Proving cohabitation without joint lease/bills for a same-sex couple outside Canada

[Fine_Ice802]

Hi everyone,
My spouse (Canadian citizen) and I are preparing our Outland spousal sponsorship application and are running into a hurdle with proving cohabitation (IMM5533, Part B, Q7a). We’d be really grateful for feedback from anyone who’s faced a similar issue.

Our Situation

• We’re a same-sex couple, legally married in Canada last year.
• We’ve been together for almost 10 years.
• We currently live together outside Canada, in a country where same-sex marriage, civil unions, or same-sex partnerships aren't legally recognized. Institutions in general are not LGBT friendly and our relationship is not publicly known outside of our closest friend circle.
• Because of this, we can’t have joint bank accounts (this does not exist in our country), joint leases, or shared utility bills.
• My spouse (the sponsor) owns the apartment we live in, so there’s no lease, and all bills are in his name.
• My official registered address is still in my city where I previously lived before moving in with my spouse - changing it would require updating my passport. While this wouldn’t invalidate my valid Canadian TRV (visitor visa), it could cause airport delays or complications when travelling, so I’ve postponed it for now.

Planned Proof of Cohabitation

We’re preparing a Letter of Explanation (LoE) detailing these legal and administrative limitations. Alongside it, we plan to include:

• Furniture and delivery receipts (e.g., IKEA) showing my name and our shared address
• Gym memberships or similar memberships registered to that address
• Letters from friends and neighbours confirming that we live together

Our Questions

1. For couples in similar circumstances (especially LGBTQ+ applicants from countries without legal recognition and formal documents of cohabitation), was this type of alternative evidence accepted by IRCC when paired with a strong LoE?
2. Has anyone successfully been approved without a joint lease or bills, and what types of documents seemed to carry the most weight? We have around 10 letters that in various ways confirm and support our relationship as genuine, do we need more than that? We also have documented pictures living together, traveling together and hanging out with friends throughout the 10 years of our relationship.

This cohabitation proof feels like the trickiest part of our application. Any experiences or advice would be incredibly helpful.

Thanks so much for your time and input!

 

[armoured]

I think you'll be fine - your approach is well-organized and if anything you probably have more than needed (but not excessive). Since you are married it's not that critical to demonstrate you are living together. I presume you have info from the relationship (photos etc) and a bit from the wedding.

One thing, presumably addressed separately, it will also be important to show that you have plans to move to Canada (required for citizens sponsoring while residing abroad). If you approach that in as organised and straightforward way as you have above, you should also be well situated. Minor point, after submitting, continue to prepare and keep info about that, as IRCC sometimes (more often recently) requests info on preps and more credible to submit an update about preps.