Sponsoring my Korean wife for permanent residency

[bartjones]

I have written a letter regarding what I will do upon my return to Canada, but am struggling if I should mention when I will return and the fact that I have written it as 'my wife will be returning at the same time.' I am sure that this is not that much of a big deal, but sometimes just not 100% sure how I should approach it.

As far as mentioning when you will return, as I said before, if you provide a general time frame, say for example a month or perhaps a 2 month period, you should be fine. I think you need to be as honest as you can but CIC is not going to hold you to any specific time frame. Once her PR is approved it's not like you have to fly out the next day or anything. If I understand it correctly you can land until your current valid medical or passport expires (whichever is first). And if you're already in country, this is also fine.

I said in my cover letter that we'd be moving to Canada together permanently in late April. We delayed things a week or so and will be leaving next week. I don't see a problem with that. Your wife can enter as a visitor with you and stay for 6 months. So, there shouldn't be any problem in approaching the letter that way IMO.

 

[CanNZ]

One thing I have been struggling with, I know I don't have to 'prove my income' as my wife and I do not have kids, but should I get the deed for our apartment translated and notorized? The deed is in my wife's name and the amount of paper I would need to get translated would probably be quite a large amount. Or should I just write a letter stating the the apartment is in my wife's name and we will sell it before we move to Canada?

 

[CanNZ]

As far as mentioning when you will return, as I said before, if you provide a general time frame, say for example a month or perhaps a 2 month period, you should be fine. I think you need to be as honest as you can but CIC is not going to hold you to any specific time frame. Once her PR is approved it's not like you have to fly out the next day or anything. If I understand it correctly you can land until your current valid medical or passport expires (whichever is first). And if you're already in country, this is also fine.

I said in my cover letter that we'd be moving to Canada together permanently in late April. We delayed things a week or so and will be leaving next week. I don't see a problem with that. Your wife can enter as a visitor with you and stay for 6 months. So, there shouldn't be any problem in approaching the letter that way IMO.

That's what I am doing with my cover letter, just it 'felt' a little off for some reason. Also, I want to be completely honest with them as well.

 

[bartjones]

One thing I have been struggling with, I know I don't have to 'prove my income' as my wife and I do not have kids, but should I get the deed for our apartment translated and notorized? The deed is in my wife's name and the amount of paper I would need to get translated would probably be quite a large amount. Or should I just write a letter stating the the apartment is in my wife's name and we will sell it before we move to Canada?

I wouldn't worry too much about providing a translated copy of the deed. I would just tell them in your covering letter that you and your wife own your residence in Korea, that it has a value of about xyz dollars, that you'll be selling it when you leave and plan to bring the proceeds of the sale with you to Canada to use to support yourself or to buy a property there. If they want to see the deed, wait for them to ask. I seriously doubt they ever will since, as you say, you don't have to meet any necessary income requirements.

 

[Rob_TO]

I wouldn't worry too much about providing a translated copy of the deed. I would just tell them in your covering letter that you and your wife own your residence in Korea, that it has a value of about xyz dollars, that you'll be selling it when you leave and plan to bring the proceeds of the sale with you to Canada to use to support yourself or to buy a property there. If they want to see the deed, wait for them to ask. I seriously doubt they ever will since, as you say, you don't have to meet any necessary income requirements.

I wouldn't state they jointly own the residence, because technically he doesn't as the deed is only in the wife's name.

A very common proof of any relationship that many people include in PR application, is proof of joint home ownership or a joint lease if renting. So people would typically include a copy of their lease, mortgage or deed showing both names on it.

So here, if you state you jointly own property the VO may think you intended to submit evidence of that as proof of relationship but forgot, and could ask for a copy. If they do ask and the house is actually only in wife's name meaning you lied about jointly owning it... that would not be good.

Just tell the truth and say technically the home is only in wife's name, and you'll sell it and use the proceeds to buy a home together in Canada. There is no problem with home only being in 1 persons name as this is very common. Our home is in my name only, and I just explained in PR app that due to me already having a mortgage before i met my fiancee, it's impossible to simply add someone before the mortgage term is up, but would do so when i renew it.

 

[bartjones]

I wouldn't state they jointly own the residence, because technically he doesn't as the deed is only in the wife's name.

A very common proof of any relationship that many people include in PR application, is proof of joint home ownership or a joint lease if renting. So people would typically include a copy of their lease, mortgage or deed showing both names on it.

