This thread is getting really confusing - so let me see if I can clarify.
First of all, my understanding of the OP's situation is that he is US, she is
dual Canadian/US, and they are living together in the States
render said:
I am a US citizen living in US. My girlfriend is dual US/ Canadian citizen and lives in US.
He is wondering about how he can qualify to be sponsored as a common-law partner for permanent residence in Canada when they are living together in the States. Wants to know how he can qualify as a c/l partner if they're both living in the States - which indicates that maybe they think they have to be living in Canada in order to establish a common-law partnership.
render said:
I want to become a Canadian permanent resident. How can I qualify as common law partner if we both live in US?
He goes on to say that they can't give up their jobs in the States to move to Canada to establish their common-law qualification and, basically, asks whether he can provide evidence from the States of their common-law partnership and "turn it in" to become a Canadian resident.
render said:
(We cannot move to Canada due to work). So if I can get rental receipts, joint bank accounts etc in USA and prove we live 1 year together, (can I) turn it in and become a Canadian resident??
The simple answer is, "Yes". They can establish a common-law partnership while living together in the States that qualifies him to be sponsored by her for permanent residence. There is no "accompanying" anything in this scenario. Because she is a Canadian citizen, she is eligible to apply to sponsor him while she's living in the States - but she has to submit evidence with their application of her intention to settle in Canada by way of a job, acceptance at a school, a lease or mortgage for property, etc.
I think the first confusion came because the OP said, "We cannot move to Canada because of jobs" and that was interpreted by several to mean that there was no intention to actually move to Canada.
Leon said:
If you can not move to Canada due to work, why do you want to be a permanent resident of Canada?
minna said:
The difference being that we actually really want to move to Canada
Looking back, I think the OP was just under the mistaken impression that the couple had to be living in
Canada in order to establish a common-law partnership that would qualify him to apply for permanent status . . . and that would not be possible because neither of them has a job in Canada for support. Minna got this, too, after looking at the thread again:
minna said:
re-reading your post, perhaps I misunderstood -- you don't have to live together in canada to qualify as common-law partners. Living together in the US, or anywhere else is fine. Because the government of Canada recognizes common-law partnerships legally, they allow common-law partners to be sponsored to immigrate. You do not have to be living in a place that recognizes common-law partnership to have your partnership recognized for the purposes of immigration.
OK, so that establishes all of that. The second part was this bit about the
applicant having to prove that he intends to settle in Canada - not true. The only "proof" a
spousal/common-law applicant is ever required to give of his/her intention of settling in Canada is at "landing" when he has to give a Canadian address for purposes of receiving the PR card. As mentioned before, though - a Canadian citizen
sponsor who is living abroad has to prove they intend to (re)settle in Canada with their sponsored partner. PR applications have been refused when a sponsor living abroad does not provide sufficient evidence of their intention to return to Canada . . . but applicants do not have to prove they will move to Canada. In fact an applicant, even after being approved for permanent status, is under no obligation to actually finalize the process by "landing".
The third thing we got into here was about maintaining PR status. A permanent resident maintains PR status by residing in Canada for two years of every five year period - but that requirement is waived if the PR is living in another country "accompanying" their Canadian sponsor. Now, if the Canadian sponsor is also a PR, they BOTH have to maintain their PR by residing in Canada for two years of every five year period anyway - so there would be no extended absence from Canada for either of them or they'd both lose PR status. But if the Canadian sponsor is a
citizen of Canada, they can live wherever they have status to live (even in their sponsored partner's country) and the sponsored partner maintains Canadian permanent residence (without having to live in Canada for two years in every five) just by virtue of continuing to live with their sponsor. So, in this case, the Canadian sponsor has dual US/Canada citizenship - meaning she can live in either country. The OP can be sponsored by her for permanent status in Canada but in order for that to be approved, she has to prove that she intends to settle in Canada. After he's approved, he "lands" and he has to provide CBSA with a Canadian address to mail his PR card to. They "move" to Canada and set up house - but let's say they can't get good jobs, so they want to go back to the States. He does not lose his PR status (or risk having it revoked) because they move back to the States. As long as he lives with her - no matter where - he maintains his Canadian PR status and they can come back to Canada anytime they see fit. If the relationship ends, he has to move back to Canada and maintain the two years in every five year period in order to remain a Canadian PR.
Now, I don't know the circumstances surrounding the case of the guy whose PR was "revoked because it was deemed his Canadian wife was accompanying him in a foreign country and not the other way around". I'd have to see the thread, but it sounds like maybe she never intended to come to Canada, or she didn't resettle in Canada and he tried to come on his own.
AllisonVSC said:
Also, does the "accompanying rule" depend on whether one or both is working? Say for example (I'll use myself) my Canadian partner retires from a long career in a large CAN company and decides to set up a consulting practice in the US while I (nowhere close to retirement) take a job in a US company. Could it be argued that I can not maintain my PR status since it appears that he is accompanying me? Or does it only matter that we live together and our working status is irrelevant?
Has nothing at all to do with whether one or both are working. In your situation: after a long career in a large Canadian company your Canadian partner wants to retire and the two of you decide to move to the US. He wants to set up a consulting practice there . . . you're not ready to retire so you get a job. Assuming he could get status in the States to set up a consulting business (you might have to sponsor him and you'd actually need to be earning a US income to do that), as long as he is a Canadian
citizen, nothing in that scenario causes you to lose your Canadian PR status. He is still your sponsor, regardless of whether he is working (or living) in Canada, and as long as
you are living with him,
you maintain your PR status.
Here's the information from the
Immigration & Refugee Protection Act, Paragraph 28
28(1)A permanent resident must comply with a residency obligation with respect to every five-year period.
(2) The following provisions govern the residency obligation under subsection (1):
(a) a permanent resident complies with the residency obligation with respect to a five-year period if, on each of a total of at
least 730 days in that five-year period, they are
(i) physically present in Canada,
(ii) outside Canada accompanying a Canadian citizen who is their spouse or common-law partner or, in the case of a
child, their parent
Now, the one thing is, though, that time spent outside of Canada with a Canadian citizen partner does not count towards the residency requirement for application for Canadian
citizenship.
