Citizen woman Pregnant, Partner from Portugal.

[saikawaki]

Hello everybody.

I've been looking through this forum to get some answers but i wish to know if there is something more. I would be grateful if someone could help me with some more information.

I'm a 26 years old Canadian citizen, but i have been living in Portugal for a long time (where my roots are from). Last year i decided to return to Canada for a work proposition, but went back to Portugal on vacations and to meet my partner again. We've been trying to get him a work visa but no offer is being able to be realized by an employer.

I came back on January and found out i was pregnant. My baby will be born on September. But if my partner doesn't come to Canada, i won't be able to sustain myself and my child alone, once his Portuguese wage is so less compared to Canadian salary.

I can't either go back to Portugal because it is so difficult to find a job there. Lucky my partner has one. But i can't sponsor my partner also, because i won't have enough money to do so. Plus, before i came to Canada, we were living in a shared house which the rent and billing wasn't in our name (so we have no legal proof of our common-law partnership, only family knowledge and pictures of our relationship ).

Is there a way the Canadian government can help a citizen which can't support a family by herself? Beyond sponsorship and since he can't get no work visa, is there a way possible to go through this problem?

Thank you for your attention.

 

[scylla]

Go back to Portugal and get married. Then sponsor him as your spouse.

 

[scylla]

Sorry - I just saw that you don't have enough money to sponsor your partner even if you got married. In that case there really aren't too many options for you. Your partner should focus on finding an employer in Canada willing to go through the LMIA process so that he can then qualify for a work permit.

Good luck.

 

[saikawaki]

Thank you scylla. It's really one of those cases which nothing is in favor of nothing. We are still trying to find an employer. Let's see how it goes.

 

[scylla]

Thank you scylla. It's really one of those cases which nothing is in favor of nothing. We are still trying to find an employer. Let's see how it goes.

Are you aware there is no minimum income requirement to sponsor a spouse or common law partner for PR? You just can't be on welfare/social assistance and you can't be bankrupt. All you have to come up with is the money to pay the sponsorship fees ($1040) and a few hundred dollars extra for the medical, police certificates, etc.

 

[Luval]

he can come on a visitor visa then apply for PR inland.

 

[scylla]

he can come on a visitor visa then apply for PR inland.

They would need to get married since they cannot prove common law.

 

[Rob_TO]

Just to add, you don't even need to pay the $1040 all upfront. If money is really tight you can always just pay the processing fees upfront (so $550), and pay the Right-of-PR fee ($490) towards the very end of the processing time. Then there are other upfront fees though you need to consider, such as costs to do his medical exam ($200 range) and costs to translate any documents to english (if that's required).

Since you have no proof of cohabitation, you must get married to sponsor him. Can do this in Portugal, or in Canada if he comes as a visitor.

Once you have your child you will get various child benefits from the government, such as the Universal Child Care Benefit (UCCB) which will be $160 per month, and then the Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) which depending on your total income and province, can be in the $400 per month range for low-income parents.

Just keep in mind that if you intend to sponsor him soon, you must NOT go on welfare/social assistance or it will cause a huge delay or rejection of you as a sponsor depending on the timing. However receiving the child benefits are ok.

 

[scylla]

To add to the above - if he comes here and you apply inland, keep in mind that you will have four months from the time the application is submitted where your partner will not yet have an open work permit and won't be able to work. So make sure you factor that into the planning as well.

 

[saikawaki]

thank you for your answers

Will the fact of a baby being involved in the process help him receive a work permit without waiting those 4 months after application? Has it accoured yet?
Do they take into account the fact of a baby needing his parents together and quick up the process or are the timelines a standard for all sponsorship applicants?

Application outland is faster, I read. But which one would you recommend me in my case?

I appreciate your knowledge. Thank you

 

[scylla]

Will the fact of a baby being involved in the process help him receive a work permit without waiting those 4 months after application? Has it accoured yet?
Do they take into account the fact of a baby needing his parents together and quick up the process or are the timelines a standard for all sponsorship applicants?

No - they don't take this into account. Having a baby together does not speed up the process or give someone access to an open work permit sooner.

I would apply outland. But that's just my opinion...

 

[bigredmoose]

I think I would still try common-law. You may not have proof per se, but you do have an explanation for it. You also have people who might be willing to write a letter stating they know you were living together for more than a year.

 

[Rob_TO]

I think I would still try common-law. You may not have proof per se, but you do have an explanation for it. You also have people who might be willing to write a letter stating they know you were living together for more than a year.

You need proof. An explanation and some letters will most likely not be sufficient. Or at a minimum, they would need a statutory declaration from the landlord/owner of the shared house they lived at declaring they cohabited there for at least 12 months.

Inland vs outland is a toss up to me. Advantage of inland is that they could stay together in Canada during processing and father will be here for birth of his child and after that to hel raise him, and after 4 months from getting married and submitting PR app he should be able to get an OWP. Disadvantage is he should not return to Portugal for 2+ years during inland PR processing.

Advantage of outland is that he can continue working in Portugal, as even with an OWP in Canada it can be very tough for foreigners here to get a job here let alone one equal to what they were doing in home country. As well the overall time to process his PR will be quicker. Biggest disadvantage of outland is that any time he spends in Canada during processing will be as a visitor only so unable to work, and may need to keep visits short if he is still employed in home country. So may need to live apart for a while still after birth of child.