CIC returned Application due to "Missing document". Was not actually missing.

[AndersmithValleyleaf]

TL;DR at the bottom

Hi ya'll, I am new to these forums so I hope I am posting in the right place. If not then I apologize.

Me and my girlfriend of roughly 4 years recently sent in our sponsorship application only to have it sent back to us 2 months later with a notification stating that we were missing a piece of documentation. The documentation in question was "Proof of relationship" in connection to joint-accounts, bills and other sorts of legal documentation. Due to inexperience and fear regarding what I (The applicant) was allowed to sign and not sign, we have no joint accounts, she has been paying most/all of the bills while I have been staying in Canada, paying for food, nights out and other personal services with money I saved up while working in my home country (I am allowed to stay up to 6 months as a Visitor with a Swedish passport). Our only joint bill was a phone bill that we later noticed, for some reason, did not have my name on it.

However, thankfully, we were given an alternative. If we had no joint bill or the likes, the Sponsorship checklist gave us an option to write a letter, explaining ourselves as to why we had no joint bills. We wrote a letter explaining our situation, we checked it off on the checklist and continued on. After going through our checklist five times we decided "Yeah, we got everything and probably more." and we sent it in, only to then have it returned.

TL;DR: We sent in our application. The CIC said we were missing documents and sent it back. Said missing documents could be found in the returned application. They did help themselves to our Christmas cards though, Ha-Ha.

What should we do? I've been looking around these forums and most of the answers seem to be "Send it in again and hope you get someone a bit more diligent to look through it." Is there a special number we can call, should I just call the general hotline, should I not call at all and just send it in? Any feedback/help would greatly be appreciated. Thank you.

-Aston the Swede & Danielle the Canadian.

 

[scylla]

Just to be clear, is the joint telephone bill the only piece of evidence you submitted to prove common law status? Did you have a joint lease or anything like that?

 

[AndersmithValleyleaf]

Just to be clear, is the joint telephone bill the only piece of evidence you submitted to prove common law status? Did you have a joint lease or anything like that?

We sent in the phone bill which showed two numbers on the account, one of them being my phone number. The bill was in her name, but with both of our numbers on it. Additionally we sent in a letter explaining why there were no additional joint bills or leases or anything of the likes. We have no other bills as we were unsure if I as a Swede was allowed to sign up for certain things since I was just a "Visitor". I have a bank account with RBC that has an extensive history showing me living in the same city and area as her. It also has history of us transferring money between each other, but based on the Checklist we did not consider it a valid alternative.

Thank you for your quick response and your time by the way. I did not expect someone to engage with my post so fast!

 

[scylla]

I don't think you can successfully prove common law with just one phone bill. I believe you would need additional evidence that demonstrates you have lived at the same address for at least one full year. Unfortunately money transfers don't prove cohabitation. What address does your bank account show? Does it show the address where you cohabitated? If so, how long has that account been open?

I'll let others comment who have been through the common law stream.

I think your application was returned because you simply haven't provided enough evidence to prove common law status.

 

[AndersmithValleyleaf]

I don't think you can successfully prove common law with just one phone bill. I believe you would need additional evidence that demonstrates you have lived at the same address for at least one full year. Unfortunately money transfers don't prove cohabitation. What address does your bank account show? Does it show the address where you cohabitated? If so, how long has that account been open?

I'll let others comment who have been through the common law stream.

I think your application was returned because you simply haven't provided enough evidence to prove common law status.

The RBC bank account was opened about 20 months ago, and it was written to show the address we live on. We have pictures and conversations spanning years back, the pictures are all tagged with metadata showing the dates they were taken. Printed copies of my passport show me entering Canada and I have also saved a large amount of plane tickets.

What would be some good examples of proof of cohabitation besides bills and the likes?

 

[WeegieInOttawa]

They want to see proof not only of a genuine relationship but proof that you live in a marriage like relationship where you have shared expenses/contributions/life at home etc.

In this day and age yes it can seem a little crazy as people are so much more independent financially even when in relationships. But it;'s what they ask for!

I have copy and pasted something i put in a thread a while ago that someone found useful..

--------
Some things you may not have thought of that could possibly show the "money" relationship between you and your partner;

- Costco membership (yep really!)
- Joint gym membership (we have a joint membership which my partner has always paid for with his credit card). The gym owner is actually a friend of ours so he wrote confirming the membership from my partners account and that he knew us as a couple..i know that that is a unique situation though!
- A joint credit card? Or are one of you an authorized user on the others card?
- CRA (or other tax) documents showing you as common law/married (i included our tax summary sheets for the past 4 years or so...im named on his, he is named on mine as common law partner)
- Did one of you pay for a trip that you have booking confirmation for showing both your names as "guests"
- Does one of you pay something for the other?

We dont have insurances with the other named as beneficiary nor do we have utility bills (our rent is all inclusive) so the finances part was tricky for us too.
-------

 

[AndersmithValleyleaf]

They want to see proof not only of a genuine relationship but proof that you live in a marriage like relationship where you have shared expenses/contributions/life at home etc.

In this day and age yes it can seem a little crazy as people are so much more independent financially even when in relationships. But it;'s what they ask for!

I have copy and pasted something i put in a thread a while ago that someone found useful..

--------
Some things you may not have thought of that could possibly show the "money" relationship between you and your partner;

- Costco membership (yep really!)
- Joint gym membership (we have a joint membership which my partner has always paid for with his credit card). The gym owner is actually a friend of ours so he wrote confirming the membership from my partners account and that he knew us as a couple..i know that that is a unique situation though!
- A joint credit card? Or are one of you an authorized user on the others card?
- CRA (or other tax) documents showing you as common law/married (i included our tax summary sheets for the past 4 years or so...im named on his, he is named on mine as common law partner)
- E-transfers between you both
- Did one of you pay for a trip that you have booking confirmation for showing both your names as "guests"
- Does one of you pay something for the other?

