now back home) and now I need to sponsor him to continue our life we once had together has husband and wife, but this fear haunts me, daily, can any one give advise or might know so answers....... I refuse to call cic to ask I'm just to scared to do so .........HELP

You will need to check this before applying to sponsor your new husband. if your ex has claimed welfare during the period you were financially responsible for him then you will be liable to pay this back. From reading others posts in the same position they have had to pay back any outstanding balance then get a letter stating that the debt is clear before applying. If you apply and take the chance you risk being rejected as a sponsor so in the long run costing you more money and time.

 

[needhimback]

Thanks for your quick reply ........OMG Im so scared right now
But like I said I never received any notifications
From welfare that he was going on it or any bills from the government or cic that I owe money due to former spouse on welfare(I know welfare usually call the sponsor asking if they can financially provide assistance)

Could that be because he never went on or they did not send the paper work to cic staying he was on it

And when do apply and indicate on the application that I did sponsor before - you think they call welfare to find out if he was ever on it, do you know how that works ???..... sorry to trouble you again

 

[rhcohen2014]

do you have your option c form yet? i'm pretty sure that's the first step in CIC determining if the sponsor owes for welfare. also, i would try calling the provencial welfare office you think your ex used, and ask them for records of welfare use for him. you can try pretending to be his current wife to see if they will provide you with information.

i don't think this is something that needs to cause fear. don't let him prevent you from living your life and doing what you need to do to enjoy your life. if you can't find out info, then i'd say send in the application anyway to see what happens, choosing to withdraw the application if you are found ineligible. the worst that will happens is you find out why you are inelgible (which you can go about fixing so you can reapply) and the only money lost is the $75 sponsor fee. all other fees will be returned to you if you choose to withdraw if found ineligible.

also, i believe the sponsor is only responsible to payback welfare during the specified timeframe of the undertaking. meaning, currently, the undertaking is 3 years, so current sponsors are responsible for any welfare for the first 3 years of PR status. how i interpret this is, if the pr applies for welfare AFTER the 3 years is finished, then the sponsor is no longer responsible for paying it back. this is not a lifetime undertaking, so depending on what the rules were when you agreed to sponsor him, and when you suspect he used welfare, you may not be responsible for any welfare received by him.

 

[brucem]

Thanks for your quick reply ........OMG Im so scared right now
But like I said I never received any notifications
From welfare that he was going on it or any bills from the government or cic that I owe money due to former spouse on welfare(I know welfare usually call the sponsor asking if they can financially provide assistance)

Could that be because he never went on or they did not send the paper work to cic staying he was on it

And when do apply and indicate on the application that I did sponsor before - you think they call welfare to find out if he was ever on it, do you know how that works ???..... sorry to trouble you again

You don't have to be scared its just a matter of fixing the issues (if there is one). I would tend to find out first before you apply....rhcohen is right you would lose your sponsorship fee but the time it takes to put the application together, police checks..medicals etc could mean quite a few months delay if you were initially rejected. You would then likely have to pay for the police checks again as they are only valid for three months as well as sort out the welfare issue. Just my opinion!

 

[rhcohen2014]

You don't have to be scared its just a matter of fixing the issues (if there is one). I would tend to find out first before you apply....rhcohen is right you would lose your sponsorship fee but the time it takes to put the application together, police checks..medicals etc could mean quite a few months delay if you were initially rejected. You would then likely have to pay for the police checks again as they are only valid for three months as well as sort out the welfare issue. Just my opinion!

if there is a concern about the sponsor's eligibility, then it would be best to submit the application without the medical and police record (since sponsor applications are still processed without these 2 items) , and only get them done once the sponsor is found eligible. that way, money and time are not wasted on those items - especially the medical. at that point, all that's needed is to redo the forms, and if copies of the original package are kept, then it would be that much easier to fill them out a second time.

there really may not be another way to know for sure if anything IS owed.

