Spousal sponsorship when one has violent crime convinction

[elexis969]

Hi guys,

Me and my partner are in a very complicated situation and I don’t even know where to begin.

I am a Permanent resident of Canada, my partner originates from Mexico. In 2015 before we met he got into a bar fight when studying abroad in Spain. He had his passport taken away and spent 2 days in jail. They then released him and fined him 450 euros and returned his passport. He was under the impression the matter was resolved because of the fine. He returned to Mexico on his flight that was booked prior to the fight.
He had entered Europe several times since 2015 with no problems however in 2019 he was detained in Norway on his way to Poland and informed that he was wanted in Spain because of the fight. It was the first we knew anything about it, they had all his info (email, number, address ect) and we had received no contact from anyone.
He was returned to Spain and sentenced to 15 months in prison which he served and was released in November 2021.
He currently resides in the USA for work (but is not a permanent resident) and we have been doing long distance with me visiting him because we don’t want to risk him entering Canada until we have all the facts as obviously violent crimes are taken very seriously (as they should).
We want to get married and start a family, but I want to stay in Canada, I’m not moving to Mexico for multiple reasons and I can’t stay in america with him.
I’ve seen a few things where Canada “forgives” crimes after a certain amount of time (5 -10 years is my understanding), but unfortunately that starts when the prison sentence ends…. So even though the crime was committed 7 years ago, his sentence didn’t end till nov 2021.
I know he sounds like an absolute shady POS, but he really is a wonderful person. He had never got into any trouble in Mexico and has a clean record there, nor has he gotten into trouble since that night - it was just a really stupid thing he got himself into.
He voluntarily stayed in Spain after his sentence for a year to translate for refugees ect for the church, he wasn’t barred from Spain even though that was an option for them to do….

Is there anything we can do? I’m so lost, I keep researching but it just confuses me even more. Do you think there is any hope he can come live here with me?

 

[GyanLula]

Thanks for sharing your story. I don't know the answers to your questions. All I can say is I suggest you contact a lawyer. They know best. Take everything you read on here with a grain of salt. Also, you don't need to explain to anyone who and what your partner is really like. Not all criminals are bad people.

 

[scylla]

Hi guys,

Me and my partner are in a very complicated situation and I don’t even know where to begin.

I am a Permanent resident of Canada, my partner originates from Mexico. In 2015 before we met he got into a bar fight when studying abroad in Spain. He had his passport taken away and spent 2 days in jail. They then released him and fined him 450 euros and returned his passport. He was under the impression the matter was resolved because of the fine. He returned to Mexico on his flight that was booked prior to the fight.
He had entered Europe several times since 2015 with no problems however in 2019 he was detained in Norway on his way to Poland and informed that he was wanted in Spain because of the fight. It was the first we knew anything about it, they had all his info (email, number, address ect) and we had received no contact from anyone.
He was returned to Spain and sentenced to 15 months in prison which he served and was released in November 2021.
He currently resides in the USA for work (but is not a permanent resident) and we have been doing long distance with me visiting him because we don’t want to risk him entering Canada until we have all the facts as obviously violent crimes are taken very seriously (as they should).
We want to get married and start a family, but I want to stay in Canada, I’m not moving to Mexico for multiple reasons and I can’t stay in america with him.
I’ve seen a few things where Canada “forgives” crimes after a certain amount of time (5 -10 years is my understanding), but unfortunately that starts when the prison sentence ends…. So even though the crime was committed 7 years ago, his sentence didn’t end till nov 2021.
I know he sounds like an absolute shady POS, but he really is a wonderful person. He had never got into any trouble in Mexico and has a clean record there, nor has he gotten into trouble since that night - it was just a really stupid thing he got himself into.
He voluntarily stayed in Spain after his sentence for a year to translate for refugees ect for the church, he wasn’t barred from Spain even though that was an option for them to do….

Is there anything we can do? I’m so lost, I keep researching but it just confuses me even more. Do you think there is any hope he can come live here with me?

The short answer is that it's going to be 5+ years before he can come to Canada in any capacity. He cannot enter Canada at this time. So unfortunately you'll need to be prepared to live with him somewhere else until entry to Canada is possible.

He will need to submit a rehabilitation application to Canada once 5 years have passed since he completed the prison sentence. So the eariest he can submit that application will be November 2026. It can take anywhere from a few months to over a year for the rehab application to be processed. Once the rehab application is approved, he can then apply to come to Canada either as a visitor through an eTA or you can sponsor him for permanent residency assuming you are either married or common law at that time.

EDIT: The only way he could request a visa to enter Canada before rehabilitation is approved would be through a TRP (temporary resident permit - this is different than a regular TRV or tourist visa). An approved TRP allows someone who is otherwise inadmissible to enter Canada. He can certainly try this however TRPs are generally very difficult to get and you must have exceptional circumstances to be approved.

EDIT #2: What kind of work permit does he hold in the US? If you get married, then it may be possible for you to get a visa that will allow you to live in the US through him.

 

[canuck78]

Very surprised that he’s not faced any issues entering the US.