So here, if you state you jointly own property the VO may think you intended to submit evidence of that as proof of relationship but forgot, and could ask for a copy. If they do ask and the house is actually only in wife's name meaning you lied about jointly owning it... that would not be good.

Just tell the truth and say technically the home is only in wife's name, and you'll sell it and use the proceeds to buy a home together in Canada. There is no problem with home only being in 1 persons name as this is very common. Our home is in my name only, and I just explained in PR app that due to me already having a mortgage before i met my fiancee, it's impossible to simply add someone before the mortgage term is up, but would do so when i renew it.

I suspect CanNZ might be very surprised to find that he doesn't own his home and that it belongs entirely to his wife, ;D. I think legally he and his wife do own the residence together, just as you and your spouse own your place jointly even though the deed is only in your name. There are all kinds of reasons why people put a matrimonial home in the wife's name. The fact that the deed is in her name only, tells you nothing about who actually owns the property as a matter of law. So I think he's probably fine to state that he and his wife own a home in Korea.

IMO, I would think that telling the VO that the property is in his wife's name alone is probably more of a red flag than just vaguely stating that he and his wife own a property together that they plan to sell when they leave.

 

[Korea2Canada]

You dont need to meet min. income so why include the apt. info. anyway? Since it's in her name I dont see how that prooves relationship.

 

[Rob_TO]

I suspect CanNZ might be very surprised to find that he doesn't own his home and that it belongs entirely to his wife, ;D. I think legally he and his wife do own the residence together, just as you and your spouse own your place jointly even though the deed is only in your name. There are all kinds of reasons why people put a matrimonial home in the wife's name. The fact that the deed is in her name only, tells you nothing about who actually owns the property as a matter of law. So I think he's probably fine to state that he and his wife own a home in Korea.

I disagree. The name(s) on the deed and mortgage, say everything legally about who actually owns the home. You do not simply own property by being married to someone that owns property. Yes there are many reasons a family home is put in 1 spouses name only, but this is usually done specifically so the other spouse has no record of ownership (such as they have bad credit, can't legally own property in some countries etc).

I think you are referring to the legal rights of spouses or common-law partners, which gives them claim on a home in case of death, separation etc. However in terms of pure ownership at any given time, legally the deed/mortgage is all that matters.

IMO, I would think that telling the VO that the property is in his wife's name alone is probably more of a red flag than just vaguely stating that he and his wife own a property together that they plan to sell when they leave.

In our case with common-law, there was a question on the forms that asks to prove common-law and states specifically joint home ownership/lease as one of the proofs that can be included. So this is the only reason i made a special mention of why our home is in my name only. As i said, showing joint home ownership (with photocopy of joint deed or mortgage) is a very common proof of relationship.

Without a deed or mortgage that specifically states BOTH names on it, there is zero chance you will convince a VO a home is truly jointly owned. Here it's best to just leave this out altogether. I would word any letter very generically, such as "we are planning to sell our home in Korea, and use the proceeds to purchase a home in Canada".

"We" and "our" don't state as a fact that 1 person or the other owns the home, so won't lead to any trouble just in case the VO wanted more proof of relationship for any reason.

 

[CanNZ]

Thanks for the responses so far regarding this issue.

If I remember correctly, only 1 person's name can be on a deed of a house/apartment at any time. Similar as to Korean banks not allowing joint bank accounts. I have considered mentionaing that as the reason for why my name is not on the deed.

Here is what I have written so far about our funds:

Later this year my wife and I plan to move to Calgary, Alberta, we are hoping for a late November arrival. Currently we have savings of about $XXXXX Canadian dollars as well we own our apartment here in Korea, which we will soon be putting on the market. While investigating current sales figures for our neighbourhood, we expect to be able to sell our apartment for approximately $XXXXX Canadian dollars, also we have no debt on our house. Currently our plan is to move to Calgary together once my wife’s Permanent Residency is approved, which means that we should have additional savings of about $XXXXX Canadian Dollars by the end of this year through our work in Korea. That means our total savings that we will be bringing to Canada will be about $XXXXX Canadian dollars.

 

[CanNZ]

On Page 2 of the Sponsorship Evaluation form, where do I put my wife? It almost seems like I don't list her anywhere on that page of the form. I am sure we discussed this before, but I can't seem to find the relevant post anywhere on the previous 29 pages of this thread.

