17 and expecting !

[RowanJean]

I am 17 and expecting a son in April with my fiance from Alaska who just turned 20. It seems nearly impossible for him to be able to be here permanently! My mom has agreed to consent to us getting married, but even with that it states he can't live here because I am not able to sponsor him because I am not 18. Are there any loopoles or ways around any of this? Does it not matter to either governments that we have a baby together?

[Leon]

If you were married and he applied for a visitor record to stay longer based on being married and having a baby, he might be allowed to but he would not be able to work.  Unless you can afford that, it might be a better solution for now that he stays in the US and visits a lot and once you are 18, you can sponsor him.

[RowanJean]

Well my mom was talking to me earlier after I posted this and she was saying since him and I are married, it technically makes them family, and she isnt sure if she could sponsor him for me since I cant. It doesnt make sure that on the site it says that you are not eligible if you are UNDER 16, but then it says you can't sponsor them if you are under 18. It makes no sense and we have tried to call the consulate so many times and we just get told they can't help us there and give us places to call that never pick up and never call back when we leave voicemails.

[Leon]

Your mom can not sponsor him for you.  If you look at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/spouse-apply-who.asp it says that to be a sponsor, you must be 18 or older.

The place you should call is the CIC call centre, http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/contacts/index.asp#callcentre

You have to pick through the first couple of questions on the menu and then press 0 to get a person.  Sometimes they are busy and you can't get through but then you try a couple of hours later.

[mayasita]

Not sure when you turn 18, but getting married, having a baby, preparing a sponsorship and getting together the funds to send it off (1000+) could very well take some time... It's taking some people 12+weeks to get FBI reports back and sometimes they come back inconclusive due to poor fingerprints and need to be redone... He will need to get a special medical and the two of you will need to gather and organize your relationship evidence (including your Childs bc since they will probably be born before you can get everything together../ heck all the things you need to do, you very well could be 18 before you apply even if the rule didn't exist... But it does

And the only real way your mother could sponsor him on a reasonably fast track would be as a dependent SON (not son in law) which would involve her adopting him and him being your brother... Ewwww!

Good luck and Congrats.. Lots of changes and hard work ahead sounds like you are very lucky to have the support of your family!

[mayasita]

Just thought further into this... IF you work, you can collect your maternity benefits (providing you have worked enough and these are available to a 17 year old) from the US while you wait to turn 18... That way you can be together (providing your other half works and can help make ends meet... It's not much but it would give you the opportunity to spend the time as a family...

Remember, even after you turn 18 and you get your paperwork in, he still can't work until the visa is granted which is about 3-4 months (average could be more) outland and 9+ months (for a work permit, 12-18m for PR I believe inland)..  This immigration stuff isn't a quick and easy answer to your situation... Regardless (and probably because of) your age, you've left things until a very late stage in the game if you really wanted to be together legally in Canada... Just sayin...

[canadianwoman]

It doesnt make sure that on the site it says that you are not eligible if you are UNDER 16, but then it says you can't sponsor them if you are under 18. It makes no sense ...

The applicant cannot be under 16. The sponsor cannot be under 18.

[RowanJean]

Well I suppose I didnt expect this to seem nearly impossible! Once our son is born because of my government I get $477 a month for him, plus my dad committed suicide and i receive about $250 a month. We could make it by with the help of my mom which she will help, we just don't have any idea what the easiest way to go around this is. In Canada the graduating system for high school is so much harder than in Alaska, you only need 21 credits to graduate there vs. at least 30 here. My fiance does have his high school diploma and we figured getting him into school would be the easiest way for him to stay here while we go through the process, BUT little did we know the school he got accepted to does not have financial aid for international students. We are going to put in an application for the University of Western Ontario and give it a shot, alothough I dont feel university is an option because he did not have very good grades when he graduated and the amount of credits needed is so different. I figured there had to be a loopole considering it says the applicant cant be under 16 (obviously because 16 is the age you can marry with parental consent) but the sponsor can not be under 18, so I guess at 17 that leaves me hanging and i'll have to wait 'til Im 18! Thank you for all the help everyone, let me know if there is anymore information you can give since I know absolutely nothing and everytime I try to call anymore they are of no help at all!