common-law and open work permit while visiting for 6 months or more?

[burntoinge]

My boyfriend of 4 years(US citizen)(but only living together for 4 months) is moving to Montreal with a Temporary Work Visa(2+ years I believe). I am wondering what my options are to move to Montreal and stay with him. I am a US citizen as well.

Should I try to visit for 6 months and then apply for an extension so we can reach the 12-month mark and be considered "common-law partners?" If so, should I be completely honest about the situation at the border about wanting to stay to obtain "common-law partnership" or should I try to convince them that I plan on returning after 6 months?

If I apply for a visitor extension, will they refuse it if I am not applying for PR at the time? Can I apply for an open work permit and be able to stay with him and find a job for a certain amount of time?

Or if I am visiting and find someone to help me obtain a work visa, do I have to go back to the USA when the application is submitted until it is processed?

I've scoured these forums looking for answers, but it seems I can't find a solid answer. Any help would be wonderful. I am going crazy over this.

 

[Love_Young]

Well firstly, he cannot apply for you to be a permanent resident unless he is a permanent resident or citizen of Canada himself. Even if he is working temporarily, he cannot sponsor you. He would have to apply to immigrate and list you as his spouse or common law partner on there, that is if you were wanting to move with him as well.

You can travel with him to Canada and will most likely be given a standard 6 months visa unless they state otherwise. 30 days before your stay is up, you would apply to Immigration for an extension of your stay. As long as they receive it to their office before your status expires you will have what is called "implied status". Which means, while you are waiting for them to make a decision on your extension request you will still be under legal status until you receive a response. If that is approved then can stay longer. Before you apply for an extension later on, I would suggest you come back here for some advice. Most people will know how to help you. For now you need to focus on how to cross the border safely. Many people on here can also help you with that.

Now you can keep applying for your extensions until you reach common law status at which time I think you may be able to apply for an Open Work Permit. You may have to exit back into the US and apply for it there but I am not sure. I am sorry I can not provide you with any more advice or tips but this was to the best of my knowledge and I do not want to write more without being completely sure it won't stir you wrong. So far, what I have wrote to you should be of some help to you.

Wait around a bit and I am sure more members will come along to help you. Good luck!

 

[RobsLuv]

I think the reason you are not finding answers is because the scenario you've presented is unusual. You're attributing "options" that apply to people who have Canadian citizen or permanent resident partners to your situation - which is that you have a US citizen bf who is coming to Canada as a temporary resident . . . which means he is not eligible to sponsor you for status in Canada. If you were married, or already common-law partners, I think you'd probably be examined and included as an accompanying family member on his work permit - but as his girlfriend, you're not eligible for that, and I'm pretty sure that coming to Canada to live with him for long enough to qualify as his common-law partner will not make you eligible to be added to his work permit later on.

If you try to enter Canada telling them that you are joining your temporary resident boyfriend with the intent of living with him for long enough to become his common-law partner so that you can get status in Canada, they'll turn you around so fast it will make your head spin. If you want to join him in Canada as something other than a visitor, you've got to get your own work permit and come here on your own merit, or you guys have to get married and then (I believe) he'd have to start all over again with an application for temporary status (work permit) that included you. Like any US citizen, you're eligible to approach a Canadian port of entry and ask to be admitted - and, if you're admitted, you are eligible to stay for up to six months as a visitor. But whether that makes you and your bf common-law partners in the meantime is irrelevant to your status in Canada - and I can pretty much guarantee that any request for an extension to your status in Canada to stay with your bf would be denied because your relationship with him does not make you eligible for permanent status. In fact, you'd probably not even get (on entry) the documentation that you'd need to apply from within Canada to extend in the first place. So that means, in order to stay "legal", you'd have to leave every six months and then try to get back in.

If you managed to do that, it'd be fine, I guess, as long as you can leave your life in the US behind and sit in Canada for the next two years without the ability to work or go to school, with no healthcare, and (really) with no life. That's a lot of stress on a relationship.

The majority of people posting in this forum are partners with Canadian citizens or PRs, so most of us have not been in a situation that's exactly like yours. I'm not even sure that what I've said about how you might get into Canada is entirely correct because I haven't been in your situation and I haven't read, in these forums, about anyone else who has been either. You should search the Foreign Workers forum here - and even post your question there - and hopefully you'll get a more definitive response.

