Innocent Misrepresentation: Married before initial landing but after getting the PR visa

[Ahmed Khan 86]

Hi everybody,

I got my PR visa in October of last year, and was supposed to land before April 2018 which is when my visa would expire. However, I met my better half in November 2017 and got married in January 2018.

Right after our honeymoon at the end of Jan, I travelled to Canada for my initial landing, and in the hassle of the wedding preparations, I forgot to inform CIC of my change of status. I also didn't inform the landing officer because neither did he ask me about any change in my status, nor did I have any marriage documents to prove the change in marital status as they hadn't been issued yet.

I returned to my country of residence soon after I landed and have since received my PR card.

I guess my question is, what are my options- should I declare or not? And if I do, what would be the consequences.

Thanks in advance.

 

[scylla]

Hi everybody,

I got my PR visa in October of last year, and was supposed to land before April 2018 which is when my visa would expire. However, I met my better half in November 2017 and got married in January 2018.

Right after our honeymoon at the end of Jan, I travelled to Canada for my initial landing, and in the hassle of the wedding preparations, I forgot to inform CIC of my change of status. I also didn't inform the landing officer because neither did he ask me about any change in my status, nor did I have any marriage documents to prove the change in marital status as they hadn't been issued yet.

I returned to my country of residence soon after I landed and have since received my PR card.

I guess my question is, what are my options- should I declare or not? And if I do, what would be the consequences.

Thanks in advance.

You've made a very big mistake by not declaring your spouse prior to landing.

You can never sponsor your spouse for PR since you failed to declare them before landing. That's the biggest impact to you.

 

[Ahmed Khan 86]

You've made a very big mistake by not declaring your spouse prior to landing.

You can never sponsor your spouse for PR since you failed to declare them before landing. That's the biggest impact to you.

Hi Scylla,

Thank you for your reply. I know that, based on your and other people's replies on here. I should've said so. I also know misrepresentation lasts for five years. What I meant was, other than that, do I face other consequences such as fines, etc.

 

[scylla]

Hi Scylla,

Thank you for your reply. I know that, based on your and other people's replies on here. I should've said so. I also know misrepresentation lasts for five years. What I meant was, other than that, do I face other consequences such as fines, etc.

The five year ban doesn't apply to your case.

The one risk is that if IRCC finds out you failed to declare your spouse, they could move to revoke your PR status on the basis of misrepresentation. However the chances of that happening are low.

 

[vensak]

Hi everybody,

I got my PR visa in October of last year, and was supposed to land before April 2018 which is when my visa would expire. However, I met my better half in November 2017 and got married in January 2018.

Right after our honeymoon at the end of Jan, I travelled to Canada for my initial landing, and in the hassle of the wedding preparations, I forgot to inform CIC of my change of status. I also didn't inform the landing officer because neither did he ask me about any change in my status, nor did I have any marriage documents to prove the change in marital status as they hadn't been issued yet.

I returned to my country of residence soon after I landed and have since received my PR card.

I guess my question is, what are my options- should I declare or not? And if I do, what would be the consequences.

Thanks in advance.

you have 2 options:
1. renounce your PR and start from scratch and get it again married this time.
2. she has to immigrate on her own

You cannot sponsor her because you did not declare her when becoming PR. And unfortunately nothing will change after 5, 10 or 20 years.

 

[LifeDreamer]

You do not have misrepresentation because the marriage happened after your PR and you were not asked to confirm during landing, unless you were in common law relationship or cohabiting together previously. You can apply to sponsor your wife normally and if rejected you can appeal the decision.

 

[scylla]

You do not have misrepresentation because the marriage happened after your PR and you were not asked to confirm during landing, unless you were in common law relationship or cohabiting together previously. You can apply to sponsor your wife normally and if rejected you can appeal the decision.

That's incorrect. OP got married before landing in Canada to become a PR and without declaring his wife. Obligation is on the applicant to declare the spouse before landing. This is clearly indicated in the visa letter. OP failed to do so and can never sponsor his wife. Sponsorship application would be refused - there are no grounds for appeal.

