Moving to be with girlfriend?--NAFTA, Express Entry, Spousal Sponsor, Visiting?

[johnathandh1981]

I'm looking to move to Ontario, Canada (anywhere between and including London and the Greater Toronto Area) to live with my girlfriend. Ultimately, I'd like to be living with her the middle of next year if not earlier.

So what are my best options? I believe I work in a NAFTA-covered profession, but if things go as expected I could also look into the spousal sponsorship. Options below:

1. NAFTA? I am an Informatics Analyst and believe I have a NAFTA-covered profession, under the Computer Systems Analyst; I believe I'd fall under NOC 2171 as an Informatics Analyst, which is classified with Computer Systems Analyst. The issue is my undergrad (BS) was in Molecular Genetics and Biological Sciences, and I worked as a lab tech for 7 years until 2009. I obtained an MBA focused on Finance in 2007. In 2010, I started work as an Informatics Analyst and have worked in that role for over years. Would the MBA count as the education requirement for a Computer Systems Analyst under NAFTA, as my current job prefers the MBA.

2. Spousal Sponsorship? When the time comes, this may be an option. However, the processing times for me to be approved seem atrocious. While the review time for the sponsor is only 55 days, the review time for the person being sponsored is 3.25 years for those applying from NY. I think I could apply in Ottawa and it would only be 17 months, but that's still quite a wait. (Why is the processing so much faster in the Peru and Brazil visa offices?)

Lima – Peru 7 months
Mexico City – Mexico 17 months
New York – United States 39 months
Ottawa (Case Processing Centre) - Canada 17 months
Sao Paulo – Brazil 5 months

There is a pilot Open Work Permit program, which promises approval within 4 months, but from what I've read, it really ends up being more like 17 months also. Also, from what I understand, the pilot program ends this year and will then be reassessed. So there is no gaurantee it will be around.

Also, the requirements for the spousal sponsorship seem to present a chicken/egg problem and would in reality require you to have a work visa...or can you live with them after getting married? It seems like that would violate immigration law...however, as a US citizen apparently I can stay in Canada for 6 months at a time as a guest.

"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."

4. Express Entry: Apply to be Invited to Apply for Permanent Residence. This is also an option. If I had a job under a NAFTA covered professioin in Canada, would this count towards the job requirement? The terms seem to reference 600 points for jobs that need a Labor Market Impact Assessment, but that doesn't apply to NAFTA-covered professions.

5. Visiting? /In the meanwhile, if I could work remote at my current position, from what I understand, US citizens with a passport can visit Canada for up to 6 months, if the border officer approves it. (How would you even go about stating that?). Would that time count towards establishing "living with a common law partner".

 

[scylla]

1. Do you have a job offer in Canada that qualifies under NAFTA? Having a NAFTA profession isn't enough. You need a full time job offer in Canada.
2. Your application will not be processed through NY. The vast majority of US applicant applications are processed through Ottawa. Note that you must be either married or common law (have lived together for a year) to apply to be sponsored. You will only qualify for an open work permit if you apply inland (outland applicants don't qualify).
3. You need an approved LMIA if you want the extra 600 points. It doesn't matter if your job is NAFTA or not. No LMIA = no 600 points.
4. You can work remotely provided your company does no business in Canada / has no Canadian clients. Yes - time spent as a visitor in Canada can be counted towards common law.

 

[johnathandh1981]

Thank you very much for your helpful reply, scylla.

1. Do you have a job offer in Canada that qualifies under NAFTA? Having a NAFTA profession isn't enough. You need a full time job offer in Canada

No, I'd be looking to job search for jobs covered under NAFTA that I'm qualified for. Am I right in my belief that the MBA would cover the educational requirement for the Computer Systems Analyst position? I think I've seen that mentioned somewhere.

3. You need an approved LMIA if you want the extra 600 points. It doesn't matter if your job is NAFTA or not. No LMIA = no 600 points.

That is good to know. Do you know if there are any statistics on what jobs have the best chances of having a positive LMIA assessment?

4. You can work remotely provided your company does no business in Canada / has no Canadian clients. Yes - time spent as a visitor in Canada can be counted towards common law.

Great. My understanding regarding a traditional marriage is that there isn't a time-spent criteria needed for the sponsorship to be approved (although you need to live together after being approved), but that you need to be able to show that the relationship is real. The living together requirement is only for common law marriages, right?