Spousal interview with VO refused

[wjmund]

Avadava, you are so right. Very bad grammar also. I did not wish to say her name, but i should have said "my wife" Thanks for the correction.

Toby, thanks for China Visa Info. I like your suggestion for neighbors certified input, and take photo's of us out with her friends , and have them write dates and get certified.

This forum is very helpful. I am starting to feel better (more positive) but still a long ways to go..

 

[wjmund]

To Avadava. You are so right, i should have said "My Wife" Point taken..

 

[Aquarian]

While I agree that, for sponsorship cases, that couples should have a relationship for a good year before marrying, it does not mean it will be refused automatically if it was shorter. We married just 5 months after, and while my husband was interviewed (Algerian), he was given his visa immediately. The entire process, from the day CIC received our application to the day he received his visa, took only almost 5 months.

In this couple's case, yes, getting married within two months does not look good, and it would be smart of them to live together for a while before trying again.

We also have to keep in mind that there are couples who do carry on a relationship for years and are still refused. Each case is different. I also believe they look at educational background and age of the sponsored person and decide if they could contribute positively to our economy....

Good luck to you all!
xox

2 months online and then getting married? Sorry but IMO you have zero chance for a successful approval. If i was the VO, I most likely would have refused that case as well. It is simply too short to be a real legitimate marriage, and too high a chance it was a fraudulent marriage of convenience just for immigration purposes (not saying this is true, but it's how an outsider looking at the application will almost definitely see it).

Typically the general rule is to have a relationship for around 1 year, then get married and submit PR app. Even if you have a long distance relationship with frequent visits for the next year and then re-apply, it would help strengthen the case.

 

[Aquarian]

here here....

People who are saying you need to live together for 1 year before getting maried are taking an extremely conservative viewpoint. In BC you are legally commonlaw and legally resposible for the other persons debts after only 6 months. BC essentiallys forces you into a marriage-like relationship after only 6 months of living together. So its really bizarre that people would be speaking here about 12 months as being a minimum.

3 months is probably closer to the real minimum. Less than 3 months and you probably arent ready to get married and should consider why you are rushing things. But 12 months, is way too long. By then, the state has already decided the matter for you! As far as the state is concerned you are married (commonlaw) whether you like it or not, love her or not, want to be married or not. It is actually a crime to not consider yourself married (commonlaw) after 12 months, and you have to BY LAW start declaring yourself as such on your tax forms.

 

[Edgehead78]

I would have refused you too if I were the VO. I'm sorry if I'm offending you, but referring to your wife whom you claim to love as This lady makes me think this is a marriage of convenience.

Maybe he's using translator. It doesn't look like english is his mother tongue.

 

[PMM]

Hi

People who are saying you need to live together for 1 year before getting maried are taking an extremely conservative viewpoint. In BC you are legally commonlaw and legally resposible for the other persons debts after only 6 months. BC essentiallys forces you into a marriage-like relationship after only 6 months of living together. So its really bizarre that people would be speaking here about 12 months as being a minimum.

3 months is probably closer to the real minimum. Less than 3 months and you probably arent ready to get married and should consider why you are rushing things. But 12 months, is way too long. By then, the state has already decided the matter for you! As far as the state is concerned you are married (commonlaw) whether you like it or not, love her or not, want to be married or not. It is actually a crime to not consider yourself married (commonlaw) after 12 months, and you have to BY LAW start declaring yourself as such on your tax forms.

Sorry Wrong, for BC the following is the definition of Common/law

Spouses and relationships between spouses

3 (1) A person is a spouse for the purposes of this Act if the person

(a) is married to another person, or

(b) has lived with another person in a marriage-like relationship, and

(i) has done so for a continuous period of at least 2 years, or

(ii) except in Parts 5 [Property Division] and 6 [Pension Division], has a child with the other person.

 

[wjmund]

I do not think i will appeal. Rather, go to China summer of 2014 and live with my wife for 2 months. Then come home, and go back summer of 2015 for 2 months. Do lots of documentation, and reapply. Maybe Canada will see we are married for love. You think this is good plan?

 

[mikeymyke]

It's a good idea, but you also need to pay attention to your wife's behavior. If she seems restless and upset about you having to keep coming back to see her, and she keeps asking when can she come to Canada, and if she can't accept the possibility of living in China should the appeal fail, then you need to re-evaluate your relationship with her.

Genuine spouses need to be able to live in Canada or the applicant's country. I know 99% of us sponsors want to live in Canada for obvious reasons, but think about this. Did you marry your spouse because you love him/her? Or did you marry him/her so that they can come to Canada (whether for legitimate reasons or not)? If it's the 2nd response, then the marriage was made primarily for status. If you could look into the future and realize your spouse can never come to Canada, would you have chosen to be with him/her in the first place? If you answer no, then wasn't your marriage done to obtain status? You guys need to think long and hard about that. How would your spouse feel if they cant come Canada, and you want to divorce because you cannot accept any other country to live in than Canada?

