Visa extension/conjugal sponsorship

[MidMatt]

Upon entering Canada this time I was given a visitor record which expires in October as I had already been in Canada for 5 months earlier in the year. I told the immigration officers at customs that it was our intention to apply under common law status by achieving a year living together. He told me we should apply for conjugal as he couldn't allow me to come in for another 6 months (as I'd requested on my entry form) as he said I'd technically be living here to all intents and purposes and not going about applying for permanent residence. So he gave me a two month visitor record and told me we should apply under the conjugal. I am applying online to try to extend my stay now.

My questions are:
Should we send in the conjugal sponsorship application now (it is virtually complete and ready to go) or should we wait until finding out if my extension is allowed as if it is this gives us a chance of achieving the common-law qualification and applying that way which appears to be a 'safer' method from reading these forums.

However would putting the payment receipt of the conjugal application in my online visitor extension help the decision to let me stay in the country?

Also regarding the online application it has requested just proof of financial and passport page copies. Should I be sending them anything else to back up the relationship or not?

My concern is also that a factor in getting an extension seems to be the immigration officer being content that you will return to the UK at the end of the extension. If I am putting in the application the honest facts that we want to live together in Canada and are applying to do so then isn't this a contradiction?

 

[elkan]

I find it to be a contradiction. My partner were hoping to achieve the same thing, he arrived her in January to "visit" (because technically you cannot live here, that's what my member of parliament said) and he was also issued a Visitor Record saying that they didn't believe he was going to leave. Since we couldn't fulfill the common law status, we also went the conjugal route.

But to answer your question in terms of evidence to submit. I just sent in our conjugal sponsorship application this past weekend. We had to prove that we had a shared commitment together, and that we are in a marriage like relationship where we are interdependent financially, physically, socially, and emotionally. We submitted: bank statements showing withdrawls in the USA while I was there and he was unemployed/ recovering from surgery, letters from credit card companies showing joint accounts, beneficiary designations, skype call history for last 6 months, phone bills, 3 notarized letters from family and 15 emails/letters from friends and families on both sides talking about our relationship, pictures that show a growth in our relationship over the last year, emails from when we met and time apart, emails discussing the purchase of big ticket items like furniture, and included emails where I sent my partner links for apartment rentals with 6 month leases while he was in the US (prior to getting his Visitor Record)etc....

I made sure we included evidence for each section (financial, physical, social, emotional interdependence). To see the list, take a look at how they assess conjugal partners in the OP2 Manual:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/manuals/op/op02-eng.pdf

A member on the forum also suggested that my partner and I write a letter, so we did a joint testimonial that also talks about our interdependence on each other and our shared life together. That was 7 pages long.

Hope this helps and that I answered at least one of your questions....

Good luck!

 

[MidMatt]

Thanks for the useful advice Elkan, much appreciated. The best of luck with your application it seems to have everything there. Did you or have you applied for an extension?

 

[matthewc]

It your plan is to have a long-term visit, it can help a great deal if the Canadian partner (would be sponsor) is there with the foreign national when they enter. If it's a Canadian there requesting a FN be let in for 6 months, anecdotal evidence at least suggests they're more forthcoming, and less likely to limit your stay.

Sorry to have to say this, but telling the IO up front that you want to be a visitor for 6 months so you can qualify as common-law then apply for PR is really asking for trouble. It raises a whole load of red flags. When entering as a visitor, it's always best to avoid mentioning plans to apply for PR unless they ask, and even then, make it clear you're just visiting for now.

I got very lucky with this once myself, but I had the benefit of having my partner right there with me. We already qualified as common-law at the time I was asking for a 6 month entry, so it's not quite the same.

http://roadtocanada.com/forums/showthread.php?tid=77

 

[elkan]

We opted not to extend the Visitor Record, and he returned the US about 6 months ago. Instead, I'm providing proof of 2 short visits, and one 2 month visit of me going south of the border. The IO at the port of entry (once she believed he wasn't intending to stay and issued the Visitor Record) was pretty frank with us. She basically told my partner that if he didn't have a job to go back to that was permanent, nor a permanent address (he's been a vagabond the last 4 years traveling the world) that it might be difficult to get the extension, so we didn't even bother trying. The fact that he didn't even try for an extension, I'm wondering might be something IO's processing our case will wonder about, but we did address and justify it in our letter.

