Spouse sponsorship - Complicated case

[sinwise]

Hi all,

I am married to a Canadian Citizen and my wife intents to sponsor me to become a PR in Canada.
The only difficulty in my case is that my wife and I are not sure when we'll be going to live in Canada.
It can be right after receiving the reply from CIC (according to my visa office, it takes about 10 months) or it can be in 3 or 4 years time... Basically, we need to continue to care for our elderly parents in my home country (my wife holds dual citizenship) and we don't know when both of us will be able to find jobs in Canada as well...

With this uncertainty, my wife and I would like then to start a sponsorship procedure right now so that we can leave for Canada basically whenever we want. Do you think that's okay?

If yes, I just have a couple of questions:
- I know that the sponsored person receives at first a one-time entry visa to Canada, which is valid only for a short period. May I land in Canada while that visa is valid, request my PR card and leave after a few days? I can request CIC to mail my PR card to a friend based in Canada if that is okay.
- Also, I know that to maintain PR, one needs to stay at least 2 years within a 5 year window. If for example, we were to immigrate to Canada after being a PR for 4 years, would that mean that my PR risks not being renewed? Or may I use the fact that my Canadian wife was working outside Canada as a valid reason to renew my PR?
- Finally, what if my PR card expires while I am outside Canada. Would that mean that I need to start a new sponsorship procedure or can I just renew it from abroad?

Thanks everyone for your help!

 

[Rob_TO]

If you are honest with CIC in that you may not actually move to Canada until 3-4 years later, then your PR application will almost certainly be rejected.

Part of the PR app is proving your intent for you and your spouse to move to Canada permanently after you get PR status. You might want to hold off on applying until you are more certain of when you actually want to move and reside in Canada.

To answer your other questions, yes it's ok to land as PR and have your card mailed to a friend, and also it's ok to live outside Canada if you are living with your Canadian citizen sponsor as in that case you don't have to worry about meeting eligibility requirements.

 

[Kayaker]

- I know that the sponsored person receives at first a one-time entry visa to Canada, which is valid only for a short period. May I land in Canada while that visa is valid, request my PR card and leave after a few days? I can request CIC to mail my PR card to a friend based in Canada if that is okay.
- Also, I know that to maintain PR, one needs to stay at least 2 years within a 5 year window. If for example, we were to immigrate to Canada after being a PR for 4 years, would that mean that my PR risks not being renewed? Or may I use the fact that my Canadian wife was working outside Canada as a valid reason to renew my PR?
- Finally, what if my PR card expires while I am outside Canada. Would that mean that I need to start a new sponsorship procedure or can I just renew it from abroad?

- you could land and leave Canada.
- If you then stayed out of Canada for 4 years, you lose your PR.
- Expiration of PR card does not mean you lose PR status.

Also, as Rob_TO says, if your wife cannot convince CIC that she intends to move to Canada when the PR comes through, there is no chance of getting PR. She would have to send them proof, such as a job offer, lease or a purchase of a home, or at the very least, substantial proof of searching for a job and housing, such as emailing employers and real estate agents.

On the forums I've seen some people with otherwise perfectly straightforward applications have trouble convincing CIC that the couple really do intend to move to Canada. Perhaps you could wait a year or so and see. If the "processing time" for your visa office is 10 months, it will likely take much less. (The 10 months is what it takes to process most (80%) applications.)

 

[zardoz]

- you could land and leave Canada.
- If you then stayed out of Canada for 4 years, you lose your PR.
- Expiration of PR card does not mean you lose PR status.

In this particular case, the Canadian spouse protects the PR, as long as they are accompanying each other outside Canada.

 

[Kayaker]

In this particular case, the Canadian spouse protects the PR, as long as they are accompanying each other outside Canada.

ah, that's true.

So then the main problem is to convince CIC that his wife is moving back to Canada, even though she might not have plans yet.

 

[sinwise]

Thanks all for your replies
Yes, exactly Kayaker. But, beyond that, I am afraid CIC notices that I didn't establish in Canada right from the start and makes me loose my PR when the time will come for me to renew it (although my wife is supposed to protect me). Anyone has an input on this?

I agree that this whole situation seems complicated. But, technically, my wife and I may want to establish ourselves in Canada starting next year, so I'm inclined to start a PR app right now and see how it goes...

 

[truesmile]

Your wife doesn't even hafta be "working" outside Canada. You just hafta be wherever she is, and the time counts towards meeting residency obligations. If your PR card were to expire outside Canada you would simply apply for PRTD (PR Travel Document) abroad.

That is, "after" you have landed.

 

[sinwise]

Perfect, thanks for all these inputs guys!