JensenH431 said:
My wife is attempting to sponsor me (a US Citizen), I lived in Canada for 10 yrs, however, I could not apply for the initial 5 and received processes on how to sponsor past my permit expiration dates. I am now stateside & am curious if she can sponsor me, but she is not working right now...I do support them when I can & she gets $$ from the gov't (not Social Assistance). The requirements as that she must bear the financial responsibility concerning...but also states in case of I/we have dependents being sponsored as well? Also, being that I live stateside would we be able to apply for open work permit (OWP) w/PR or do I have to reside w/in Canada for OWP? I unfortunately can't apply w/Provincial Nomination due to us being married, don't qualify as a Skilled Worker as most jobs in Canada require Certification/Education concerning job. Any information concerning would be greatly helpful...
It is not required for a sponsor to be employed and there is no income requirement. Many sponsors are successfully approved without an income. The sponsor can't have filed for bankruptcy or collected welfare. IT is perfectly acceptable if you are the sole breadwinner. All you need to do is show CIC how you will manage financially once approved. People show proof of savings, provide letters of support from family, or show employment proof for the applicant (if they are already working in canada), etc. There are many ways to show this in an application, so don't worry... sponsors are rarely rejected.
You will want to submit an OUTLAND application for spousal sponsorship. Since you are living in the states, it's your only option. Outland applicants are not eligible for an OWP. However, US citizens are seeing a very quick process right now - 2-4 months TOTAL, so it really isn't that big of an issue. US outland applications are processed in Ottawa. you can enter canada as a visitor while your applicaiton processes and stay there until approved if you like. You will not be able to work until approved for PR.
Yes, to qualify for an OWP, you would need to be living in Canada and apply "Inland". US citizens should NOT apply inland because it takes 2+ years to be approved, opposed to the 2-6 months it takes through outland. A person can be IN canada and still apply outland. For most current us applicants, they could be totally approved as an outland applicant in about the same time or LESS than an inland applicant would get the OWP.
The financial requirement for sponsors means they are agreeing to be financially responsible for the PR for 3 years after landing. This doesn't mean your wife has to be the sole bread winner. This basically means if you end up filing for welfare, she will be on the hook to pay canada back.
Again, APPLY OUTLAND. The sooner you get in your application, the higher chance you'll see the super quick processing currently trending.