Now you can keep applying for your extensions until you reach common law status at which time I think you may be able to apply for an Open Work Permit. You may have to exit back into the US and apply for it there but I am not sure. I am sorry I can not provide you with any more advice or tips but this was to the best of my knowledge and I do not want to write more without being completely sure it won't stir you wrong. So far, what I have wrote to you should be of some help to you.

No, no, no. I don't agree. Open Work Permits are only issued to inland applicants for permanent residence who have successfully passed the first stage of assessment and been found eligible for permanent status. The author of this post would not be eligible for permanent status by qualifying as the common-law partner of a temporary resident because she does not have an eligible sponsor!

 

[BeShoo]

In fact, you'd probably not even get (on entry) the documentation that you'd need to apply from within Canada to extend in the first place.

Actually, you don't really need any special document before you can apply. Any sort of evidence of when you entered Canada would be good enough for you to apply for an extension, but given what we know about your situation, it doesn't seem likely that you have a valid reason for an extension to actually be granted. I don't think your plan is going to work at all. Sorry.

 

[RobsLuv]

Actually, you don't really need any special document before you can apply. Any sort of evidence of when you entered Canada would be good enough for you to apply for an extension . . .

Someone applying to extend needs to be able to prove their entry date because they have to prove they have not overstayed in order to be eligible to extend without paying a restoration fee - and to benefit from "implied status". Most people entering from the United States are not going to get something from CBSA that proves when they entered. That's done on purpose so that US citizens cannot easily maintain long-term stays in Canada without having to undergo re-assessment. But, I agree, it's not really applicable here in the first place because the author is not eligible for permanent status and so, therefore, probably wouldn't be extended even if she did have documentation of her entry date.

 

[Love_Young]

No, no, no. I don't agree. Open Work Permits are only issued to inland applicants for permanent residence who have successfully passed the first stage of assessment and been found eligible for permanent status. The author of this post would not be eligible for permanent status by qualifying as the common-law partner of a temporary resident because she does not have an eligible sponsor!

Actually on the CIC site it does state that if you are a spouse or common law partner of a temporary worker, the spouse or partner can apply for an open work permit. When I looked up open work permit on their site and listed qualifications, I am fairly certain that was one. I will see if I can find it.

And no, I know she can not apply while the guy is a temporary resident. I stated that in part of my original post. I was just meaning that if she wanted to work and stay with her partner, she could qualify for an open work permit on the basis of his temporary work permit. As I said though, I will see if I can find this information again from the site.

 

[Love_Young]

I am afraid to tell you, but I am afraid that if you wanted to be able to stay and work in Canada with your boyfriend. Maybe he should have waited until you qualified under common law or was married. In order for you stay long term with him in Canada and work, he would need to apply for a work permit on your behalf when applying for his own then you would both enter Canada together. Other than applying again and seeing if you are approved, I can't see you being able to stay long term and extensions will most likely not be granted without a better reasoning in which you don't seem to have. My suggestion would just try to visit when you can but you may have to be long distance for a while by the sound of it. Good luck though.


Here is what I have found on the CIC site:
"If you are authorized to work in Canada, your accompanying family members may also be able to work here by virtue of the permit you have obtained yourself. No other authorization is required. If they intend to work while in Canada, they should find out if they are eligible for an “open” work permit. Open work permits allow them to work in any job with any employer. An open work permit also means that they may be hired without the employer having to obtain a labour market opinion (the normal authorization required). Certain jobs may require medical checks or licensing from professional organizations. Their work permits will be valid for the duration of your own work permit.

Your spouse’s (and in some cases your children’s) eligibility for open work permits depends on the skill level of your job. You must also be authorized to work in Canada for at least six months. Note that open work permits for dependent children are available on a trial basis in participating provinces only. Accompanying family members must always apply for their own work permit. They should apply for one at the same time as you, before entering Canada. If they only decide to work after they arrive, they can apply once they are here. Find out more about applying from within Canada in the “Learn about” section on this page."