Again no he cannot. From what he has written he has no legal proof of being divorced or legally separated. Common law is a milder version of a wife, but you cannot have 1 wife and 1 common law as that would be considered bigamy.
Family case
- Thread starter Murat
- Start date
You are completely wrong, please stop posting this bad info.
There is no need to get divorced from first wife, as if he's lived together 12 months with new partner then he is now legally common-law for immigration purposes even though he's legally married on paper. All that's required is that he's physically separated and no longer in a relationship from his first wife. This is perfectly fine.
https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/ircc/migration/ircc/english/resources/manuals/op/op02-eng.pdf
5.38. What happens if the common-law partner (principal applicant) is married to another person?
Persons who are married to third parties may be considered common-law partners provided their marriage has broken down and they have lived separate and apart from the spouse for long enough to establish a common-law relationship – at least one year. In this case they must have cohabited in a conjugal relationship with the common-law partner for at least one year. Cohabitation with a common-law partner cannot be considered to have started until a physical separation from the spouse has occurred.
You will need to show proof of shared address. So a joint rental/lease agreement, mail going to same home, joint financial, utility, phone accounts, joint insurance, testimony letters from friends/family, etc.
You also do not need to get divorced, as long as you've lived together 12 months you are common-law and she can be included as your common-law partner on any future PR app you submit.
a) Mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all other conjugal relationships
A conjugal relationship is characterized by mutual commitment, exclusivity, and interdependence and therefore cannot exist among more than two people simultaneously. The word "conjugal" includes the requirement of monogamy and, therefore, an individual cannot be in more than one conjugal relationship at one time. For example, a person cannot have a conjugal relationship with a legally married spouse and another person at the same time. Nor can a person have a conjugal relationship with two unmarried partners at the same time. These would be polygamous-like relationships and cannot be considered conjugal.
Persons who are married to third parties may be considered common-law partners provided their marriage has broken down and they have lived separate and apart from the spouse for long enough to establish a common-law relationship – at least one year. In this case they must have cohabited in a conjugal relationship with the common-law partner for at least one year. Cohabitation with a common-law partner cannot be considered to have started until a physical separation from the spouse has occurred. A common-law relationship cannot be legally established if one or both parties continue their marital relationships.
Officers must be satisfied that a principal applicant is separated from and no longer cohabits with a legal spouse. This evidence may be in the form of a signed formal declaration that the marriage has ended and that the person has entered into a common-law relationship. An officer may require that the person produce other written evidence of a formal separation or of a breakdown of the marriage. Acceptable documents include a separation agreement, a court order in respect of custody of children identifying the fact of the marriage breakdown, documents removing the legally married spouse(s) from insurance policies or will as beneficiaries (a "change of beneficiary" form).
Not living together is just one of the condition. A proof of separation is needed as well.
According to what he has stated, he did not fulfill condition of the formal separation. Living apart is not enough. So if his current wife is not cooperative he has to go through the legal way to obtain the formal separation confirmation. An any time before that would not be counted into common law with his
new partner.
This is saying you can't continue the conjugal relationship with first spouse, while having a relationship with next partner.
Once you have physically separated and no longer in relationship from first spouse, you can then become common-law with someone else.
Yes, and moving on/living together with a new person is more than enough proof the marriage has broken down.
Living apart and having kids with new partner is enough.
More legal proof is not needed, unless the visa officer suspected they were continuing a relationship with the original spouse. Obviously not the case here. Everything listed above is completely optional, not actually required. A simple declaration by the individual they are no longer in the first relationship, is more than enough. No additional proof is needed. You are 100% wrong on this, and are giving very bad and possibly harmful advice to people. Please stop posting on this topic since you don't know what you're talking about.
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There is a check list for the spousal application that listed all required documents to proof common law, such as bills under same address, sharing expenses, and such.
As Rob pointed out. He can. Please stop arguing about his previous marriage. That marriage is gone. He only needs to prove 12 months with his current girlfriend to call her spouse for immigration purposes.