my story: questions posed by a super newbie.

[BaileySponge]

Hello! I am VERY new to all of this.....I can tell that this process is going to be an iceberg of learning, and after a few days of reading, I'm not even on the tip yet.
i'm still at the iceberg climbing store, scoping out the tools i'm going to need to do this properly. this forum is definitely one of those tools.

anyways....i have an american boyfriend, and we are now working on how to get him here, in canada with me.
there are different options we are looking at:

he is a student in college, and we are looking at the option of him transferring to a canadian school, and applying as an internation student to a college in my city. however, this will be quite expensive, as international students get charged quite a bit more to learn here..

if he was finished his degree, then he could maybe get into my country as a skilled worker...but unfortunately that's two years away. so this isn't an option we would like to entertain.

the other option is for me to sponsor him as my husband. so we are looking at getting married in a courthouse, no bells and whistles, basically we would be in it for a piece of paper that says we're married. i'm looking a lot into this option, as it would mean he could go to school here for much cheaper than if he came to canada as an international student.

so i guess these are my questions, to help me decide where i should start putting my focus on:

- are there any options i'm missing? i noticed for australians there was a two year holiday stay.....where australians can come to canada to work, and just get to know canada. maybe i didn't spend enough time looking at it, but it just seemed like an easy thing to offer, and not too difficult to obtain.

- is there anything like this open to americans? just a simple visa that states "come stay a while, see how you like it, and work a little while you're here" that kind of thing? something like the australian holiday stay?

- what would be the pros and cons of coming to canada as an international student, as opposed to coming to canada as my husband?
i know a con for the student visa would be the monday thing, but would it be a pro in that it would be much easier to apply for, and less time consuming?

i'm noticing that for sponsorship of a spouse, it can take forever.....what is a ballpark timeframe for turnaround on a spousal sponsorship - from day 1 of beginning the process (getting documents together, etc), to completion?
can it take up to two years for a sponsorship to fall through? if so, it's not really an option for us..

sorry for so much information, and questions....i'm really kind of lost and not even at stage one of this process. i'm in pre-stages, and it's an informational overload that i'm trying to sort out, so i can begin to form a plan of action as to how we should proceed.

thanks to anyone who may offer some kind of "guiding light"

 

[Leon]

Like you said, student visa would be the expensive way to go since he would have to pay the international student fees.

If you marry him and apply for sponsorship through the US, you would be looking at right now, 66 days in Mississauga to approve you as his sponsor and after that, an average of 6 months in Buffalo, see http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/international/05-fc-spouses.asp#west

If you fail to prove your relationship to immigration, you will be delayed, even refused.

Coming in under the skilled worker program is not really an option for him if you are in a hurry since he hasn't completed his education. Even after 2 years when he graduates, he would need to have at least 1 year skilled work experience and either have a job offer or be in one of the 38 most wanted occupations to qualify to apply under the skilled worker program and even after that, you would still have processing time on top.

 

[BaileySponge]

thanks for that!
yeah it seems that marraige is the way to go, and the other option is that he might be able to get his work to transfer him here.
the second option is more something his work would have to help him with though, it seems like an internal company procedure...

as for the marraige, i think that is the option i'm going to start looking into, so that i can sponsor him..

so...i guess here i go this whole process seems so hefty, i'm going to be learning until my brains fall out.
i think we'll be able to prove the relationship is legit, i have to look more into what criteria is required, but we have a lot of documentation proving that we've met, and can gather more in the meantime while visiting one another...i know thats a big one.

he might be in canada by the time i'm ready to send the documentation off to have him here as my spouse...i guess this depends on if his work can transfer him. i'm assuming the procedure would be different depending on if he is in the country with me at the time of application, or at home.

any tips/information are much appreciated! i'm sure i'll be picking up many along the way as i sift through all of this ...

 

[Leon]

The procedure does not have to be different if he is in Canada when you apply. You always have the option of applying outland through the US.

If he is in Canada when you apply and plans to stay in Canada for the duration of the application, you could apply inland instead. If you do that, it would not be advisable for him to leave Canada at any time during the processing. He could expect to get first stage approval and work permit in about 6 months but getting the PR itself could take 12 - 18 months.