 

[bartjones]

Thanks for the responses so far regarding this issue.

If I remember correctly, only 1 person's name can be on a deed of a house/apartment at any time. Similar as to Korean banks not allowing joint bank accounts. I have considered mentionaing that as the reason for why my name is not on the deed.

Here is what I have written so far about our funds:

Later this year my wife and I plan to move to Calgary, Alberta, we are hoping for a late November arrival. Currently we have savings of about $XXXXX Canadian dollars as well we own our apartment here in Korea, which we will soon be putting on the market. While investigating current sales figures for our neighbourhood, we expect to be able to sell our apartment for approximately $XXXXX Canadian dollars, also we have no debt on our house. Currently our plan is to move to Calgary together once my wife's Permanent Residency is approved, which means that we should have additional savings of about $XXXXX Canadian Dollars by the end of this year through our work in Korea. That means our total savings that we will be bringing to Canada will be about $XXXXX Canadian dollars.

I think you're fine with that. IMO leaving out any mention of how title to the property is held is wise. As you say, joint ownership of the property is not allowed here anyway but both spouses hold a half interest in it anyway under Korea family law regardless of whose name is on the deed. I know Rob_TO and I disagree on that but the fact is under Korean law (Article 839 of the Korean Civil Code to be exact) both spouses own half the matrimonial home if it was acquired through their cooperative efforts after marriage (which is true in your case I believe). As such referring to it as "our apartment" is not deceptive or inaccurate.

If an overzealous VO pressed the point and asked to see the deed (highly unlikely IMO) you can simply explain that joint title is not permitted here, but that it's a matrimonial home and as such you referred to it as "our apartment".

 

[bartjones]

I disagree. The name(s) on the deed and mortgage, say everything legally about who actually owns the home. You do not simply own property by being married to someone that owns property. Yes there are many reasons a family home is put in 1 spouses name only, but this is usually done specifically so the other spouse has no record of ownership (such as they have bad credit, can't legally own property in some countries etc).

I think you are referring to the legal rights of spouses or common-law partners, which gives them claim on a home in case of death, separation etc. However in terms of pure ownership at any given time, legally the deed/mortgage is all that matters.

Yes that's exactly what I'm referring to. Under both Ontario and Korean law both spouses are entitled to an equal interest in the matrimonial home regardless of whose name is on the deed. That's a legal right of both spouses regardless of who holds title. The person holding title can only deal with the property with the consent of his or her spouse.

Any married guy who thinks he owns his home because only his name is on the deed should try selling or mortgaging it. He won't be able to unless his wife signs off on the transaction. That's actual ownership and hence it's entirely accurate to say that spouses own their home together.

It's very common for title to be held in the name of one spouse only. The most common reason is probably liability avoidance, e.g husband owns a business, wife is a homemaker. Any good lawyer will recommend putting the house in the wife's name in case the husband's business goes bankrupt or he gets sued. But the fact that title is in the wife's name only has no effect on the husband's one half interest in the matrimonial property.

Without a deed or mortgage that specifically states BOTH names on it, there is zero chance you will convince a VO a home is truly jointly owned. Here it's best to just leave this out altogether. I would word any letter very generically, such as "we are planning to sell our home in Korea, and use the proceeds to purchase a home in Canada".

"We" and "our" don't state as a fact that 1 person or the other owns the home, so won't lead to any trouble just in case the VO wanted more proof of relationship for any reason.

I don't agree. You can't have joint title here and any VO who relied on the deed alone to determine actual ownership would be flat out wrong. Under Korea law, property acquired cooperatively by a married couple during their marriage is divisible equally on divorce regardless of how title is held. So making the statement I suggested he make i.e. that he and his wife own their residence in Korea, is completely accurate.

 

[CanNZ]

On Page 2 of the Sponsorship Evaluation form, where do I put my wife? It almost seems like I don't list her anywhere on that page of the form. I am sure we discussed this before, but I can't seem to find the relevant post anywhere on the previous 29 pages of this thread.

Thanks for the advice bartjones, any comment on this though?

 

[Korea2Canada]

Thanks for the advice bartjones, any comment on this though?

I didnt put my wife on that form. I put our son

 

[CanNZ]

I didnt put my wife on that form. I put our son

Ah yeah, knew I talked to someone about that form.