If you have been residing with a loved one for at least 12 months, you will qualify for Common Law Sponsorship. This means more than simply residing
together or being roommates. Citizenship and Immigration Canada understands that people come from all walks of life with different ideals and ideologies.
That being said, legal or religious marriage may be right for some but not for all.
A Common Law relationship exists when to people cohabitate in a marriage like commitment. This means shared assets, debts, finances, property, exclusivity
etc. Basically speaking, you are essentially a married couple without the formal ceremony. Part of the common law sponsorship application involves signed a
sworn statutory declaration to this effect.
In addition to demonstrating the genuineness of your common law relationship, you will also need to demonstrate the fact that you and your Common Law
Partner have been living together for at least 12 months.
Cohabitation
Demonstrating that you and your partner exist in a genuine and bona fide relationship, or marriage like commitment, also involves demonstrating that you
have resided together at the same address for at least a period of one year.
You can demonstrate this by submitting such documents as:
- Joint bills;
- Joint Accounts;
- Joint property ownership or rental agreements;
- Other documents that show both your names and address.
By providing documents such as those above, you can demonstrate that you have been living together over a period of time based on the dates of said
documents. Be sure that you show documents that
Genuineness
When it comes to sponsorship applications, whether it be common law, spousal or conjugal – the genuineness of the relationship is always a factor that
needs to be demonstrated. That being said, part of the application is proving to an Immigration Officer that your relationship is a real one and not for
the purposes of immigration. Many people enter into false arrangements to obtain status in Canada. These relationships are called relationships of
convenience and are not considered to be genuine as well as a misrepresentation.
If you do not convince an officer that your relationship is true, you will not be successful in your application. To that effect, you should submit
documents that demonstrate that you are in a loving and committed relationship.
Documents like:
- Correspondence;
- Love letters;
- Phone Records;
- Gift Receipts;
- Proof of travel or events attended; etc.
These documents will attest to the loving nature of your relationship especially if you can provide them over a period of time.
If you are interested in sponsoring your common law partner, contact Akrami & Associates so that we can compile the strongest possible application for
you. Processing times on sponsorship applications are extensive, so be sure you get the job done right the first time around.
Feel free to contact us at info@thevisa.ca or by calling us at 1-416-477-2545 for help with Sponsoring a Common Law Partner.
