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Ineligible to Sponsor Spouse

Jul 23, 2016
4
0
Hey everyone,
As you can imagine, it was extremely heart wrenching when I read that I was ineligible to sponsor my wife over to Canada on the grounds that I did not declare my marriage at the time of landing when I obtained my own Permanent Residence.
To give you a background, I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016. I do not know what I was thinking, for not declaring my marriage at that time (maybe I was in a rush to get my own PR because my work permit was due to expire June 2016). Shortly after arriving back to Canada I began to work on my wife's PR and the application was accepted at CIC on 21 November, 2016. On 8 December I receive a letter from IRCC that I was ineligible to sponsor my spouse.
I have been alone and by myself all these years in Canada, no family or close kin. This was my only hope and everything seems foggy now. I am a Registered Nurse in Canada and have worked very hard and made many sacrifices to reach up here. My wife is a Registered nurse as well and thus her contribution to the Canadian workforce and economy would also be valuable if she immigrated.
I am at a conjuncture where I am forced to leave a country that I have worked so hard to immigrate to or have her apply for PR under FSW category (which I hardly reckon she would qualify because the last I checked her CRS score was only 368 and the minimum draw so far has not been less than ~460 in 2 years since inception)
I am hoping to seek some advice or successful testimonies of folks who have been through this path.

This is what I received from IRCC:
We have reviewed your application and regret to advise that you are not an eligible sponsor for the following reasons:
- You have not submitted an application for a member of the family class. You did not declare the applicant to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada on your own Application for Permanent Residence or at the time you became permanent resident of Canada. As such, you do not meet regulation 117(9)(d). Please refer to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations listed below for details.
- Given this ineligibility issue, we have not reviewed any other sponsorship criteria at this time. In the event the visa officer considers processing the application for permanent residence, he/she will notify this office and a full review of all sponsorship eligibility requirements will be done. You may be contacted for additional information should that occur.
 

zardoz

VIP Member
Feb 2, 2013
13,298
2,167
Canada
Category........
FAM
Visa Office......
London
App. Filed.......
16-02-2013
VISA ISSUED...
31-07-2013
LANDED..........
09-11-2013
libinvarghese1589 said:
Hey everyone,
As you can imagine, it was extremely heart wrenching when I read that I was ineligible to sponsor my wife over to Canada on the grounds that I did not declare my marriage at the time of landing when I obtained my own Permanent Residence.
To give you a background, I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016. I do not know what I was thinking, for not declaring my marriage at that time (maybe I was in a rush to get my own PR because my work permit was due to expire June 2016). Shortly after arriving back to Canada I began to work on my wife's PR and the application was accepted at CIC on 21 November, 2016. On 8 December I receive a letter from IRCC that I was ineligible to sponsor my spouse.
I have been alone and by myself all these years in Canada, no family or close kin. This was my only hope and everything seems foggy now. I am a Registered Nurse in Canada and have worked very hard and made many sacrifices to reach up here. My wife is a Registered nurse as well and thus her contribution to the Canadian workforce and economy would also be valuable if she immigrated.
I am at a conjuncture where I am forced to leave a country that I have worked so hard to immigrate to or have her apply for PR under FSW category (which I hardly reckon she would qualify because the last I checked her CRS score was only 368 and the minimum draw so far has not been less than ~460 in 2 years since inception)
I am hoping to seek some advice or successful testimonies of folks who have been through this path.

This is what I received from IRCC:
We have reviewed your application and regret to advise that you are not an eligible sponsor for the following reasons:
- You have not submitted an application for a member of the family class. You did not declare the applicant to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada on your own Application for Permanent Residence or at the time you became permanent resident of Canada. As such, you do not meet regulation 117(9)(d). Please refer to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations listed below for details.
- Given this ineligibility issue, we have not reviewed any other sponsorship criteria at this time. In the event the visa officer considers processing the application for permanent residence, he/she will notify this office and a full review of all sponsorship eligibility requirements will be done. You may be contacted for additional information should that occur.
There is very little that can be done at this point. 117(9)(d) is very strict and almost certainly would be upheld if you tried to appeal to the federal court. What has been suggested in cases like this is that the sponsor renounce their own PR status and that they reapply for PR from the beginning again as a married couple. This removes the Family Class Sponsorship from the equation and doesn't invoke 117(9) (d).
 

SaskinSeoul

Star Member
Apr 1, 2016
120
3
Category........
Visa Office......
Manila
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
30-11-2016
AOR Received.
15-12-2016
Med's Done....
Upfront
Interview........
No
Passport Req..
April 2017
VISA ISSUED...
April 2017
LANDED..........
June 2017
You thought your application would be denied initially in 2015 if you declared your wife that is why you never declared her. A little honesty would be nice.
 

