Inland vs Outland / Bridging Visa

[visavisavis]

Hello

My partner and I are preparing to apply for spousal sponsorship. He is a US citizen, I am a Canadian citizen, and we have been together for six years. We intend to apply as a common law couple, but are unsure whether to apply as inland or outland. Here is the situation: we have been working and travelling overseas for the last 5 years. We would like to move to Canada together this spring, and settle in Vancouver area. Should we apply as inland since we intend to live in Canada soon? Can we apply as outland then change our status? We just want to ensure he can get a work/bridging visa asap. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

 

[MilesAway]

You can only apply inland if you are both currently residing in Canada.

I would suggest getting your documents ready and applying outland before you arrive in Canada.

Unfortunately, there is no quick work permit. Apply inland with an application for an Open Work Permit, and you'll get it after stage 1 (about 11 months). There is no work permit for outland applications, however they are generally much quicker than inland.

Also you cannot "switch" your application from inland to outland or vice-versa.

 

[visavisavis]

The two processing centres in the USA are showing processing times of about two years. Would it be necessary for him to apply through those offices? Could he apply via the office here in Australia? If not, it looks like inland would be the faster route. Do we then have to wait until we move back to Canada to submit the application?

 

[chala]

The two processing centres in the USA are showing processing times of about two years. Would it be necessary for him to apply through those offices? Could he apply via the office here in Australia? If not, it looks like inland would be the faster route. Do we then have to wait until we move back to Canada to submit the application?

US applicants are processed in Ottawa after initial sponsor application is finished processing in Mississauga. The whole process usually takes about 10 months providing there are no issues with your application.

 

[scylla]

Would it be necessary for him to apply through those offices? Could he apply via the office here in Australia?

If you are applying outland, all applications are mailed to Mississauga.

 

[IsThisOverYet]

Apply Outland, you quite possibly could have the whole PR process complete quicker than the stage 1 approval with an inland application. Also with an Outland application you are free to travel out of the country while your application is in process.

 

[visavisavis]

Oh wow, thanks for the clarification. That makes the whole think much more bearable. We will definitely apply outland then.

One last question I hope you can answer: we have both done quite a bit of work and travel overseas, and have resided in several countries for 6+ months. Do we both require police clearances from each country, or is it only the sponsored spouse?

 

[Canuckluvus]

Oh wow, thanks for the clarification. That makes the whole think much more bearable. We will definitely apply outland then.

One last question I hope you can answer: we have both done quite a bit of work and travel overseas, and have resided in several countries for 6+ months. Do we both require police clearances from each country, or is it only the sponsored spouse?

I'm pretty sure a Cdn Citizen is not required to have a police clearance to return home. Only the applicant for PR needs to provide police clearances for all the countries they lived in. In your case that is your spouse who you are applying to sponsor. CIC looks at your application to sponsor first and then when they approve it, they begin to look at the PR application your spouse makes. You as the sponsor are responsible for sending both you application and your spouses application together in one package. If you apply Outland you send to Missasauga and if you apply inland to Alberta. Missasauga decides which VO to send the PR application to. Us applicants that are straight forward with no red flags usually get sent to CPP-Ottawa. In those cases Outland process is usually much faster than inland. Some people who apply Outland have gotten their PR approved in same amount of time as Inland applicants have waited to get sponsorship approval. Good luck!