Hello! I would really appreciate some help. Me and my boyfriend have been talking online for 2 years now, I am from Russia and he is Canadian. We’ve wanted to meet sooner but couldn’t due to Covid restrictions, however now we are ready and want to apply for a Visitor Visa. I have a bit of previous travel experience, a part time job that I just started, and I owe 1/6 of an apartment here. Would that be enough to prove that I will leave by the time the visa expires? Also is it worth mentioning in our letter of invitation and purpose of travel that we are together, or will that make it seem like I might stay in Canada? The plan is to spend 6 months together (since this is the longest I can stay as a visitor) and after that if everything goes well we’re going to get married and when I get back to my home country I’m gonna apply for immigration. Whats the best way to go about this?
Visiting my partner
- Thread starter notjedy
- Start date
Six months is a very long visit. This will indicate that you don't have any real ties to your home country and will make it more difficult to be approved. Your ties to your home country are already quite low with only a part time job you recently started and part ownership in an apartment.
Do you have a strong travel history? Have you previously traveled to countries requiring visas such as the US or UK?
How much can you show in proof of funds to support your visit?
I’ve traveled to Finland, Belgium and Netherlands out of countries that require a visa, Ive also been to Egypt and Turkey
My partner will be sponsoring the trip completely, he has around 35000 CAD
Are the chances of me getting approved higher if I only visit for lets say 2 months or so? It wouldn’t be a problem but I’m a little worried since if we’ve only been together in real life for so little wouldn’t that make our relationship seem less ‘legit’ if I do decide to apply for immigration later?
It's good that you have a travel history. However your ties are weak. Can you show any bank balance to support your travels? It weakens your application significantly if you can't, especially due to the fact that you have never met your boyfriend in person.
I would say that two months is still quite a long time. IRCC will be concerned that you plan to remain long term given you're coming to visit a boyfriend and have relatively weak ties to your home country. I would ask for a three week visit and start with that.
Don't buy a flight ticket until you know if the application is approved or refused.
Unfortunately I don’t have a lot of money on my own, Ive changed jobs a lot recently and I have had bigger salaries before but I haven’t got anything saved up, only paychecks from months ago. I understand that the time I stay shouldn’t be long but the plane tickets would cost a lot and spending so much for only a few weeks feels like too much if once again that can affect how legitimate our relationship will seem later on. Is there no way I can get approved to stay for 6 months?
So to be clear, how long you are allowed to remain in Canada is decided by the CBSA officer when you arrive here. It is not determined by the length of your TRV. So let's say you get a TRV approved that is valid for several years, when you fly to Canada, if you are allowed into Canada and how long you are actually allowed to stay in Canada is decided by the CBSA officer. Visitors are often given six months by default, but a shorter stay is possible if CBSA has some concerns. Also, although rarely, people are sometimes refused entry.
What you want to do is to put together as strong as possible an application in order to get the TRV approved. You have a decent travel history. This is good. On the other hand, your ties to your home country are weak, you have no funds to support your stay, and you are coming to visit a boyfriend which may raise concerns you have plans to remain long term. This is why I am recommending only requesting a 2-3 week visit. Ultimately up to you.
I didnt know that, thank you so much! I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge. I’ll probably try and get a visa agent to help with our specific case so hopefully that can make our chances higher. Thank you so much once again and have a great day
If anyone is able to, I would appreciate some advice on how to write a purpose of travel letter specifically in our situation. Do I mention that we are together? Do I mention the amount of time we want to spend together (and if I do, is it possible to get a visa for longer than I mention or is it strictly for however much I ask for?)? Is there anything that can make it more believable that I will return to Russia at the end of my stay? And also, do I provide proof of relationship if the only things I have for that are texts and FaceTime calls? If its possible please don’t mention that it’s highly unlikely I will get approved at all, I am aware of that now but I want to try anyway, its just a bit discouraging to hear. Thank you so much in advance for whoever replies