Question about sponsoring a U.S. citizen

[o6ocpaka]

Hello forum, I am a newbie and was wondering if someone could answer a few questions.


I am a Canadian Citizen and recently married a U.S. citizen in Ontario (we are currently waiting for marriage certificate). She has entered Canada as a visitor in June but now she is living with me. I have a good paying full time job, no criminal convictions etc, fully eligible sponsor. We are planning to submit Sponsorship PR application from inside of Canada as soon as we get our Marriage Certificate.
On the Canadian government immigration site it says that legal status is not required if a spouse of a Canadian Citizen planning/in process to become a Sponsored PR, and application can be filed from inside of Canada while she is living with me.

cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/5289ETOC.asp
"Spouses and common‑law partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents in Canada who wish to apply for permanent resident status are no longer required to have legal immigration status provided that they have an eligible sponsor. All other eligibility requirements continue to apply."

But on the same page they ask for:

Immigration document confirming your status in Canada
Examples:
visitor visa,
study permit,
work permit,
temporary resident permit (TRP),
document proving that you have legal status in Canada.


Here is where I am not sure what to make of it. I am wondering if we need to extend her visitor status or not once the 180 day U.S. citizen visitor limit runs out. In her passport she only has the date of entry to Canada, there is nothing about when she needs to leave.

If anyone could shed some light on this it would be awesome.
Thank you

 

[Rob_TO]

Step 1 - Forget about the inland application. Don't even consider it.

Step 2 - Prepare an OUTLAND application. Package is here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/fc.asp . If you read the inland guide, it actually recommends people do outland instead.

While the OUTLAND app is processing, have your wife just apply for extension to her visitor status when it's nearing expiry. Many people have gotten 6-12 months extensions easily.

Outland app processed through CPC-Ottawa, should take around 8 or so months to complete and get her full PR status. Meanwhile inland applicants are waiting 13 months just for first stage approval.

 

[keesio]

We are planning to submit Sponsorship PR application from inside of Canada as soon as we get our Marriage Certificate.

OUTLAND all the way. Check out some of these recent timelines:
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/us-outland-applicants-thread-t106068.0.html;msg3495783#msg3495783

 

[o6ocpaka]

Thanks for your reply Rob. I have looked at the extension application before and you have to specify the date when she is planning to leave, but the thing is she is not planning to leave. What do you normally put there, or do you just put random date to get 6-12 month extension?

 

[o6ocpaka]

OUTLAND all the way. Check out some of these recent timelines:

If I do it outland can she still live with me in Canada while we are waiting? Thanks

 

[Rob_TO]

Thanks for your reply Rob. I have looked at the extension application before and you have to specify the date when she is planning to leave, but the thing is she is not planning to leave. What do you normally put there, or do you just put random date to get 6-12 month extension?

Pretty much. You can request a date 6 or 12 months later, but it's not a commitment, and you can keep applying to extend each time the date nears.

Considering how quickly outland apps are for US citizens, you should not need to request an extension more than once.

And yes, she can stay in Canada while the outland app is processing. Countless people have done this, and as I said CIC guide for inland even recommends people in Canada do outland instead for quicker processing.

 

[Kayaker]

If she is a U.S. citizen, I think everyone on this forum will advise you against filing an application "inland".

You do not need to be outside of Canada when you apply Outland - she can still be with you, visiting Canada, when you file her application. All you have to do is indicate on the application forms that she is applying outland, not inland. (I don't know which specific visa office it should be, maybe someone else can say.)

Outland applicants from the U.S. often get PR in a few months - I believe there are quite a few U.S. applicants (outland) who applied earlier this year and already got PR and are in Canada. If you apply inland - lots of people who applied in July 2013 are Still waiting for the stage 1 approval (after which they can get OWP etc.). There seems to be a huge backlog and the processing time is growing. Also, remember that if she is applying inland, she cannot leave Canada, even for emergencies, without risking losing her whole application.

I don't think there is any reason why a U.S. spouse would apply Inland now. There is no benefit, a longer wait time, and travel restrictions. If she applies outland soon, she can stay with you as a visitor (as long as she extends her visitor status) while she waits and she may get PR early next year. She can go on vacations, or visit her family and friends back home. If she applies Inland, she will not be able to leave Canada, will not have healthcare or a work permit until late 2015, and maybe she will get PR some time in 2016.


If there is no date on her passport (other than date of entry) it means she can stay for 6 months. Before those 6 months run out, she should apply to extend her stay. This can and should be done online - it's faster. It costs 100$ and all she needs to do is to fill out the online forms, and upload proof of having enough funds for her stay. It usually takes about a month, and they mail you a document that says visitor's record. I extended mine for a year.

 

[o6ocpaka]

Thanks Kayaker, that's what I will probably do. Is OK to be open about that we are going for PR in the extension application? I believe it asks for a reason. Just wondering if its something they may not like.
I guess normally it goes pretty smooth for U.S. citizens?

 

[MizAngel]

When my husband applied for his visitor extension, we wrote a letter saying that he wanted to extend his visit so he could stay with me while his PR application was in process. He got a 6 month extension with no problem.

We applied outland this past February and my husband landed at the end of August. We had no issues other than having to send in a few things we forgot and having to pay one of the fees that we couldn't afford at the time we applied.

 

[Kayaker]

Yes, I explained that I want to wait for PR with my husband in Canada, and asked for an extension of a year. I got it, no extra questions asked.

You might as well ask for a year, even if you don't think you need it. There's absolutely no harm in asking, and they might give you a year, or give you a bit less... no harm either way.

 

[o6ocpaka]

Cool, thanks a lot for all your repsonses guys, things a bit more clear now

 

[o6ocpaka]

There is an option to apply online for extension but it does not take you anywhere, I wonder if there is something missing on their website right now. Or maybe it falls under applying for Visa?
cic.gc.ca/english/my_application/apply_online.asp

 

[Kayaker]

yes, click on the visitor visa part.

it should eventually take you to a questionnaire where you fill out stuff like where you're from, DOB, etc. Your wife should indicate that she is currently in Canada (right?) and that she wants to be a visitor for longer than 6 months. (I think that's how it went)

eventually after all the questions it will conclude that she is either eligible for family sponsorship (let's leave that aside for now) or extending her stay. (click on that)