Sponsoring my Vietnamese fiance, met in South Korea... please help

[Daveo52]

Hi,

So, this is a strange and awesome story. I'm Canadian and I met my fiance here in South Korea. She was on a student visa from Vietnam (she's Vietnamese). Fast-forward and she's now my fiance (congratz to us)!!! 5 days ago she went back to Vietnam, and will be unable to return to Korea (because her visa has expired and she has graduated).

The problem is, I want to bring her back to Canada with me... and I'm not sure what to do. Should I go to Vietnam and marry her? I leave Korea in October to come back to Canada, and I don't want to spend extra money I don't need to spend (because I really don't have a lot left). Will it help her achieve permanent residence? When should we start the paperwork for permanent residence? Can I sponsor her from outside the country? Is there any important paperwork I should get before I return to Canada? Anything important I should get her to sign?

Thanks!
Dave

 

[scylla]

Unfortunately Canada has no fiancee sponsorship class. In order for you to sponsor her for PR, you must either be married or common law (have lived together for a minimum of one full year).

You can start the paperwork for PR as soon as you are either common law or married. And yes - you can sponsor her from outside of the country.

There are certainly documents that she will have to sign (you as well). I would encourage you to read through the forms to familiarize yourself with the information you will be required to provide as part of the application process. You can find this documentation here:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/fc.asp

 

[Rob_TO]

Hi,

So, this is a strange and awesome story. I'm Canadian and I met my fiance here in South Korea. She was on a student visa from Vietnam (she's Vietnamese). Fast-forward and she's now my fiance (congratz to us)!!! 5 days ago she went back to Vietnam, and will be unable to return to Korea (because her visa has expired and she has graduated).

The problem is, I want to bring her back to Canada with me... and I'm not sure what to do. Should I go to Vietnam and marry her? I leave Korea in October to come back to Canada, and I don't want to spend extra money I don't need to spend (because I really don't have a lot left). Will it help her achieve permanent residence? When should we start the paperwork for permanent residence? Can I sponsor her from outside the country? Is there any important paperwork I should get before I return to Canada? Anything important I should get her to sign?

If you guys lived together for 1 full year in Korea, then you could apply for her PR immediately as a common-law couple. Else you need to get married. Those are your only 2 options to get her PR. As a Canadian citizen you don't have to be in Canada to sponsor her.

If you wanted to get married, then you could go to Vietnam to get married there, then apply for her PR outland. Or if she could get a TRV (visitor visa) to Canada from Vietnam then when she arrives here as a visitor you could get married and apply for PR inland.

You probably don't need anything from Korea in terms of documents, but if she lived there for at least 6 months then she'll need S.Korea police reports.

And of course you will need all the proofs/evidence of you guys being in a relationship while in Korea.

 

[Daveo52]

We technically could have lived together for a year... I mean, she spent more time at my place than hers- but we've only been together around 8 months.

The other problem is, she still had a residence on school- so how do I prove that we lived together? We did take 2 vacations together and have tons of things together- including a proposal video.

My question is, what exactly is "living together" and how do I prove it?

ALSO!!!

If we're married, can my mom or dad sponsor her as their child- because it is their daughter-in-law?

Or, can they endorse my sponsorship before we're married, or after we're married as well? My problem is I'm worried that my income is lacking.

 

[bartjones]

We technically could have lived together for a year... I mean, she spent more time at my place than hers- but we've only been together around 8 months.

The other problem is, she still had a residence on school- so how do I prove that we lived together? We did take 2 vacations together and have tons of things together- including a proposal video.

My question is, what exactly is "living together" and how do I prove it?

I'm no expert on what you need to satisfy the common law criterion but it doesn't sound like you meet them.

If we're married, can my mom or dad sponsor her as their child- because it is their daughter-in-law?

Or, can they endorse my sponsorship before we're married, or after we're married as well? My problem is I'm worried that my income is lacking.

If you're married, you can sponsor her yourself. You don't need your parents to do it for you. If you have no children, you don't need to worry about your income. The minimum income requirements for sponsorship only apply if you have non-Canadian dependent children.

 

[Rob_TO]

We technically could have lived together for a year... I mean, she spent more time at my place than hers- but we've only been together around 8 months.

The other problem is, she still had a residence on school- so how do I prove that we lived together? We did take 2 vacations together and have tons of things together- including a proposal video.

My question is, what exactly is "living together" and how do I prove it?

You don't qualify so I wouldn't even bother to try. "Living together" means cohabiting in the same home, in a committed marriage-like relationship, for 12 continuous months. You need to show things such as a shared lease, mail to both of you being delivered to the address, or testimony from a landlord that you lived together.

It must be 12 months. Not even a day less. So 8 months won't cut it.

Also keep in mind an 8 month relationship, followed by a quick wedding and quick application for PR... could be a big red flag and CIC may suspect your relationship is just for the purposes of her getting PR status in Canada.

 

[scylla]

I agree. You're definintely not common law. You'll either need to get married if you want to sponsor her now - or really start living together and apply to sponsor her in a year.

Your parents cannot sponsor her. Only you can sponsor her.