 

[Wonderland_1010]

That is true what @scylla had stated because OP should have gotten COPR , PR Visa and including a letter saying he is approved for PR. And on that letter it will state to inform any martial status changes to the PR Visa issuing office before landing.

 

[LifeDreamer]

I agree but it is not misrepresentation in the sense that revokes PR status and imposes a 5 year penalty. There is a breach of the duty to update information but as long as there was no false confirmation of marital status this does not invoke the inadmissibility clause for misrepresentation under the IRPA.

About sponsorship, there was a case decided in the Federal court which had similar circumstances to the case here. In that case the judge ruled in favor of the respondent (IRCC) and maintained sponsorship denial but in that case the misrepresentation was also established during PR process as the applicant was in common-law/cohabiting relationship then. It is quite possible that the OP might get a favorable outcome on appeal or that IRCC would forgive his omission entirely so there's no harm from applying.

 

[Cassiano]

Hi everybody,

I got my PR visa in October of last year, and was supposed to land before April 2018 which is when my visa would expire. However, I met my better half in November 2017 and got married in January 2018.

Right after our honeymoon at the end of Jan, I travelled to Canada for my initial landing, and in the hassle of the wedding preparations, I forgot to inform CIC of my change of status. I also didn't inform the landing officer because neither did he ask me about any change in my status, nor did I have any marriage documents to prove the change in marital status as they hadn't been issued yet.

I returned to my country of residence soon after I landed and have since received my PR card.

I guess my question is, what are my options- should I declare or not? And if I do, what would be the consequences.

Thanks in advance.

answer: NONE TO DO
you forgot your wedding,,, tell that to your spous(e), s/he have to start her/his process from the beginning
CIC NOT forget

 

[zardoz]

I agree but it is not misrepresentation in the sense that revokes PR status and imposes a 5 year penalty. There is a breach of the duty to update information but as long as there was no false confirmation of marital status this does not invoke the inadmissibility clause for misrepresentation under the IRPA.

About sponsorship, there was a case decided in the Federal court which had similar circumstances to the case here. In that case the judge ruled in favor of the respondent (IRCC) and maintained sponsorship denial but in that case the misrepresentation was also established during PR process as the applicant was in common-law/cohabiting relationship then. It is quite possible that the OP might get a favorable outcome on appeal or that IRCC would forgive his omission entirely so there's no harm from applying.

Also incorrect. It's misrepresentation for the simple reason that if his spouse is inadmissible for ANY reason, he is as well. IRCC were not given the opportunity to medically examine the spouse, or perform background/security checks. He bypassed that possibility by landing as "single".
Sponsorship WILL fail under IRPR 117(9)(d). Case law has established that the PR application is still "in process" until the moment that the applicant actually lands.

 

[Bryanna]

I agree but it is not misrepresentation in the sense that revokes PR status and imposes a 5 year penalty. There is a breach of the duty to update information but as long as there was no false confirmation of marital status this does not invoke the inadmissibility clause for misrepresentation under the IRPA.

In fact, it does invoke the inadmissibility clause for misrepresentation under IRPA.

To quote:
"Regulation 51
r.51 A foreign national...at a port of entry must...inform the officer if
(i) the foreign national has become a spouse or common-law partner or has ceased to be a spouse, common law partner or conjugal partner after the visa was issued,
or (ii) material facts relevant to the issuance of the visa have changed since the visa was issued or were not divulged when it was issued; ... "

Under the Immigration Act, there is a statutory duty to disclose the change in the material circumstances (even if no question was specifically asked) which includes acquiring a spouse, among other points. This duty might not be completely binding on temporary residents, but an immigrant is duty-bound to make the disclosures before/at the time of landing.

