My husband and I met in USA during a trip in 2012 and got married there too eventually. When I sponsored him to come to Canada, I included his 3 young children from his previous relationship in the Philippines. The children grew up under the care of my mother-in-law since 2009 because their biological mother went with another man and abandoned the children. This caused their break up and the children didn't have any contact with their mother. They were never married so as per Philippine law, since they are illegitimate, the custody was with the mother although she was never involved in their care. No court involvement, no custody or agreement in place. During the sponsorship process, and after a lot of efforts contacting her, the mother signed IMM 5604 and travel authorization, therefore they were able to migrate here. At that time, she didn't want to give up her parental rights because she wanted the children to sponsor her in the future. Now, their passports are expired, We went to Vancouver Consulate for renewal application. They did not accept the documents she previously signed and now we need to get an SPA from DFA, executed by the mother. She was giving us a hard time. For all applications including PR card renewal or even citizenship application, we need a court document like legal guardianship order that will allow my husband to apply on their behalf, without the consent of the mother. Is there any way to get out of this? Can my husband apply for legal guardianship from here in Canada, or he has to go back home to deal with this matter in the Philippine court? Thank you in advance