Mexican Girlfriend and Daughter - Live With Me in Alberta

[alemoo]

Hello all,

I met a girl online. We haven't been dating very long. She and her daughter are Mexican citizens. They have no friends/family in Canada. I'd like to have them move here and permanently live with me in Edmonton. The ultimate goal is citizenship and the ability for her to work.

If she is refused entry to Canada because she doesn't appear to have enough ties to Mexico, we won't be able to declare ourselves common law because she won't be allowed to live with me. What can we do if this happens? I was told that I can't sponsor someone unless we have been married for a year or are common law.

 

[MysticMidnight]

Hello all,

I met a girl online. We haven't been dating very long. She and her daughter are Mexican citizens. They have no friends/family in Canada. I'd like to have them move here and permanently live with me in Edmonton. The ultimate goal is citizenship and the ability for her to work.

If she is refused entry to Canada because she doesn't appear to have enough ties to Mexico, we won't be able to declare ourselves common law because she won't be allowed to live with me. What can we do if this happens? I was told that I can't sponsor someone unless we have been married for a year or are common law.

There is nothing that says you have to be married for a year. You can apply to sponsor her right after you get married if all of your paperwork is completed. Common law however is having been living together for a year before you can apply, but there's no reason you can't get married and apply right away if you'd rather do that. But if you do go the common law route make sure that you have plenty of proof gathered by the time you send everything in that says you've been residing in the same residence for a year (letters to the same address over the course of the year, rental agreements, ect.)

 

[Ponga]

Hello all,

I met a girl online. We haven't been dating very long. She and her daughter are Mexican citizens. They have no friends/family in Canada. I'd like to have them move here and permanently live with me in Edmonton. The ultimate goal is citizenship and the ability for her to work.

If she is refused entry to Canada because she doesn't appear to have enough ties to Mexico, we won't be able to declare ourselves common law because she won't be allowed to live with me. What can we do if this happens? I was told that I can't sponsor someone unless we have been married for a year or are common law.

You can marry her and apply to sponsor her immediately. You do not need to wait 1 year to sponsor her.

Also, she will be able to work in Canada as soon as she becomes a permanent resident (or sooner, if she is able to get a work permit) which has nothing to do with her [eventually] becoming a Canadian citizen.

PR and citizenship are NOT the same thing.

Good luck!

 

[alemoo]

Thanks to both of you for replying so quickly. I must have misunderstood then. So marriage is the quickest route it appears. We'll keep talking and Skyping for a while to get to know each other better because that's a very big commitment. Any suggestions or experiences with having someone denied access due to lack of ties?

 

[Rob_TO]

Have you actually met this person before, or is your entire time dating online?

If you were to go and visit her, get married quickly, then immediately sponsor her and her daughter for PR... CIC would most likely see this as a marriage of convenience (done only for immigration purposes), or that she is just using you to get PR status, and there's a high possibility to have the app refused.

Before you think of getting married and applying for her PR you should genuinely develop the relationship first. Take several trips to Mexico to spend time in person with her and her daughter. Then when the time is right, do a proper wedding with hers and your family (if possible) and prove to CIC it's a real marriage. If you try to rush everything you'll find the PR processing will be long and difficult.

In the meantime her and her daughter can try to apply for a TRV to come visit Canada.

 

[Kayaker]

Thanks to both of you for replying so quickly. I must have misunderstood then. So marriage is the quickest route it appears. We'll keep talking and Skyping for a while to get to know each other better because that's a very big commitment. Any suggestions or experiences with having someone denied access due to lack of ties?

Also, bear in mind that whether you sponsor her as your wife or as your common-law partner, you sign an undertaking saying that you will be financially responsible for both her and her daughter for 3 years after she becomes a PR. This is regardless of whether you two stay together or not.

Her PR (and her daughter's PR) will be conditional on her cohabiting with you for two years. This means that if she divorces you, or decides to live apart from you, within 2 years of becoming a PR, she could lose her PR. However, these things take time, so it's not like the day she divorces you, she will be deported. It will probably take CIC several weeks or months to get around to revoking her PR. In the meanwhile, you will have to pay for any welfare she claims. Also, her PR will be conditional for 2 years but your undertaking is for 3, so if she leaves you after 2 years, she will have the right to stay in Canada, and if she claims welfare, you will still have to pay for it for another year, until 3 years pass.

So I think getting married isn't a big commitment, compared to sponsoring someone for PR. Getting a divorce is possible. But there is no way out of the financial obligation for 3 years for both your girlfriend and her daughter. So before you commit to this, make sure you are ready for this.

 

[screech339]

Actually the OP would be financially responsible for the spouse for 3 years, the daughter for 10 years or when child turns 22 whichever is first.

Screech339

 

[Kayaker]

Actually the OP would be financially responsible for the spouse for 3 years, the daughter for 10 years or when child turns 22 whichever is first.

Screech339

Oh, ok, thanks for correcting me. Good to know!

 

[screech339]

Oh, ok, thanks for correcting me. Good to know!

You're welcome.

 

[alemoo]

Does anyone know about schooling for her daughter in this type of situation?

 

[scylla]

Does anyone know about schooling for her daughter in this type of situation?

It depends. If you marry your girlfriend and sponsor her (and her daughter) for PR as soon as they arrive in Canada, it's quite likely you'll be able to arrange for a local school to accept her daughter as a domestic student.

If your girlfriend comes to Canada and you decide to instead live together for a year to qualify as a common law couple for sponsorship purposes, then her daughter will be treated as a foreign student which will involve paying foriegn student fees to attend public school (around $13K per year) and quite possibly obtaining a study permit.