 

[Daveo52]

Wow!

First, thanks for all the amazing responses guys. In a world that I've felt kinda lost in the past 2 months (trying to figure out how I'm going to get her to Canada) things are becoming a bit more clear. So, thanks!

Second up, my income doesn't matter so long as she doesn't have a kid? I read something about them needing to see that we have a place to live, but with me living over here- my plan was to return home and live with my parents until I find a job and a good place to live. My parents are fine with everything, so I was just wondering what the technicalities of this are. Should I submit some paperwork like a letter from my parents saying they're excited about the relationship?

Third, it's looking like the best course of action is to marry the girl ASAP. Alrighty. Marriage it is. Yeah, I don't think we're common-law either, but it never hurts to try!

So, marry the girl in Vietnam or on a tourist visa in Canada?

 

[Rob_TO]

Should I submit some paperwork like a letter from my parents saying they're excited about the relationship?

Exactly. They'll need to provide letters of support that they will assist you financially if needed.

Third, it's looking like the best course of action is to marry the girl ASAP. Alrighty. Marriage it is. Yeah, I don't think we're common-law either, but it never hurts to try!

So, marry the girl in Vietnam or on a tourist visa in Canada?

Either marriage would be valid.

However keep in mind what I said. An 8 month relationship followed by a quick wedding and quick application for PR, especially for a non visa-exempt applicant, could be very suspicious to CIC.

You should get married where you will have the more legitimate wedding that family and friends can attend. This is not essential, but a "typical" wedding will be a lot better proof of legitimate relationship, vs a quickie marriage at a government office with no ceremony.

The advantage to getting her a TRV and being married in Canada is you could apply inland and stay together in Canada during the entire processing time. If you apply outland she will need to go through Singapore visa office which has one of the longest processing times in the world.

 

[Daveo52]

The advantage to getting her a TRV and being married in Canada is you could apply inland and stay together in Canada during the entire processing time. If you apply outland she will need to go through Singapore visa office which has one of the longest processing times in the world.

My question then becomes, ... a TRV's job is to bring someone over with the intent of them going back. Is it not fraudulent to bring them over with the intent of them not going back?

 

[scylla]

My question then becomes, ... a TRV's job is to bring someone over with the intent of them going back. Is it not fraudulent to bring them over with the intent of them not going back?

No - it's not fraudulent. (Although this is a good question. Because if we were talking about the US then the answer would be yes.)

Plenty of people have come on TRVs, gotten married and then applied inland. The challenge is getting the TRV approved in the first place.

 

[Daveo52]

No - it's not fraudulent. (Although this is a good question. Because if we were talking about the US then the answer would be yes.)

Plenty of people have come on TRVs, gotten married and then applied inland. The challenge is getting the TRV approved in the first place.

Yeah, she seems a bit worried about getting the TRV approved. I wrote a different thread asking for help and it's gone unanswered- but I would like to pose the same questions here.

1) She's worried the officials in her country will only operate under a large bribe. I believe they're employed under Canadian standards... so any corruption shouldn't be an issue... but do you think this is a reality? She's shown me lengthy documents talking about how the only way to get a green card in America for a Vietnamese citizen is to bribe with at least $1000 USD.
2) The banking system in Vietnam is poor and most people don't use it. Thus, she doesn't have a bank account with money in it. This isn't to say she doesn't have money, her and her parents have just never had bank accounts. Apparently they don't have very good bank insurance like we do in Canada. If a bank fails, they just lose everything. Most people carry gold or USD.
3) We're both worried about the documentation.
3a) Since we will be staying at my parents house, what documents should we include? A written letter signed with birth certificate and housing deed all from my parents?
3b) Should it be both parents or just one parent?
3c) Do I have to write a letter as well?
3d) Should I state that our intent is to get married?
4) What other road blocks or potential mishaps might you foresee happening?

 

[mikeymyke]

Success of the TRV depends on your wife's history.

How many countries has she been to? She was in South Korea and that's a big plus considering it's difficult for Vietnamese to enter there.
Does she have any family in Canada? If yes, that will weigh against her.
How much $ she has in the bank?
Does she have a job she can go back to after her TRV expires?
Has she tried to apply to Canada in the past?

 

[Daveo52]

Success of the TRV depends on your wife's history.

How many countries has she been to? She was in South Korea and that's a big plus considering it's difficult for Vietnamese to enter there.
Does she have any family in Canada? If yes, that will weigh against her.
How much $ she has in the bank?
Does she have a job she can go back to after her TRV expires?
Has she tried to apply to Canada in the past?

Actually, she's been to both Japan and South Korea, and both are difficult for Vietnamese to enter. She has no family in Canada (other than me, but we're not married yet... so I guess she's not my family).
She has no bank account because many Vietnamese don't have one. They don't trust the currency.
She does have a job she can go back to.
She hasn't tried to apply in the past.

 

[mikeymyke]

I think her chances look very good. If she can show she has sufficient funds for her stay in Canada, then I'm confident she will get it. Japan AND South korea? Wow that's huge plus for her, because in order to enter those countries, she would probably had to show some form of financial stability, family ties, etc, just like here for Canada.