Canadian Immigration provides Canadian Citizens and permanent residents with the opportunity to sponsor their spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner to obtain permanent resident status. The Canadian citizen / permanent resident must secure approval from IRCC for the sponsoring their spouse. In order to obtain the approval, both the parties must demonstrate to IRCC that their relationship falls under either of the categories i.e, spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner.
For the purpose of family sponsorship the spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner must be at least 18 years old and in case of:
· A spouse needs to be legally married to a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
· A common-law partner is on who is not legal married but has been with living together with the Canadian citizen or permanent resident for at least 12 consecutive months; and
· A conjugal partner is not legally married to Canadian citizen or permanent resident, is residing outside of Canada and is unable to get married for reasons such as cultural, religious, or legal reasons. The recognition as a conjugal partnership is at the discretion of IRCC.
In order to be a sponsor, the Canadian citizen or permanent resident must be at least 18 years old, residing in Canada, demonstrate that they are not receiving social assistance except for the reason of disability, and demonstrate that they can provide for the financial needs of the person they intend to sponsor. In the event that the Canadian citizen is residing outside of Canada at the time of application, they must also demonstrate that they intend to reside in Canada once their partner becomes a permanent resident.