Same-sex partners, as of 2002, are now covered under the Family Class for immigration purposes. In order to meet these requirements, the Canadian partner must be willing to financially sponsor the non-Canadian partner.

To sponsor a partner you must sign an 'Undertaking' with the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. This is a promise to the Government of Canada that you will support your partner for a period of three years so that your partner will not need to apply for social assistance.

You must also sign a Sponsorship Agreement with your partner that outlines your mutual commitments to each other. You must promise to provide for the basic requirements of your sponsored partner for the duration of the Undertaking.

Your sponsored partner must also promise to make every effort to become self-supporting. There are two different sets of requirements that apply to same-sex partners, based upon the physical location of the partner to be sponsored:

1. The non-Canadian partner is residing legally within Canada and has permission to reside within Canada for a period in excess of 1 year?

Refer to CIC web site for IMM 5289E (Applying for Permanent Residence from Within Canada - Spouse or Common-Law Partner Class), Chapter IP 1 (Temporary Resident Permits), Chapter IP 2 (Processing Applications to Sponsor Members of the Family Class), Chapter IP 6 (Processing Temporary Resident Extensions), and Chapter IP 8 (Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada).

2. The non-Canadian partner is residing outside Canada?

Refer to CIC web site for IMM 3900 E (Sponsoring a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner, or dependent child), Chapter OP 1 (Procedures), Chapter OP 2 (Processing Members of the Family Class), Chapter OP 4 (Processing of Applications inder Section 25 of the IRPA [Humanitarian & Compassionate]), and Chapter OP 11 (Temporary Residents).

If you are in Canada on a Visitor, Student or Work Visa that expires in 6 months, and, if you have applied for and have received a 6 month Visa extension (ie: your total permission to stay in Canada is a minimum of 12 full months), you may apply for Permanent Residency. See Hint on requesting Visa extensions.

Note: The OPs and IPs mentioned above are very detailed instructions to the Immigration Dept staff. Their issuance goes a long way to making the workings of the Dept more transparent that previously was the case. Study the relevant documents for your case to determine and predict the actions of the Dept. Such insight into the information they are seeking can provide guidance as to what information should be provided on your application to ensure smooth processing with minimum delays and to avoid possible rejection of your application.

Once the question of location of the Sponsored Partner has been answered above, refer only to the relevant documents mentioned above - either IPs (Sponsored Partner is Inside Canada) or OPs (Sponsored Partner is Outside Canada)

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Note: Spouse

Canadian Marriages:

As of July 20, 2005, marriages of same sex couples are recognized when the Canadian or Canadian Permanent Resident is sponsoring their partner and they were legally married in Canada, Belgium, Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, and the State of Massachusetts. Marriages performed in other countries (except for Belgium, Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, and the State of Massachusetts) are not yet recognized by Canada. Should you have a Marriage Certificate from another country, include the Certificate with the documentation that you provide to support your Common-Law or Conjugal Family Class application. The Certificate will re-enforce your committment to each other. Marriage Licences: (Do not use to prove marriage status- Use Marriage Certificates). These are provided in advance of a planned marriage in a Canadian province (Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia) or territory (Yukon). Marriage Certificates: Use to prove marriage status. These are provided by the Registrar General in each province. Obtaining these Certificates may take many months through regular processing. For an extra user fee, processing can be reduced to weeks or days.

 

Special Circumstances

Should you unfortunately not fall into one of the above categories, consider applying according to these Special Cirumstances.

Sponsors

see R pg 256........Complete Sponsorship Application.......Pay ..... fee......Commit to sponsoring for a term of 3 years from date of landing......Commit to repaying to the Dept. ......