Options for family class sponsorship. All input is welcome.

[CanadianKnight]

Hello everyone,

I am looking for advice and information with regards to family class sponsorship for my girlfriend and I. I've attempted to look up information regarding the possible options, but have found it difficult to decide what the best course of action would be with regards to my specific case.

A little backgroud:

I am a 22 year old Canadian citizen and my girlfriend is 21 year old American citizen. We have known each other for two years and a few months now, and have been in a relationship for the past two.
We met online and have frequent (daily) Skype video calls and have almost every day for the past two years. We have sent multiple gifts, letters and the like to each other.
I have been down to the US twice now to visit her in Texas (the lack of visits mainly due to schooling from myself and limited vacation days.) If we weren't separated by a border we would without a doubt
been living together for more than a year now.

We attempted to have her come up and visit me for longer period of time but unfortunately she was given less than twelve hours to stay with me before they sent her back to the US on the idea that she would overstay.
We had a return flight set and she brought up only what she would need for her time here.

What kind of options do we have for sponsorship?

I know that common-law is rather unlikely as I can't even guarantee that she will be allowed to enter Canada, and the experience of having her sent away took a big toll on us.
That leaves either Spousal or Conjugal.

In terms of the Spousal, I wasn't raised in a family that believed in marriage, but if it would allow me to spend my life with this wonderful woman I would take the plunge.
The problems I have with this route is mainly lack of information. I know that Canada would allow us to marry if she came up on a visitor visa, but that seems rather difficult since
she might not be allowed to enter, especially if she told them she was coming up to get married. I suppose the other option would to get married in the US and then sponsor her to Canada, but I'm rather
confused about this point (I apologize in advance if this is a stupid question). Everywhere that I've read about marriage to a US citizen seems to speak of a K-1 visa, though I am not looking to immigrate to the US.
Would it be possible for me to visit her in Texas and marry to then sponsor her to Canada?

In terms of Conjugal, I have read that it is rather difficult to provide sufficient evidence to the Immigration Officer for this type of sponsorship to be approved. And that even with strong cases it may be denied
based on how the I.O. understands the documentation. I know that we have been in a conjugal relationship for a long enough period of time, but I'm not sure we have the "barriers" needed to go down this path.
Would the I.O. believe that because I have not left my job and family to live with her in the US for a year I do not have the proper commitment?

I am really looking for as much information and experience as possible, I know my questions may seem silly but despite my best efforts to find the information I am having difficulties.

Thank you for any response, and your time,

Knight

 

[Applechunks]

Hello everyone,

I am looking for advice and information with regards to family class sponsorship for my girlfriend and I. I've attempted to look up information regarding the possible options, but have found it difficult to decide what the best course of action would be with regards to my specific case.

A little backgroud:

I am a 22 year old Canadian citizen and my girlfriend is 21 year old American citizen. We have known each other for two years and a few months now, and have been in a relationship for the past two.
We met online and have frequent (daily) Skype video calls and have almost every day for the past two years. We have sent multiple gifts, letters and the like to each other.
I have been down to the US twice now to visit her in Texas (the lack of visits mainly due to schooling from myself and limited vacation days.) If we weren't separated by a border we would without a doubt
been living together for more than a year now.

We attempted to have her come up and visit me for longer period of time but unfortunately she was given less than twelve hours to stay with me before they sent her back to the US on the idea that she would overstay.
We had a return flight set and she brought up only what she would need for her time here.

What kind of options do we have for sponsorship?

I know that common-law is rather unlikely as I can't even guarantee that she will be allowed to enter Canada, and the experience of having her sent away took a big toll on us.
That leaves either Spousal or Conjugal.

In terms of the Spousal, I wasn't raised in a family that believed in marriage, but if it would allow me to spend my life with this wonderful woman I would take the plunge.
The problems I have with this route is mainly lack of information. I know that Canada would allow us to marry if she came up on a visitor visa, but that seems rather difficult since
she might not be allowed to enter, especially if she told them she was coming up to get married. I suppose the other option would to get married in the US and then sponsor her to Canada, but I'm rather
confused about this point (I apologize in advance if this is a stupid question). Everywhere that I've read about marriage to a US citizen seems to speak of a K-1 visa, though I am not looking to immigrate to the US.
Would it be possible for me to visit her in Texas and marry to then sponsor her to Canada?