We dont have insurances with the other named as beneficiary nor do we have utility bills (our rent is all inclusive) so the finances part was tricky for us too.
-------

We both took a trip to Sweden for my mothers wedding and then a trip to Prague for my uncles wedding last year (We made this clear in our letter). We still have the booking with both of our names on it. We have several E-transfers, mostly small amounts regarding food and such things. My gym membership is sadly only written in my name.

Our relationship was formed 4 years ago, but we have only been able to meet each other a few times up until August of 2016 at which point, after a call with a Canadian representative told me about the concept of "Common-law". I came to Canada to live with my girlfriend, properly, to cement a common-law relationship in August of 2016, I've been living with her, only returning to my home country when my "allowed visiting period" expires as to not break any laws or conditions.

If they don't even glance at the letter or consider it a valid alternative, why is it even an option. I don't understand?

 

[canuck_in_uk]

The RBC bank account was opened about 20 months ago, and it was written to show the address we live on. We have pictures and conversations spanning years back, the pictures are all tagged with metadata showing the dates they were taken. Printed copies of my passport show me entering Canada and I have also saved a large amount of plane tickets.

What would be some good examples of proof of cohabitation besides bills and the likes?

We both took a trip to Sweden for my mothers wedding and then a trip to Prague for my uncles wedding last year (We made this clear in our letter). We still have the booking with both of our names on it. We have several E-transfers, mostly small amounts regarding food and such things. My gym membership is sadly only written in my name.

Our relationship was formed 4 years ago, but we have only been able to meet each other a few times up until August of 2016 at which point, after a call with a Canadian representative told me about the concept of "Common-law". I came to Canada to live with my girlfriend, properly, to cement a common-law relationship in August of 2016, I've been living with her, only returning to my home country when my "allowed visiting period" expires as to not break any laws or conditions.

If they don't even glance at the letter or consider it a valid alternative, why is it even an option. I don't understand?

No surprise that your app was returned. You had no chance of proving common-law with a phone bill. Common-law is a legal status, like being married, and the whole requirement is that you prove one year of continuous cohabitation at the same address.

You need to prove you were living at the same address. That doesn't require that proofs be in both names. Anything in individual names is fine. You both should have most definitely included your individual bank statements and any other mail you received at that address. The gym membership should have been included. She could have included her payslips/tax letters/etc. Did she update her status with CRA and show that? If you aren't on the lease, did you get a letter from the landlord? Letters from neighbors? Had any doctor/dentist visits? Shipping receipts?

When and for how long did you return to your country while establishing common-law?

It is a valid alternative in certain situations, such as a couple living in a country where cohabitation before marriage is illegal or where non-residents aren't allowed to have anything in their name.

 

[AndersmithValleyleaf]

No surprise that your app was returned. You had no chance of proving common-law with a phone bill. Common-law is a legal status, like being married, and the whole requirement is that you prove one year of continuous cohabitation at the same address.

You need to prove you were living at the same address. That doesn't require that proofs be in both names. Anything in individual names is fine. You both should have most definitely included your individual bank statements and any other mail you received at that address. The gym membership should have been included. She could have included her payslips/tax letters/etc. Did she update her status with CRA and show that? If you aren't on the lease, did you get a letter from the landlord? Letters from neighbors? Had any doctor/dentist visits? Shipping receipts?

When and for how long did you return to your country while establishing common-law?

It is a valid alternative in certain situations, such as a couple living in a country where cohabitation before marriage is illegal or where non-residents aren't allowed to have anything in their name.

We included mail we received, payslips and papers regarding taxes. But to keep this short and to not take up too much of your time, I will ask; Would any bill with my name and our address on it be favorable to send in even if her name is not on the address? Cause if that is the case, I have my bank, my gym, a payment regarding Student benefits (I have been taking online courses through Swedish schools to prepare for future studies which entitles me to benefits as a Swedish citizen) and several Amazon orders with our address on it. That last one is a stretch but considering that our letter is seemingly null and void even though it is stated as an option on the checklist, we are running out of options. Thank you for your time.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

We included mail we received, payslips and papers regarding taxes. But to keep this short and to not take up too much of your time, I will ask; Would any bill with my name and our address on it be favorable to send in even if her name is not on the address? Cause if that is the case, I have my bank, my gym, a payment regarding Student benefits (I have been taking online courses through Swedish schools to prepare for future studies which entitles me to benefits as a Swedish citizen) and several Amazon orders with our address on it. That last one is a stretch but considering that our letter is seemingly null and void even though it is stated as an option on the checklist, we are running out of options. Thank you for your time.

Yes, if you send in a bunch of stuff with your name covering the one year period and a bunch of stuff in her name covering the one year period, that is acceptable proof of common-law.

The Amazon orders are not a stretch at all. It shows you living there, therefore it is a common-law proof.

 

[scylla]

We included mail we received, payslips and papers regarding taxes. But to keep this short and to not take up too much of your time, I will ask; Would any bill with my name and our address on it be favorable to send in even if her name is not on the address? Cause if that is the case, I have my bank, my gym, a payment regarding Student benefits (I have been taking online courses through Swedish schools to prepare for future studies which entitles me to benefits as a Swedish citizen) and several Amazon orders with our address on it. That last one is a stretch but considering that our letter is seemingly null and void even though it is stated as an option on the checklist, we are running out of options. Thank you for your time.

She said she was common law in her CRA tax returns - yes? This is also quite important.