Information about the change in the circumstances must be given either to the visa officer or the POE officer. Inability to communicate in English at the POE, or an innocent failure to disclose the change in the material facts are not defenses to misrepresentation

 

[LifeDreamer]

Also incorrect. It's misrepresentation for the simple reason that if his spouse is inadmissible for ANY reason, he is as well. IRCC were not given the opportunity to medically examine the spouse, or perform background/security checks. He bypassed that possibility by landing as "single".
Sponsorship WILL fail under IRPR 117(9)(d). Case law has established that the PR application is still "in process" until the moment that the applicant actually lands.

Your point is valid insofar as sponsorship is concerned; however, with regard to misrepresentation this is not involved. I agree there is a process to vet the spouse if known however you are forgetting the fact that marriage happened after PR, leaving that application kosher, and then you were merely speculating what the applicant would choose whether spouse is accompanying or not. A Misrepresentation finding, if one would apply, cannot hold on speculative grounds.

Also, you have misrepresented the OP's intentions by saying he was "landing as single", as it was clearly mentioned the reason being it was not brought up by the landing officer or in any of the signed documents I suppose, otherwise he would have truthfully answered I would assume.

 

[zardoz]

Your point is valid insofar as sponsorship is concerned; however, with regard to misrepresentation this is not involved. I agree there is a process to vet the spouse if known however you are forgetting the fact that marriage happened after PR, leaving that application kosher, and then you were merely speculating what the applicant would choose whether spouse is accompanying or not. A Misrepresentation finding, if one would apply, cannot hold on speculative grounds.

Also, you have misrepresented the OP's intentions by saying he was "landing as single", as it was clearly mentioned the reason being it was not brought up by the landing officer or in any of the signed documents I suppose, otherwise he would have truthfully answered I would assume.

The marriage happened "before PR" as the OP had not yet landed. The issue of the COPR and/or visa is irrelevant. "PR" happens at the time of the initial landing, not before. "landed as single" refers to the status as listed on the OP's COPR document.

 

[LifeDreamer]

In fact, it does invoke the inadmissibility clause for misrepresentation under IRPA.

To quote:
"Regulation 51
r.51 A foreign national...at a port of entry must...inform the officer if
(i) the foreign national has become a spouse or common-law partner or has ceased to be a spouse, common law partner or conjugal partner after the visa was issued,
or (ii) material facts relevant to the issuance of the visa have changed since the visa was issued or were not divulged when it was issued; ... "

Under the Immigration Act, there is a statutory duty to disclose the change in the material circumstances (even if no question was specifically asked) which includes acquiring a spouse, among other points. This duty might not be completely binding on temporary residents, but an immigrant is duty-bound to make the disclosures before/at the time of landing.

Information about the change in the circumstances must be given either to the visa officer or the POE officer. Inability to communicate in English at the POE, or an innocent failure to disclose the change in the material facts are not defenses to misrepresentation

Applicants do not read regulations. Case officers read them. The regulations detail what process to follow, in a manner not inconsistent with IRPA, with regard to applicants. The regulations are guidance and discretionary rules, not laws, and the obligation is on the case officer to enforce them. You cannot expect an applicant to step into the shoes of an immigration officer and do their work for them, as such is akin to foregoing immigration forms and instead handing blank sheets of paper and being tasked with writing whatever information that might be relevant in a case. The onus is on the case officers to prepare the right immigration forms and conduct proper interviews, and the responsibility lies on the applicants to answer the questions truthfully and completely.

Bottom line:
Will their be a misrepresentation finding? No.
Can the spouse be sponsored? No. But there is nothing preventing an application. There is nothing preventing IRCC from using its discretionary powers or a successful judicial appeal.

Remember that that the misrepresentation clause is intended for applicants cheating the system to their benefit and are deliberately committing fraud or circumventing the process to save time or effort. Simply finding some wrong information does not AUTOMATICALLY lead to misrepresentation so if one thought he graduated high school when he didn't or made innocent mistakes in understanding questions will not ban them, especially when the correct information wouldn't have made a difference.