 

[needhimback]

do you have your option c form yet? i'm pretty sure that's the first step in CIC determining if the sponsor owes for welfare. also, i would try calling the provencial welfare office you think your ex used, and ask them for records of welfare use for him. you can try pretending to be his current wife to see if they will provide you with information.

i don't think this is something that needs to cause fear. don't let him prevent you from living your life and doing what you need to do to enjoy your life. if you can't find out info, then i'd say send in the application anyway to see what happens, choosing to withdraw the application if you are found ineligible. the worst that will happens is you find out why you are inelgible (which you can go about fixing so you can reapply) and the only money lost is the $75 sponsor fee. all other fees will be returned to you if you choose to withdraw if found ineligible.


also, i believe the sponsor is only responsible to payback welfare during the specified timeframe of the undertaking. meaning, currently, the undertaking is 3 years, so current sponsors are responsible for any welfare for the first 3 years of PR status. how i interpret this is, if the pr applies for welfare AFTER the 3 years is finished, then the sponsor is no longer responsible for paying it back. this is not a lifetime undertaking, so depending on what the rules were when you agreed to sponsor him, and when you suspect he used welfare, you may not be responsible for any welfare received by him.

I don't have option "C" as yet, I am now gathering up everything for the end of December 2014. my sponsorship period at that time was for 10 years ( back in 2000) that's was the requirements I have a friend that works the welfare office has a case workers who im hoping can help me find anything on him. Like I mentioned one of my welfare worker friends said she didn't see any paper work submitted to cic regarding this but she did say he tried to apply and she believes he was on it for a period of time and indicated he didn't know about my whereabouts ( that's a lie because I've had the same cell number since 2000) apparently he got into criminal trouble and his legal aid lawyer told him in order to receive legal aid you have to have a source of income and ''was told to go to welfare ( I don't speak to him, I found out for a family friends about all this)!and if this is so.... It's sicken my guts to know of all this and to think I could be responsible for his legal bill through him being on welfare to pay legal aid .....Wow!!!! And secondly he was able to sponsor too because the women he initially had when married to me (again I didn't know of her because I was had) is now the women he went back for and brought here to canada so they could start thier family. And now 14 years later and all I want is to be with the most wonderful person of my life who I was with in canada for 5 years, but unfortunately he had to go back home - Deported (no criminal record - refugee status denied)

I think I will have to take this chance and submitted my application and pray to god that everything goes through ok and I am Eligible

Also i was on welfare for approx one year- until I got my permanent position in the government, do you think something would have came up on my file saying I owe them ???? Would my name be like a red flag or something - just wondering

Thank you for providing me with the information and thanks for letting me know all that needs to be done doing it too

 

[needhimback]

You don't have to be scared its just a matter of fixing the issues (if there is one). I would tend to find out first before you apply....rhcohen is right you would lose your sponsorship fee but the time it takes to put the application together, police checks..medicals etc could mean quite a few months delay if you were initially rejected. You would then likely have to pay for the police checks again as they are only valid for three months as well as sort out the welfare issue. Just my opinion!

I think I would take this into consideration for sure - I just don't want to call and open a can or worms

 

[brucem]

if there is a concern about the sponsor's eligibility, then it would be best to submit the application without the medical and police record (since sponsor applications are still processed without these 2 items) , and only get them done once the sponsor is found eligible. that way, money and time are not wasted on those items - especially the medical. at that point, all that's needed is to redo the forms, and if copies of the original package are kept, then it would be that much easier to fill them out a second time.

there really may not be another way to know for sure if anything IS owed.

I think you run a small risk of having the application returned incomplete, I've read a couple of instances where it has been returned due to either a lack of medical or police certificate - seems to depend on the officer reviewing the file (even though you are right and they dont have to be submitted up front). CIC will also know that she has sponsored before and therefore they will most certainly look into that and check whether anything is owing. I'm not sure if there is a way to check with the welfare office prior to the application but to save some time I would see if anyone can give you an official letter stating that he does not owe anything. I would be careful about letting your friend check though as this is technically a breach of confidentiality and she could get into a lot of trouble if it hasnt gone through official lines. I think...and someone can correct me on this if I'm wrong but is it not up to the sponsor to prove that nothing is owed and if CIC get a sniff something is up they would deny SA until it was cleared up.

Anyway all that said you MAY sail through without having anything to worry about so I suppose you have to hedge your bets. If its not urgent I would probably take your chances with what rhcohen was saying and submit it that way but it will probably take a bit longer to get your SA seeing as you sponsored your ex husband.

 

[needhimback]

Re: How would you know if you owe for ex husband going on welfare no bills recieved
« Reply #9 on: November 30, 2014, 05:22:27 pm »
Reply with
Thanks Brucem

I will consider all of what i have learned here. What seems to puzzle me is why wasnt i contacted or even receiving bills or cra trying to take back any returns, could this be because im safe and owe nothing its 15 years later now and i always receive a large amount in tax returns.

What is a SA?

