I received a disturbing procedural fairness letter.
My sponsor , who is now a Canadian PR, previously was in a common law relationship with another person but they separated and got in a common law relationship with me.
Kindly advise how to respond. The letter is posted here with names redacted.
We are now completing the assessment of your application for a permanent resident visa under the Family Class. It appears that you may not meet the requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations.
According to Section 12(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act a foreign national may be selected as a member of the family class on the basis of their relationship as the spouse, common-law partner, child, parent or other prescribed family member of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
Section 117(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, 2002 defines who is a member of the family class. A foreign national is a member of the family class if, with respect to a sponsor, the foreign national is
(a) the sponsor’s spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner;
You have applied under the Common-law partner category. Pursuant to subsection 1(1) of the regulations, a common-law partner means, in relation to a person, an individual who is cohabiting with the person in a conjugal relationship, having so cohabited for a period of at least one year
Based on a review of the information you submitted, [sponsor’s name] claimed to have been in a relationship with another person during the same timeframe in which you and your sponsor claim to have been in a relationship. Your sponsor has declared previously that she was married to [former sponsor’s common law partner] from March 20th, 2016 and claims to have separated from him sometime in November 2018. This period overlaps with the period you claim to have been in a relationship with your sponsor.
Also, considering you claim to have been in a relationship for one year and 1 month at the time your sponsor departed to Canada, it is not clear the reason for you not being included in her application at the time. Please provide detailed explanations as for your reasons for not leaving your home country with [sponsor’s name] in March 2019.
And finally, please note that in order for a couple to be considered in a common-law relationship, they must able to demonstrate that they have cohabitated for at least one continuous year. Usually, this period must be immediately prior to the application for the immigration visa. In your case, your cohabitation was 5 years ago, with no other periods of cohabitation.
This is your only opportunity to provide explanations of the reasons why you have not cohabitated in the past 5 years nor applied for the visa sooner.
Before rendering a final decision on your application, we are providing you with an opportunity to respond to these concerns and bring forward any information you wish to be considered. You have 30 days from the receipt of this letter to make any representations in this regard. Please send all submissions by IRCC Webform and clearly indicate your file number. Failure to respond to this letter may result in a refusal of your application.
My sponsor , who is now a Canadian PR, previously was in a common law relationship with another person but they separated and got in a common law relationship with me.
Kindly advise how to respond. The letter is posted here with names redacted.
We are now completing the assessment of your application for a permanent resident visa under the Family Class. It appears that you may not meet the requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations.
According to Section 12(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act a foreign national may be selected as a member of the family class on the basis of their relationship as the spouse, common-law partner, child, parent or other prescribed family member of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
Section 117(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, 2002 defines who is a member of the family class. A foreign national is a member of the family class if, with respect to a sponsor, the foreign national is
(a) the sponsor’s spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner;
You have applied under the Common-law partner category. Pursuant to subsection 1(1) of the regulations, a common-law partner means, in relation to a person, an individual who is cohabiting with the person in a conjugal relationship, having so cohabited for a period of at least one year
Based on a review of the information you submitted, [sponsor’s name] claimed to have been in a relationship with another person during the same timeframe in which you and your sponsor claim to have been in a relationship. Your sponsor has declared previously that she was married to [former sponsor’s common law partner] from March 20th, 2016 and claims to have separated from him sometime in November 2018. This period overlaps with the period you claim to have been in a relationship with your sponsor.
Also, considering you claim to have been in a relationship for one year and 1 month at the time your sponsor departed to Canada, it is not clear the reason for you not being included in her application at the time. Please provide detailed explanations as for your reasons for not leaving your home country with [sponsor’s name] in March 2019.
And finally, please note that in order for a couple to be considered in a common-law relationship, they must able to demonstrate that they have cohabitated for at least one continuous year. Usually, this period must be immediately prior to the application for the immigration visa. In your case, your cohabitation was 5 years ago, with no other periods of cohabitation.
This is your only opportunity to provide explanations of the reasons why you have not cohabitated in the past 5 years nor applied for the visa sooner.
Before rendering a final decision on your application, we are providing you with an opportunity to respond to these concerns and bring forward any information you wish to be considered. You have 30 days from the receipt of this letter to make any representations in this regard. Please send all submissions by IRCC Webform and clearly indicate your file number. Failure to respond to this letter may result in a refusal of your application.
