the CanadaVisa Team - 20 July, 2015
On February 18, 2005 the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration announced that spouses and common-law partners in a genuine relationship with a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, regardless of immigration status, are able to apply for permanent residence status while remaining in Canada.
The former policy required the spouse or common-law partner of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to have valid temporary immigration status in Canada if they wished to apply from inside the country.