I will submit all thats required, but i thought the police check , rcmp report and meds are required when the visa office askes for it (sponsorship stuff had changed alot since i last did this 15 years ago obviously)

Looks like this a gamble for me and if i get denied i will just have to withdraw until i can figure this out because we dont have that kind of money to pay welfare back, this could be a numerous amount depending how long a person had been collecting

This is really really scary and nerve wrecking for me right now
Thanks everyone for all your advise you guys are great

 

[brucem]

Re: How would you know if you owe for ex husband going on welfare no bills recieved
« Reply #9 on: November 30, 2014, 05:22:27 pm »
Reply with
Thanks Brucem

I will consider all of what i have learned here. What seems to puzzle me is why wasnt i contacted or even receiving bills or cra trying to take back any returns, could this be because im safe and owe nothing its 15 years later now and i always receive a large amount in tax returns.

What is a SA?

I will submit all thats required, but i thought the police check , rcmp report and meds are required when the visa office askes for it (sponsorship stuff had changed alot since i last did this 15 years ago obviously)

Looks like this a gamble for me and if i get denied i will just have to withdraw until i can figure this out because we dont have that kind of money to pay welfare back, this could be a numerous amount depending how long a person had been collecting

This is really really scary and nerve wrecking for me right now
Thanks everyone for all your advise you guys are great

SA is sponsorship approval. You are right you don't have to submit police/medical but it is recommended in most cases to speed up the process, however, in yours it may not be given what you don't know, however as I said above there has been an odd occasion applications have been returned without these documents.....again CIC aren't very consistent. There was a man posting in the last few weeks who was in the same position as you, unfortunately I cant remember his name but his sponsorship approval was denied as his ex wife had been on welfare and he had not paid it back. The fact you have not heard anything may be positive but I suppose it depends on what organisation pursues a debt and whether they have your up to date details.

Fingers crossed you will be ok but don't stress too much given the checking you have managed to do sounds positive. Let us know how you get on and best of luck!

 

[needhimback]

SA is sponsorship approval. You are right you don't have to submit police/medical but it is recommended in most cases to speed up the process, however, in yours it may not be given what you don't know, however as I said above there has been an odd occasion applications have been returned without these documents.....again CIC aren't very consistent. There was a man posting in the last few weeks who was in the same position as you, unfortunately I cant remember his name but his sponsorship approval was denied as his ex wife had been on welfare and he had not paid it back. The fact you have not heard anything may be positive but I suppose it depends on what organisation pursues a debt and whether they have your up to date details.

Fingers crossed you will be ok but don't stress too much given the checking you have managed to do sounds positive. Let us know how you get on and best of luck!

Thanks Brucem..... Wish you knew who the man was (lol) that's in the same situation as me, would love to ask him if he knew of his money owing ??? Because I don't know of any money owing on my part

Keeping my fingers cross and will definetly keep everyone posted

Thanks again

 

[Dobra Vila]

Hi,

I was originally denied as a sponsor due to my ex being on welfare without me knowing. Believe me, you want to find out before you apply if anything is outstanding as it only gets more frustrating and you will end up wasting money and time.
I would suggest that you contact these folks:

In Ontario you can contact the Ministry of Community and Social Services Overpayment Recovery Unit at 1-
888-346-5184. This is a toll-free phone number

They are very friendly and helpful, so explain your situation and they will let you know how you can find out if you owe anything.

When I asked why I didn't receive any bills to repay this debt sooner, I was told it could take years and years before CRA gets the information they need in order to contact you, and that it was my responsibility as a sponsor to find out.

Good luck!

 

[needhimback]

Hi,

I was originally denied as a sponsor due to my ex being on welfare without me knowing. Believe me, you want to find out before you apply if anything is outstanding as it only gets more frustrating and you will end up wasting money and time.
I would suggest that you contact these folks:

In Ontario you can contact the Ministry of Community and Social Services Overpayment Recovery Unit at 1-
888-346-5184. This is a toll-free phone number

They are very friendly and helpful, so explain your situation and they will let you know how you can find out if you owe anything.

When I asked why I didn't receive any bills to repay this debt sooner, I was told it could take years and years before CRA gets the information they need in order to contact you, and that it was my responsibility as a sponsor to find out.

Good luck!

Omg- very scary and thanks so much for the information. I will send you a message if thats ok with you

 

[scylla]

If you have a question for Dobra Vila you'll need to post it to the forum. Dobra Vila doesn't have enough posts on the forum to respond to a private message.