Success: Common Law Approval in 3 Months
Long-lasting and impactful personal relationships can be vital for the support and development of individuals to thrive in a new country such as Canada. Unfortunately, some individuals are under the impression that sponsorship applications can only be made when a couple is married. However, the IRCC outlines three (3) eligible types of spousal relationships: legally married, common law and conjugal.
In the case outlined below, the sponsor and applicant were involved in a common law union as they had been living together for more than 12 consecutive months. Both the sponsor and the applicant in the case below were in Canada at the time their application was made. The sponsor was able to show that the couple lived together for the requisite time of one year and that the sponsor held permanent resident status in Canada. The common law couple started their journey with CIL in June of 2022, with the help of the CIL’s staff and the cooperation of the sponsor and applicant a positive decision was made by the IRCC within 3 months after submitting the PR application.
- June 2022 – couple retained CIL for Immigration matters regarding common-law sponsorship.
- Between June 2022, and January of 2023, CIL Staff worked alongside the couple to gather documents and prepare for submission.
- In February 2023 the full application package was submitted to IRCC via the online portal.
- After a month, in March of 2023, the sponsor’s eligibility was approved by IRCC with a notice of approval.
- Additionally, in mid-March of 2023, the applicant received notice that their biometrics were approved.
- In May 2023, IRCC sent a letter approving the common law sponsorship application.
NOTE* Typically a medical examination of the applicant is required, and an approval or denial letter is sent by IRCC once completed however an exemption was made in this case due to the applicant’s existing student visa and medical examination conducted within a 5-year period of the common law application’s submission.
