Hi there. I am an international study on study permit until Nov 2019. I have a common law partner in Alberta, CA that is a permanent resident but is planning to apply for citizenship soon. We have been in a common law partnership since Sept 2017. I am looking for recommendations and advice regarding my situation. We are planning for him to sponsor me under the family class. It is advisable to sponsor me first while he is still a PR and then after that he can apply for citizenship. Or can he apply for citizenship and sponsor me at the same time? I also have the option to apply for a post graduate work permit after my graduation on Dec 2019. Which of the options would be faster? Thank you in advance!
Common law partner applying for citizenship
- Thread starter zileoy
- Start date
First, you mentioned that you have a common law partner in Alberta...have you been living together consecutively for a year? Just to clarify.
Next, he is able to sponsor you as a PR and it will not impact his citizenship application or process. If he applies to sponsor you inland, you can apply for an open work permit which will grant you 2 years to work and implied status until you have a decision made on your PR application. The open work permits standard processing time is 4-5 months but IRCC has been absolutely flying through them recently, in fact we sent our app March 5 and just received OWP approval today. You send the OWP app along with the sponsorship app in the same package. In my opinion, if you have all the required proofs to apply for common law (typically they require more proof than a married couple), you can apply as inland common law as soon as you can put the application together, instead of waiting until after you graduate.
I am in no way an expert, still learning and giving you the info I believe to be correct. If someone comes across this and sees I have said something incorrect please correct me! Hope this helped at all!
Next, he is able to sponsor you as a PR and it will not impact his citizenship application or process. If he applies to sponsor you inland, you can apply for an open work permit which will grant you 2 years to work and implied status until you have a decision made on your PR application. The open work permits standard processing time is 4-5 months but IRCC has been absolutely flying through them recently, in fact we sent our app March 5 and just received OWP approval today. You send the OWP app along with the sponsorship app in the same package. In my opinion, if you have all the required proofs to apply for common law (typically they require more proof than a married couple), you can apply as inland common law as soon as you can put the application together, instead of waiting until after you graduate.
I am in no way an expert, still learning and giving you the info I believe to be correct. If someone comes across this and sees I have said something incorrect please correct me! Hope this helped at all!
Yes we have been living together since 2017
Thank you, I would look into what you said about applying for an open work permit and sponsorship. If we do apply for sponsorship and is still awaiting decision, can he apply for citizenship as well? or do we need to wait for a decision on my sponsorship first? thank you
