UK to Canada - Advice to clear up mixed messages!

[Infamy]

Hello everyone, I would just like to ask a few questions to perhaps iron out some conflicting information that I have obtained over the last few weeks.

I am a Canadian Citizen (Born in Toronto) and I hold Indefinite Leave to Remain (PR) in the UK and have done since 1998. I will be naturalizing as a British Citizen this year; however my wife who is an Indian National but also a resident of the United Kingdom have been contemplating moving to Canada. In regards to sponsoring my wife to join me in Canada I have received some conflicting information:

1) I have been told that I need to reside in Canada and be earning a certain minimum income in order to sponsor my wife; however I have seen from browsing forums such as this one that I do not need to be in Canada first and I am exempt from the minimum income requirement for a spousal PR application. Which is correct?

2) I have been told that the application would have to be made through the Indian Visa Office as my wife still holds Indian Nationality (she will be eligible for British Citizenship in 2014). I have seen that people seem to apply from their country of residence and not necessarily nationality from browsing these forums. Which is correct?

Finally, if I am able to apply from the UK (as I have no intention of going to Canada on my own and possibly waiting months or years for my wife to join me) what do I need to prove in order to be deemed an appropriate sponsor? Will my income in the UK be considered? Qualifications? Same for my wife's Income and Qualifications?

I appreciate that these are a lot of questions but I would appreciate any and all help in clarifying these points. Thanks in advance!

[scylla]

1) You can apply from the UK as a Canadian citizen (if you were a Canadian PR, you would have to be in Canada to apply). You must include proof in the application that you plan to re-establish yourself in Canada once your wife is granted PR status. There are no minimum income requirements for spousal sponsorship, but you must include proof of your UK earnings / income in your application.

2) Your wife can apply through London.

[Infamy]

Thank you very much for your quick reply.

From what I see this would be an outland application, correct?

So I would first have my assessment as a sponsor completed and then my wife would be assessed. This seems to be about 56 days for my assessment and 7 months for hers. So am I correct in thinking that, if successful, the time-frame from application to PR is about 10 months or are there any other formalities that need to be completed afterward?

[scylla]

Yes - it would be an outland application.

The 7 months for stage two is not an average. It's how long they took them to complete the processing for 80% of applications. This means that a significant number of people get through this stage faster - in some cases much faster.

[Infamy]

Ah, excellent news!

In that case thanks again for your insight. I'm sure I will be frequenting this forum once I start the process sometime later this year.

The main things that I need to provide for this to be successful are for Stage 1:

- Evidence of my ability to sponsor my wife without any recourse to public resources in Canada (however there is no income requirement, which is still a bit confusing!)
- Evidence of my intent to re-establish myself in Canada once she is granted PR and we land in Canada (I'm assuming we will have to land together?)

And for Stage 2:

- Evidence of the genuine and subsisting nature of our marriage
- Evidence of my wife's ability to contribute to society in Canada (she is highly qualified in her field so that shouldn't be difficult)
- Evidence of my wife's English Speaking ability? Even though she's a UK resident will this be required as she is an Indian National (she's obviously satisfied the UK Border Agency previously and earned her degree at a UK university before we were married)

Is there anything else I should be thinking about in the next few months while I begin gathering the evidence and building a 'file'?

[CharlieD10]

Although you don't need a specific income, neither can you be in receipt of welfare for reasons other than disability, nor can you be an undischarged bankrupt.  That is what the proof of income does.  You have a 3 year responsibility to support your spouse regardless of what happens to your relationship once she gets to Canada, CIC needs proof it can trust you to do uphold your end of the bargain.

You might also want to think about budgeting for the costs: application fees, permanent residence fee, police records from every country she's lived in since she was 18, and the medical exam.

[Infamy]

Thank you.

I assumed that which is why I mentioned me providing proof of my ability to support my wife without recourse to public funds. I presume my income here in the UK would be suffucient for this purpose and would also prove my employability. Would my wife's income/qualifications/employabilty also be considered (I ask because this was the case when I applied for her UK Spouse Visa)? Also, are savings/investments/assets also considered?

To be honest finances were never a real concern because we are very stable in that regard, my major concern was that I'd have to come to Canada and establish myself before eve applying formy wife to join me. Now that fear has been allayed I think my dream to return to Canada is realistic

You mentioned some other requirements, such as police certificates and medical exams. She's been in the UK since she was 18 so getting Police Certs from here and India won't take long, but when, how and to what end does she get a medical?

[CharlieD10]

As a family class applicant, her qualifications are less important than the genuineness of her relationship with you.  Savings and investments are good for showing you have funds to meet your short-medium term needs.

She needs a medical exam in order to show whether she has any medical conditions that could be a danger to the Canadian public.  As a spousal applicant, she will be exempt from medical inadmissibility due to excessive demand on public resources, but if she has any conditions which could endanger others she will require surveillance by a doctor in Canada.

The medical is valid for a year from when it is done, so it is best to do it as one of the last things before you submit your application.  She must use a designated medical practitioner (DMP) from the CIC list. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/medical/index.asp