What is sponsorship?
One of the hardest things in life for many, is too be apart from their significant other. The distance between them feeling as far as the time apart is long. But there are alternatives for those with Canadian citizenship or Permanent Residency. We are in fact talking about spousal sponsorship.
First let’s start with what spousal sponsorship means in Canada.
Spousal sponsorship is a program in which an individual may sponsor a significant other for immigration into Canada. You can apply for sponsoring your spouse if you are married, in a common law relationship or have a conjugal partner. This can either be done from within the country or from the nearest Canadian immigration office or consulate. However, outside of Canada processing times are dependent on the local visa office. The sponsor can not be on welfare or recently have been on welfare. If you have been sponsored or sponsored someone in the past there is a 5-year waiting period for a new spousal sponsorship.
Challenges to consider
Due to Covid-19, changes have also been made to wait time. The Government of Canada’s website state that “if documents or other necessary information is delayed it will extend the deadline for applicants by 90 days “. This delay comes at a time when many Canadian citizens are trying to re-enter the country. Repatriating citizens comes at a cost of man hours and has slowed these processes. It’s a good idea to keep this in mind when apply. Every mistake can push the time frame forward month, making the wait that much more difficult.
However, mistakes in these applications can be relatively commonplace. Each application can total up to 9 document, some 54 odd pages. All this of course surrounding the circumstances of each individual spousal sponsorship. Included are things like application to sponsor, financial evaluation, and a schedule A – background check. This being said, some forms are country and case specific. This process may be subject to change depending on factors such as country of origin, number of dependents and immigration status.
There are also new and ever-changing fees involved. For this first time since 2002 the Canadian Government has increased the fees involved in this process. These fees have increased due to inflation and will increase every two years effective April 30th, 2020. Fees for the government review of applications at the moment sits around $550 (case specific). However the Canadian Government assures that, “In most cases, Canada’s fees are considerably less expensive than countries with similar migration systems, such as Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States”.
Reliable alternative
The application process can be a daunting task, but there are alternative to doing this yourself. Canada has many immigration lawyers that can organize and fill out all application forms required for this process. Although this does not necessarily mean that the application will be processed faster, it does mean that it’s less likely to be sent back. In a sense, by doing this the risk of the application timeline being extended is greatly reduced.
To find out more about spousal sponsorship’s, or to ask us any other questions, you can contact us by clicking the link.