In terms of Conjugal, I have read that it is rather difficult to provide sufficient evidence to the Immigration Officer for this type of sponsorship to be approved. And that even with strong cases it may be denied
based on how the I.O. understands the documentation. I know that we have been in a conjugal relationship for a long enough period of time, but I'm not sure we have the "barriers" needed to go down this path.
Would the I.O. believe that because I have not left my job and family to live with her in the US for a year I do not have the proper commitment?

I am really looking for as much information and experience as possible, I know my questions may seem silly but despite my best efforts to find the information I am having difficulties.

Thank you for any response, and your time,

Knight

Given that you are an American/Canadian couple there is virtually no chance that you will be able to apply and be successful under a conjugal application. There are no barriers to you going to the US and living with her for 12 months and making common law or marrying her. Conjugal is used where (in a place like Phillipines for eg.) there is no divorce and no recognition of same sex relationships.
As I see it you have two options:
1. you go to the US and stay with her for 12 months and become common law (I'm not familiar with US laws so someone else may have to weigh in on your ability to do that)
2. Marriage. If she is able to enter Canada on a tourist visa or you are able to go to the US, you can certainly get married and then sponsor her outland.

Was there something in particular that was cited as the reason that she was rejected for entry (limited) last time? I know you said they believed she would overstay but did they say what that was based on. She needs to show really strong ties to her home.... (rental agreements, employment (letter from employer)) and not bring too much stuff with her.

 

[agarand8]

You should have no problem getting married in the USA. Weird that they wouldn't let her in, loads of people on this site marry Americans and from what I've heard they commonly allow them entry even when they have pending residency applications. So I'm also curious if they gave you a reason...maybe if she had no money and like a lot of bags they might have suspected she was trying to move here. Especially if they knew she had a Canadian boyfriend.

If you want her to be living here with you for a while before you get married you could look into study visas or work visas. They generally need to be renewed every year but it's another option to look at especially if you're on the fence about whether you want to live here, or there.

 

[rhcohen2014]

if she wasn't given an exclusion order, then there is nothing stopping her from seeking entry to canada again. this time, she needs to be prepared, know what language to use and be able to show ties to the us. generally, the only ties CBSA really care about are employment and housing related ties (ie: recent paystubs/lease/mortgage). if your gf comes to the border and shows them she has something to go back to, and just doesn't try to enter on a one way ticket, then she will have better luck at the border. also, she wants to avoid saying she plans to "move" or "live" in canada. until she is approved as a pr, she can not do that. so she needs to ONLY say she is visiting. there is no issue with coming to canada to get married, many people do this. CBSA just wants to know she knows her home country is her PERMANENT home until Canada gives her permission to move (ie: approve her for PR). As she is a us citizen, she can not get a visa to visit, she just needs to go the border and seek entry. Once she's in, she can then apply to extend her stay as a visitor to stay longer.

As for going to the us to get married, again this isn't an issue. you are canadian and don't require a visa to do this. you can simply go to the us, and get married.

 

[surleplateau]

As the others said, just because she was given a short time in Canada one time doesn't mean that will always be the case. The more she shows CBSA that she follows the rules and doesn't overstay her status, the more likely they will let her stay longer.

And once CBSA lets her into Canada, I believe there is nothing that stops her from applying for an extension to stay longer with CIC (not CBSA). It's all online. Once she puts in an application to extend her stays (should be done 30 days before her current status expiration), she can remain in Canada while awaiting CIC's response (aka "implied status"). She can't work or enroll in uni, but she can stay as a visitor.

Alternatively, she can apply to an education program (grad school, or some other certificate/diploma accredited program that is at least 1-year long, if I recall correctly), and then apply to CIC for a study permit. That way she would be able to enter Canada as a student, live with you during her study program for 12 continuous months of cohabitation to attain common-law union. At the end of her study permit, she could apply to either extend her studies OR apply to Change Status from student to visitor. This can be done online, and it's pretty quick the first time.

Once you get 12 continuous months of cohabitation, you two can apply for sponsoring her PR application under the spouse/common-law partner category.

She can stay in Canada as a visitor (applying for extensions as needed) while doing an Outland application (faster). Or she can go back to the US. Once you have reached common-law status, it's okay to live apart, you still count as common-law, but you'll need proof to back up your relationship.

Don't do Inland for US - Canada. For the vast majority of Americans, the whole process takes 8-10 months. The Inland application takes 2+ years!

Read: How can my common-law partner and I prove we have been together for 12 months? You don't need *everything* on the list, but you better start gathering evidence for each of the 12 months if you want to go this way. Don't skip a single month of those 12. Don't be apart longer than a week or two (short vacation, short business trip length).