Bebe1214

Full Member
Jul 10, 2016
37
2
SaskinSeoul said:
You thought your application would be denied initially in 2015 if you declared your wife that is why you never declared her. A little honesty would be nice.
Well theyre obviously upset about the error they have made. Saying something like that is not helping in any way
 

scylla

VIP Member
Jun 8, 2010
95,805
22,087
Toronto
Category........
Visa Office......
Buffalo
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
28-05-2010
AOR Received.
19-08-2010
File Transfer...
28-06-2010
Passport Req..
01-10-2010
VISA ISSUED...
05-10-2010
LANDED..........
05-10-2010
You have two options if you want to live in Canada as a PR and bring your wife to Canada as well:

1) Have your wife apply for PR on her own through an economic stream like EE and immigrate on her own.
2) Renounce your PR status and return home. Apply for PR again from scratch, this time listing your wife as a dependent in your application.

Spousal sponsorship is not an option. There are no work-around to the fact you failed to declare her. Unfortunately this means she is not recognized as a member of your family for immigration purposes. Good luck.
 

SaskinSeoul

Star Member
Apr 1, 2016
120
3
Category........
Visa Office......
Manila
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
30-11-2016
AOR Received.
15-12-2016
Med's Done....
Upfront
Interview........
No
Passport Req..
April 2017
VISA ISSUED...
April 2017
LANDED..........
June 2017
Bebe1214 said:
Well theyre obviously upset about the error they have made. Saying something like that is not helping in any way
I would never forget my wife! On the form it clearly asks if you are married or have any dependents how much clearier can it get?

OP said NO! Their choice maybe tell the truth to immigration when you fill out your initial form and not lie to them.
 

Rob_TO

VIP Member
Nov 7, 2012
11,427
1,551
Toronto
Category........
FAM
Visa Office......
Seoul, Korea
App. Filed.......
13-07-2012
AOR Received.
18-08-2012
File Transfer...
21-08-2012
Med's Done....
Sent with App
Passport Req..
N/R - Exempt
VISA ISSUED...
30-10-2012
LANDED..........
16-11-2012
libinvarghese1589 said:
My wife is a Registered nurse as well and thus her contribution to the Canadian workforce and economy would also be valuable if she immigrated.
This is largely irrelevant, except if she can somehow immigrate to Canada on her own through one of the economic immigration streams. The rule is very clear, you can never sponsor her.

if she doesn't qualify to immigrate independently then you should seriously consider renouncing your own PR status voluntarily, returning to home country, and re-applying from scratch. You should know that if you decide to pursue this rejection through appeals or whatever other means, not only is there practically no chance of success but the more you bring to light your own misrepresentation by not declaring your marital status, the more chance there is CIC will make moves to forcefully revoke your own PR status and ban you from Canada.
 

scylla

VIP Member
Jun 8, 2010
95,805
22,087
Toronto
Category........
Visa Office......
Buffalo
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
28-05-2010
AOR Received.
19-08-2010
File Transfer...
28-06-2010
Passport Req..
01-10-2010
VISA ISSUED...
05-10-2010
LANDED..........
05-10-2010
SaskinSeoul said:
I would never forget my wife! On the form it clearly asks if you are married or have any dependents how much clearier can it get?

OP said NO! Their choice maybe tell the truth to immigration when you fill out your initial form and not lie to them.
No - that's not what happened. Look at the OP's chronology again. OP applied for PR before getting married. The OP answered truthfully by selecting "no" when he first applied because he wasn't married. The mistake he made was not updating his file after getting married to include his wife.
 

SaskinSeoul

Star Member
Apr 1, 2016
120
3
Category........
Visa Office......
Manila
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
30-11-2016
AOR Received.
15-12-2016
Med's Done....
Upfront
Interview........
No
Passport Req..
April 2017
VISA ISSUED...
April 2017
LANDED..........
June 2017
scylla said:
No - that's not what happened. Look at the OP's chronology again. OP applied for PR before getting married. The OP answered truthfully by selecting "no" when he first applied because he wasn't married. The mistake he made was not updating his file after getting married to include his wife.
"""I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016.""""""

Red Flags

1. Nov 2012- Jan 2016 isn't 3 years
2. They were dating for 7 years
3. 6 months after applying for permanent residence he gets married and doesn't notify immigration


You have to be truthful and up to date on your forms. OP didn't mention he had a girlfriend for 7 years probably to immigration. Then he leaves Canada gets married and waits for his permanent residence to be approved outside of Canada and applies for his wife's permanent residence when he returns but never once though to update immigration on the situation.
 

profiler

VIP Member
Aug 10, 2016
9,456
2,846
Category........
Visa Office......
CPC-Mississauga
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
02-MAR-2016
AOR Received.
13-MAY-2016
IELTS Request
Upfront
Med's Request
Upfront; Passed
Interview........
Waived
LANDED..........
05-MAY-2017
SaskinSeoul said:
"""I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016.""""""