Canada is a great country, but your spouse should come first, and if you guys cannot live in Canada, you MUST be willing to live in his/her home country, because no one deserves to be abandoned by their spouse. The bottom line is, you marry someone because you love them, and you want to live with them hopefully for the rest of your life. It's perfectly fine to choose Canada as the first choice, but if you truly have a genuine marriage, you need to live up to your vows, and keep your promise of living with them, even if it means in a 3rd world country. To put all your eggs in one basket and not considering the alternative of living elsewhere is ridiculous

 

[wjmund]

My wife seems ok with waiting. Here is excerpt from her recent email, after i told her i did not want to do the appeal. She says....

I think, we are married for love, but time is short, we are married so immigration doubt the truth of marriage, plus I go to Hong Kong visa unprepared, don't think the visa officer will ask those strange questions. Maybe as time goes on, the next time I can get a visa smoothly.

My dear, don't give up, Robert Ping three years of marriage to get to Canada. Think about them, we will one day together. ( Ping is her friend, took her 3 years to get to Canada with her husband Robert)

Miss you very much, always love your wife

 

[SenoritaBella]

Ideally, this is what any spouse would want to do but we live in the real world where things aren't always that simple. There are couples in long distance relationships in Canada who haven't moved to be with the other because of career prospects, etc. In some situations, it makes sense for one spouse to move to a place of greater opportunities not vice-versa. e.g. one person living in a high unemployment area in Newfoundland, while their spouse works in the oil friends in Alberta. It does not make sense for the person in Alberta to move for economic reasons - the couple are benefitting from this together. Would you then say their relationship is not genuine? If not, why not?

Same goes for couples with foreign spouses. There are many decisions couples make which are normal but in the eyes of CIC could be suspicious. It is understandable for an accountant in Canada to not want to move to Syria to be with their spouse. It is not safe there, they may not be able to work(some career transitions aren't easy/possible from developed to under-developed countries) or have a similar lifestyle, etc. Wanting to have a good lifestyle benefits the couple. So I could see why such a couple would prefer the spouse in Syria to move instead. That in itself does not mean their relationship is not genuine. If the implication is that a couple can not choose Canada as the "better" option for themselves, lest their relationship be considered one of convenience, then it's very disturbing.

Lastly, there are foreign spouses who qualify for the skilled worker and provincial nominee programs anyway. This remains an avenue to explore should the sponsorship be refused.

It's a good idea, but you also need to pay attention to your wife's behavior. If she seems restless and upset about you having to keep coming back to see her, and she keeps asking when can she come to Canada, and if she can't accept the possibility of living in China should the appeal fail, then you need to re-evaluate your relationship with her.

Genuine spouses need to be able to live in Canada or the applicant's country. I know 99% of us sponsors want to live in Canada for obvious reasons, but think about this. Did you marry your spouse because you love him/her? Or did you marry him/her so that they can come to Canada (whether for legitimate reasons or not)? If it's the 2nd response, then the marriage was made primarily for status. If you could look into the future and realize your spouse can never come to Canada, would you have chosen to be with him/her in the first place? If you answer no, then wasn't your marriage done to obtain status? You guys need to think long and hard about that. How would your spouse feel if they cant come Canada, and you want to divorce because you cannot accept any other country to live in than Canada?

Canada is a great country, but your spouse should come first, and if you guys cannot live in Canada, you MUST be willing to live in his/her home country, because no one deserves to be abandoned by their spouse. The bottom line is, you marry someone because you love them, and you want to live with them hopefully for the rest of your life. It's perfectly fine to choose Canada as the first choice, but if you truly have a genuine marriage, you need to live up to your vows, and keep your promise of living with them, even if it means in a 3rd world country. To put all your eggs in one basket and not considering the alternative of living elsewhere is ridiculous

 

[Sabrinkh]

Ideally, this is what any spouse would want to do but we live in the real world where things aren't always that simple. There are couples in long distance relationships in Canada who haven't moved to be with the other because of career prospects, etc. In some situations, it makes sense for one spouse to move to a place of greater opportunities not vice-versa. e.g. one person living in a high unemployment area in Newfoundland, while their spouse works in the oil friends in Alberta. It does not make sense for the person in Alberta to move for economic reasons - the couple are benefitting from this together. Would you then say their relationship is not genuine? If not, why not?

Same goes for couples with foreign spouses. There are many decisions couples make which are normal but in the eyes of CIC could be suspicious. It is understandable for an accountant in Canada to not want to move to Syria to be with their spouse. It is not safe there, they may not be able to work(some career transitions aren't easy/possible from developed to under-developed countries) or have a similar lifestyle, etc. Wanting to have a good lifestyle benefits the couple. So I could see why such a couple would prefer the spouse in Syria to move instead. That in itself does not mean their relationship is not genuine. If the implication is that a couple can not choose Canada as the "better" option for themselves, lest their relationship be considered one of convenience, then it's very disturbing.

