ghunter said:
Hello!
My Scottish boyfriend and I are looking to apply for the common law visa as soon as possible. We have lived together for roughly 2.5 years (2 in Scotland, 6 months in Canada for far).
He is currently on a one year visa (expires in September), so are we meant to apply Outland? Considering the lengthy processing times, would he be required to go home for however many months past September this application process goes for?
Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks!
Hey!
Welcome to the forum! I suggest you read the first post from Leon called "spousal sponsorship" - no the whole thread, just the first page - it will give you an idea.
But in general: you can choose to apply inland, or outland. Even if you are in Canada, you don't have to apply inland, and there are very few advantages for visa-exempt nationals to applying inland.
What type of visa is your partner on? If it's an IEC, he won't be able to work even if he applies inland, as you only get implied status if you have a visa that is extendable.
Most likely, unless you have some special circumstances, your best bet is to apply outland. Stage 1 is pretty quick, ( it says 55 days on the website but a lot of people are done much faster than that), and London is a bit unpredictable. 80% of cases are done in 9 months, but quite a few are done a lot faster than that.
Depending on how far on your application you are ( I take it tht you haven't started), it can take somewhere between 2 to 4 weeks to get everything together. You still have plenty of time, and might be done in September already. If the PR has not come through by the time your bf's visa expires, he can apply for a change of status, and go from a working visa, to a visitor visa - he won't be allowed to work, and won't be covered for healthcare in a lot of provinces, but he can stay in Canada and wait for the PR to come through.
Inland : doesn't really make sense for you because he can stay on a visitor visa no matter what, he won't get an extension on his work permit, it will take more time, and he is also not allowed to leave Canada for the whole length of the application ( currently 14 months). So outland is probably the way to go.
Good luck,
Sweden