Red Flags

1. Nov 2012- Jan 2016 isn't 3 years
2. They were dating for 7 years
3. 6 months after applying for permanent residence he gets married and doesn't notify immigration


You have to be truthful and up to date on your forms. OP didn't mention he had a girlfriend for 7 years probably to immigration. Then he leaves Canada gets married and waits for his permanent residence to be approved outside of Canada and applies for his wife's permanent residence when he returns but never once though to update immigration on the situation.
Sorry, I am not quite seeing how he wasn't truthful in 1 and 2. 1 it's not 4 years. and 2, he didn't state they lived together. So what type of relationship would you have him declare??

Scylla is right here, bud. It's because he didn't update CIC.
 

zardoz

VIP Member
Feb 2, 2013
13,298
2,167
Canada
Category........
FAM
Visa Office......
London
App. Filed.......
16-02-2013
VISA ISSUED...
31-07-2013
LANDED..........
09-11-2013
SaskinSeoul said:
"""I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016.""""""

Red Flags

1. Nov 2012- Jan 2016 isn't 3 years
2. They were dating for 7 years
3. 6 months after applying for permanent residence he gets married and doesn't notify immigration


You have to be truthful and up to date on your forms. OP didn't mention he had a girlfriend for 7 years probably to immigration. Then he leaves Canada gets married and waits for his permanent residence to be approved outside of Canada and applies for his wife's permanent residence when he returns but never once though to update immigration on the situation.
1. It's 3 years 3 months.
2. IRCC attaches no significance to "dating". It's not a legal definition.
3. This was a serious error, agreed.
 

Bcboundboy

Hero Member
Aug 16, 2016
378
29
SaskinSeoul said:
"""I initially came to Canada on a student visa in Nov 2012. I visited India after 3 years and married my girlfriend for 7 years in January 2016. I had applied for my own PR in August 2015 and received it in March 2016.""""""

Red Flags

1. Nov 2012- Jan 2016 isn't 3 years
2. They were dating for 7 years
3. 6 months after applying for permanent residence he gets married and doesn't notify immigration


You have to be truthful and up to date on your forms. OP didn't mention he had a girlfriend for 7 years probably to immigration. Then he leaves Canada gets married and waits for his permanent residence to be approved outside of Canada and applies for his wife's permanent residence when he returns but never once though to update immigration on the situation.
1) It's 3 years and 32 days. Or 3 years and 89 days. Or somewhere between those. Any which way, normal rounding would call that 3 years.
2) Unless they were living together in a common law relationship, that's irrelevant. If they were, it's a big problem. We don't know.
3) Yes, that's OP's problem, and the reason he can't ever sponsor her through family class.
 

TANMEX

Hero Member
Dec 14, 2015
758
26
Category........
Visa Office......
Mexico
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
Bcboundboy said:
1) It's 3 years and 32 days. Or 3 years and 89 days. Or somewhere between those. Any which way, normal rounding would call that 3 years.
2) Unless they were living together in a common law relationship, that's irrelevant. If they were, it's a big problem. We don't know.
3) Yes, that's OP's problem, and the reason he can't ever sponsor her through family class.
OP has a very serious problem now , Immigration may revoke his own PR due to misrepresentation , Not declaring a marital status change before landing is a serious immigration issue .
 

IvoryX

Full Member
Dec 1, 2016
48
1
How about trying to get the wife a work/student permit and then try PNP given her education and work experience as a registered nurse. BCPNP has a program for healthcare professionals, also an international post-graduated program. Look at other immigration streams too. Make good plans.

It is not easy to get this far, don't give up easily.

https://www.welcomebc.ca/getmedia/14a55c84-1301-4959-8a5d-888785a2ac2a/BC-PNP-Skills-Immigration-and-Express-Entry-BC-Program-Guide.aspx#page18
All the best!
Ivory
 

kasskiss125

Star Member
Dec 9, 2016
55
3
Category........
Visa Office......
Dakar
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
19-07-2016
AOR Received.
21-07-2016
File Transfer...
13-09-2016 STARTED PROCESSING APPLICATION - 01-12-2016
Med's Request
Not yet
Med's Done....
Not yet
Passport Req..
Not yet
VISA ISSUED...
Not yet
LANDED..........
not yet
since you lied. you have two options.

1. renounce your PR and go back home to live with your woman and re-apply again from scratch
2. find another woman here in Canada.