Kiwi moving to Canada

[chessnut1087]

You just need to keep in mind one thing (this was explained to me by a CBSA agent upon entry to Canada).

It is NOT illegal to stay in Canada longer than your visa is stamped for, but it IS illegal to LIE to a Canadian border agent. If they ask you when you intend to leave Canada, and you tell the border agent "one month" but intend on staying for 6, that is where they can get you.

I am being sponsored as a spouse and came last month to stay with my husband while our app is being processed outland. I told border agents I was going to stay for "2-3 months" then go home via car (I am from the USA). They drilled me on the importance of not lying to them. The head agent at the border crossing told me "If you tell an agent you will leave in 2 months, you better leave in two months because it is illegal to lie to us and we can ban you for this." This is how I was treated as a spouse with an application already pending.

I would be very careful if I were you. If at any point they ask you "what are you doing in Canada?" You should NOT lie. You tell them "I am coming to stay as a visitor with my boyfriend" If they ask if you have intent on moving to Canada, you need to tell them "yes I am coming to establish common-law with my boyfriend" It is then up to the good graces of whoever is dealing with you to either let you proceed with a 6-month tourist visa, or turn you away.

This is the risk you have to take if you are going to try to establish common-law.

All of this was explained to me at a border by an agent in person. I cannot stress enough DO NOT lie to them.

 

[chessnut1087]

If you need an example of a border crossing, here's my account which happened two weeks ago.

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/us-canada-border-crossing-throughout-the-immigration-process-example-t192883.0.html;msg3028272#msg3028272

 

[Alurra71]

If you need an example of a border crossing, here's my account which happened two weeks ago.

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/us-canada-border-crossing-throughout-the-immigration-process-example-t192883.0.html;msg3028272#msg3028272

While I can sympathize with your experience, I have to disagree to an extent. You or your husband likely gave off a vibe of being dishonest when you originally encountered this guard. I know you probably don't feel like you did, but for her to go after you like that, she likely saw something that triggered the response. A lot of folks get that way with them, because in the end they really do hold all the power when it comes to us being able to cross to see our loved ones. I have had similar encounters at the border in Detroit/Windsor, but eventually you can get the ultimate revenge once you've been granted your PR and you cross and encounter her again and she can't do a damned thing to stop you from coming in! LOL

For you, Kiwi, my answer would be yes. Change your ticket to reflect a more moderate timeline for leaving. If you gather one for a full 6 months, they might assume there is more going on and give you more of a hard time. I would indeed have a return ticket for say 8 or 9 weeks or something and just tell them you are here to visit for a few months. That leaves a lot open to interpretation and you can't be accused of lying because a few months could mean most anything. If they CHOOSE to look at your return flights and ASSUME your few months is 2, well that is up to them, right? LOL

I would however, make sure your son doesn't really know exactly what is going on. You should likely just tell him that he is going to Canada for another visit because if he knows the full details and they ask him, you can't expect that he'd know how to answer to keep you out of secondary inspection, ya know?

As I said before. If you treat this just like you've treated other visits you should be just fine.

Good luck.

 

[KiwiChick]

Outland vs Inland application. What are the pros and cons of each?

 

[KiwiChick]

Maybe I've found an answer to my own question...is the below advice still valid?

Married, common law or conjugal partners

First you need to pick an application class. There are three of them: married, common-law and conjugal. For all of them, you need to prove the genuineity of your relationship. For common-law, you need to prove that you have lived together for 12 months or longer. For conjugal, you need to prove that you have combined your affairs as much as possible but there are real immigration barriers or other barriers preventing you from living together or getting married. Conjugal is the hardest to prove. For example, if your partner could get a visit visa to come to Canada for 6 months and then apply for an extension to get the full year, even though they will not be allowed to work, that is not considered an immigration barrier. An immigration barrier is if your partner tries to get a visit visa to come to Canada and is repeatedly refused. Some people have had luck with the conjugal class but try to avoid it if possible.

Outland or inland?

Now you need to decide if to apply outland or inland. If your spouse is not in Canada and can not get a visa to go to Canada, you must apply outland. That means that you will send your application to Mississauga and they will approve you as a sponsor. The time that takes is usually 1-2 months to but current processing times can be seen here: (link removed) After that, the application is forwarded to your local visa office. If your spouse is residing in a country other than the country of their nationality, you can pick which of the two visa offices you want. Otherwise it will be processed in their country of nationality. You can see the processing times here: (link removed)
If your spouse is staying in Canada as a visitor or on some other visa, you can pick whether you want to apply outland or inland. Outland is generally faster and has appeal rights but a downside to outland is that if an interview is required, your spouse will have to travel to the visa office in the country where it's being processed. Inland has the downside that it's generally not advised that your spouse travels while you are waiting for your processing because it is a requirement of inland that they reside in Canada and if they are denied entry at the border for some reason, your application is gone. If an interview is required for inland, you may also have to wait a long time for it. The inland application would be sent to Vegreville and if all goes well, you would get a first stage approval, usually in 6 to 8 months. The current processing times can be seen here: (link removed) Then the file is forwarded to your local CIC office where you live and they will contact you for a landing appointment. Getting the PR with inland usually takes 12-18 months. If an interview is required for inland, Vegreville will not give first stage approval but instead will forward the application to the local CIC office without it and you will have to wait for them to have time for your interview. In some cases that can take a year or two. If you do get the first stage approval, your spouse will usually be eligible for health care and an open work permit. It is actually a good idea when applying inland to send an application form for a visit visa extension as well as the open work permit to be given at first stage approval all in one package so it's tied together.

Which method to pick depends on your situation. If your spouses country of nationality has a long processing time or your spouse does not want to have to travel there for a possible interview, then inland is the way to go. For faster processing and freedom of travel during the processing time, outland would be better. You can find the application forms for inland at (link removed) and the application forms for outland at (link removed)

Avoiding potential problems with your application

The most common reason for people to be called for an interview is that the visa officer has doubts about the relationship being genuine. It is up to you to send immigration some quality data, emails, chat logs, phone records, photos, letters and other material to prove to them that your relationship is the real thing. Other reasons you might have problems with is eligibility of the sponsor. The sponsor can not be on social assistance, can not be bankrupt and can not have a record of violent crimes or crimes against family members. If that is the case, better talk to a lawyer and get that cleared up before attempting to apply.

 

[commonlawsponsor]

Yes, that is all still valid. Maybe the wait times have changed a little bit (a month or two) but other than that is still good advice.