However, from the looks of it in this forum, a lot of people ride out the process in Canada. My partner will be returning to Canada mid-December to visit and wait the process out. Hopefully, it's favourable. If not, living across the border in Buffalo will be our alternative until we appeal.

 

[MidMatt]

Thanks for the info MatthewC.


Elkan, I'm sure it won't hinder the application as you seem to have sent everything they'll need to see it's genuine. I figured that applying for the extension will be worth it because if they agree it then that will be excellent but even if they say no then that surely will only help the conjugal application as it's proving we cannot live together for the year to apply as common-law.


Could someone just confirm this 'implied status' also takes effect when the visa extension application is in. I will be legally ok to stay in the country beyond the date on my passport until they make their decision as I have applied to extend my stay?

 

[BeShoo]

Once you have applied for an extension to your stay, you are legal (under implied status) until you find out whether the extension is granted or not.

I'm sure you already know, but just to be clear, merely sending in a PR application does nothing towards extending your stay and you won't be able to stay past the date when your passport expires.

 

[AllisonVSC]

Upon entering Canada this time I was given a visitor record which expires in October as I had already been in Canada for 5 months earlier in the year. I told the immigration officers at customs that it was our intention to apply under common law status by achieving a year living together. He told me we should apply for conjugal as he couldn't allow me to come in for another 6 months (as I'd requested on my entry form) as he said I'd technically be living here to all intents and purposes and not going about applying for permanent residence. So he gave me a two month visitor record and told me we should apply under the conjugal. I am applying online to try to extend my stay now.

My questions are:
Should we send in the conjugal sponsorship application now (it is virtually complete and ready to go) or should we wait until finding out if my extension is allowed as if it is this gives us a chance of achieving the common-law qualification and applying that way which appears to be a 'safer' method from reading these forums.

However would putting the payment receipt of the conjugal application in my online visitor extension help the decision to let me stay in the country?

Also regarding the online application it has requested just proof of financial and passport page copies. Should I be sending them anything else to back up the relationship or not?

My concern is also that a factor in getting an extension seems to be the immigration officer being content that you will return to the UK at the end of the extension. If I am putting in the application the honest facts that we want to live together in Canada and are applying to do so then isn't this a contradiction?

I suggest that you pay the application PR application fees and send a copy of the receipt with your extension application if you haven't already submitted it. It seems from your post that not pursuing the PR app was a concern for the officer in allowing you a 6 month stay. Then I think you can choose when you send your conjugal PR app and if you get the extension you might choose common law instead.

 

[MidMatt]

If we pay the application fees now is their a time limit on getting the application to the processing office? If I am allowed to extend my stay then it will still be a few months until we can apply as common-law so I'm wondering if by doing that we'll end up having to pay again?

 

[matthewc]

There's no time limit. You can pay the fees well in advance of applying.

 

[MidMatt]

Ok thanks for the info.

 

[MidMatt]

Received a new visitor record today approving the year extension

 

[BeShoo]

Received a new visitor record today approving the year extension

It seems not too long ago that you were asking for advice on that. You submitted electronically? When did you submit? It seems very fast, considering that CIC was giving a processing time of 95 last I checked. I think that online processing is faster, but I wonder how much since we just submitted one.

 

[MidMatt]

Yes I submitted it online. The letter was dated Nov 6th, so it took, let's see, 47 days. All I received in the envelope was the visitor record, no covering letter or anything else. Good luck with yours BeShoo.

 

[kerianne]

If you don't already have a visitor record, can you still apply for one online?