Lastly, there are foreign spouses who qualify for the skilled worker and provincial nominee programs anyway. This remains an avenue to explore should the sponsorship be refused.

I cannot agree more with this statement. Im a perfect example. I married an egyptian. I went to Egypt during the process of his application and i could not stand it there despite how much i love him. There was a lot of riots, muslim brotherhood killing innocent people, no stable govrrnment, and the jobs pay very poor, i lived in a village. I grew up in toronto and from the age of 16 i have always had a job i depended on myself and i love to work and go to school. In egypt all i did was sit at home. Go visit in laws here and there. Barely could speak egyptian arabic. Can never get a job here. Gained 20 pounds. Thankfully his visa was approved and were leaving in about 2-3 weeks but i told him straight up i could never live here. I gave it a chance incase in the future we ever decided to come back for any reason but sometimes love isnt enough because the last couple weeks before his passport was requested i was very miserable and depressed and uncomfortable. Not because of him but becAuse of the life style and the fact i felt like a prisoner in my own home. I couldnt depend on myself to go out and buy stuff or drive or do anything i was able to do in canada it was very stressful.

 

[automaton82]

I cannot agree more with this statement. Im a perfect example. I married an egyptian. I went to Egypt during the process of his application and i could not stand it there despite how much i love him. There was a lot of riots, muslim brotherhood killing innocent people, no stable govrrnment, and the jobs pay very poor, i lived in a village. I grew up in toronto and from the age of 16 i have always had a job i depended on myself and i love to work and go to school. In egypt all i did was sit at home. Go visit in laws here and there. Barely could speak egyptian arabic. Can never get a job here. Gained 20 pounds. Thankfully his visa was approved and were leaving in about 2-3 weeks but i told him straight up i could never live here. I gave it a chance incase in the future we ever decided to come back for any reason but sometimes love isnt enough because the last couple weeks before his passport was requested i was very miserable and depressed and uncomfortable. Not because of him but becAuse of the life style and the fact i felt like a prisoner in my own home. I couldnt depend on myself to go out and buy stuff or drive or do anything i was able to do in canada it was very stressful.

I agree. I will never leave Canada as my home. I have a good career and am comfortable here (I have a large family and they're all in the area as well). No matter how much I love my wife, I won't leave this country or quit my career.

A few years ago I was offered a very well paying job by a large US company, as they were trying to woo people from Canada, and I declined for the same reasons. I've never regretted it.

I enjoy travelling, and have done it extensively, but I won't live elsewhere.

 

[mikeymyke]

With regards to being married to spouses living in dangerous countries, if your spouse could never immigrate to Canada due to refusal or medical inadmissibility, etc, now what would you do? Continue a long distance relationship in which you the sponsor, visit your spouse once a year for the next 40 years? If you guys say you love your spouses as much as you claim, there's no way you would leave Canada, but no way you want to live in your spouse's country, so now what do you do? By the way, it's a red flag to a VO if you say you guys never want to live in the applicant's country, but that you will not consider any other country but Canada.

Yes there are spouses who have to take a job long distance away, and many couples do that, but you can't seriously think a couple can do long distance for the rest of their lives and not be able to co habitate long term, eventually. Many couples do the long distance job assignment thing, but that's usually a temporary thing until they are able to plan out where they want to settle down in the future. Im pretty sure that about 99.9% of applicants aren't planning on doing the long distance thing either, because keep in mind, one of the conditions of getting PR is that both parties have to plan on living in Canada together, and also, you're supposed to live together for the first 2 years after landing anyway, or your PR is revoked.

 

[zardoz]

People who are saying you need to live together for 1 year before getting maried are taking an extremely conservative viewpoint. In BC you are legally commonlaw and legally resposible for the other persons debts after only 6 months. BC essentiallys forces you into a marriage-like relationship after only 6 months of living together. So its really bizarre that people would be speaking here about 12 months as being a minimum.

3 months is probably closer to the real minimum. Less than 3 months and you probably arent ready to get married and should consider why you are rushing things. But 12 months, is way too long. By then, the state has already decided the matter for you! As far as the state is concerned you are married (commonlaw) whether you like it or not, love her or not, want to be married or not. It is actually a crime to not consider yourself married (commonlaw) after 12 months, and you have to BY LAW start declaring yourself as such on your tax forms.

Just to clear up something that was left unremarked.

It doesn't matter what any province considers to be common-law. That is totally irrelevant to immigration cases, where the law is very clear. It MUST be for 12 continuous months of cohabitation in a marriage-like relationship.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?q=346&t=14