Permanent Residence Spousal and Common-Law Sponsorship
Spousal and Common-Law Sponsorship
Sponsoring a spouse or common-law partner for permanent residence, inland or outland.
Viviane Trudel, RCIC-IRB Licence #R723047
Spousal and common-law sponsorship allow a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to sponsor their spouse, or a partner they are not married to but have lived with in a conjugal relationship for at least 12 consecutive months. Applications can be made:
- From inside Canada (inland)
- Through the outland stream
Each route carries different consequences for work, travel and appeal rights. Without a marriage certificate, a common-law application rests on proof that you have built a shared life.
Who spousal and common-law sponsorship is for
- Canadian citizens or permanent residents, 18 or older, sponsoring a spouse or common-law partner
- Married couples, whether the marriage took place in Canada or abroad
- Common-law couples who have lived together in a conjugal relationship for at least 12 consecutive months, including those with short absences for work, business travel or family obligations
- Common-law couples whose proof of a shared address is limited or informal, such as gaps between leases or accounts in one name
- Partners living together in Canada, where the sponsored partner holds a work permit, study permit or visitor status
- Partners living apart, with the sponsored partner currently outside Canada
- Partners who need to keep working while the application is processed, through an open work permit
- Sponsors with a previous sponsorship, a prior refusal or a complex immigration history
- Families including dependent children in the application
Sponsors living in Quebec follow a separate provincial process, which we do not handle.
Spousal and common-law sponsorship representation
Eligibility and strategy development
- Sponsor eligibility review, including residence, prior undertakings and applicable sponsorship bars.
- Relationship eligibility assessment, including marriage validity under Canadian law or, for common-law couples, the 12-month cohabitation requirement and any periods apart.
- Review of both partners’ immigration history and admissibility, including refusals, criminality and medical concerns.
- Risk identification and mitigation before submission.
- Inland versus outland strategy, based on immigration status, travel plans, work authorization and appeal rights.
- Status and work permit planning, including maintaining legal status and assessing eligibility for a spousal open work permit.
- Family-wide immigration planning, including applications and status considerations for dependent children.
Application preparation and submission
- A tailored document checklist for the sponsor, sponsored spouse or partner, and any dependent children
- Preparation and review of all required IRCC forms and supporting documents
- A written legal submission addressing sponsorship eligibility, relationship genuineness and any relevant complexities
- An organized application package with relationship evidence, submitted to IRCC on your behalf as your authorized representative
Post-submission support
- Monitoring of your file and handling of all IRCC correspondence, including requests for documents, biometrics and medical exams
- Updates to IRCC regarding changes in personal circumstances or immigration status
Spousal and common-law sponsorship questions
For immigration purposes, a common-law partner is someone you have lived with in a conjugal, marriage-like relationship for at least 12 consecutive months. You do not need to be married. Short periods apart for work, business travel or family obligations do not necessarily break the 12 months, but long periods apart can raise questions. If you have lived together for less than 12 months, the relationship does not yet meet the definition.
IRCC looks at the evidence as a whole. Common examples are a joint lease or shared property, utility and other accounts in both names, identification and important documents showing the same address, joint finances and shared expenses, and statements from people who know you as a couple. The strongest applications show clearly where you lived, when you lived together and how you share your life.
An inland application is filed under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class. It is available to partners who are already living in Canada, and the applicant is normally expected to stay in the country while the file is processed. An outland application falls under the Family Class and can be submitted whether the sponsored partner lives in Canada or abroad. The choice also affects your options if the application is refused. An outland refusal can usually be appealed to the Immigration Appeal Division, while an inland refusal has no appeal to the IAD; it is typically challenged by applying for judicial review at the Federal Court.
If you apply inland and your spouse holds valid status in Canada, they can apply for a Spousal Open Work Permit and work for almost any employer while the sponsorship is processed. We file the two applications together.
A refusal should be reviewed before reapplying. Options may include requesting officer’s notes, submitting a reconsideration request, filing a stronger new application, appealing to the Immigration Appeal Division where an appeal right exists, or seeking judicial review at the Federal Court. Refusals often involve concerns about genuineness, marriage validity, insufficient relationship evidence, inconsistencies, sponsor eligibility, applicant admissibility, misrepresentation, or failure to respond adequately to a procedural fairness letter.
Professional fees with Trudel Immigration Consulting for a Spousal or Common-Law Sponsorship application start at CAD $4,000. Government processing fees are additional, as are any applicable costs for biometrics, translations, police certificates, medical examinations, and other third-party services.