Canadian citizens or permanent residents may be able to sponsor a foreign boyfriend or girlfriend for permanent residence in Canada if they qualify under one of the relevant sponsorship programs. Such programs include:
There are certain requirements that must be met if you wish to sponsor your foreign boyfriend or girlfriend. As a sponsor, you must provide evidence demonstrating that you:
- are 18 years old or older;
- are a Canadian citizen, a Canadian permanent resident, or a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act;
- are able to provide the basic necessities for any person you wish to sponsor.
Failing to meet these requirements may result in being ineligible to sponsor the foreign relative. However, if the immigration authorities are satisfied that you meet the eligibility requirements, you will have to demonstrate next that your application falls under one of the sponsorship categories.
Sponsoring a Spouse
Under this program, a Canadian sponsor enters a marital relationship with a foreign national. This means that the couple has been legally married in Canada or in any other foreign country and that their marriage is valid in both Canadian jurisdiction and the jurisdiction where the marriage took place. In addition, couples under this category must submit documentary evidence to immigration authorities demonstrating that they are in a genuine marital relationship.
Sponsoring a Common-Law Partner
In addition to the requirement that a sponsor must be at least 18 years old and is a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or registered Indian, the couple under this program must have been cohabitating together for at least 12 consecutive months (1 year) prior to submitting the sponsorship application. The couple will also be required to submit evidence proving the genuineness of their common-law relationship including proof of cohabitating for the specified period.
Sponsoring a Conjugal Partner
The conjugal partner sponsorship program is an exception category for couples who cannot marry and cannot live together due to legal or other immigration barriers. Under the conjugal partner sponsorship program, an applicant must be at least 18 years old, isn’t legally married or in a common-law relationship with the sponsor, has been in a relationship with the sponsor for at least 12 months (1 year), and is living outside Canada, and cannot marry or live with the sponsor due to extenuating circumstances. Because this sponsorship program is considered an exceptional category, couples CANNOT use it as an avenue to facilitate sponsoring their foreign boyfriends, girlfriends, or fiancés.
What If My Boyfriend or Girlfriend Do Not Qualify for These Sponsorship Programs?
If you do not qualify to sponsor your partner through the spousal, common-law, or conjugal partner sponsorship programs, you will not be able to bring them to Canada through the sponsorship process. Instead, you may be able to bring them to Canada by applying under a temporary resident visa (TRV) program.
Examples of temporary resident visas include:
- applying for a visitor visa,
- applying for a work permit,
- applying for a study permit.
TRVs allow the foreign applicant to enter Canada and remain in Canada for a temporary period. The TRV holder will also be subjected to certain conditions based on the category applied for – such as work restrictions. For instance, a visitor visa holder is not permitted to work in Canada and is allowed to stay in Canada for up to 6 months.
Before applying for a visitor visa for your boyfriend, girlfriend, or fiancé, it is important to check whether their country is considered “visa-exempt”. This means that the person does not have to apply for a visa to enter Canada but can rather enter the country through Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) if travelling by air.
Entry through eTA does NOT grant automatic permanent residence in Canada. Your boyfriend, girlfriend, or fiancé will still be required to comply with the TRV conditions provided based on the temporary resident program applied under.
A list of visa-exempt countries can be found on the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) website and include the USA, Mexico, most European countries, Australia, Japan, and Korea.
How Can We Help
The Law Office of Matthew Jeffery has over 20 years of experience in guiding individuals through the entire sponsorship process from start to finish to ensure success. Fill out a FREE Sponsorship Assessment form to see if we can help you bring your partner to Canada.