Applications for spousal sponsorship are processed on priority as IRCC strives to complete the decision-making within 12 months.

If you’re a Canadian citizen, Registered Indian or a permanent resident of Canada who is 18 years of age or older and you want to sponsor:

• Your spouse or common-law partner who lives with you in Canada.
• Your spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner who lives overseas.

If you’re applying under the Spouse or Common–law partner in Canada class, your spouse or partner may be able to apply for an Open Work Permit.

When you agree to be a sponsor, you must sign an undertaking, promising to give financial support for the basic needs of your spouse or partner and their dependent children.

Basic needs are:

• food, clothing, shelter, and other needs for everyday living,
• dental care, eye care and other health needs that aren’t covered by public health services.

• at least 18 years old
• a Canadian citizen, a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act or a permanent resident,
• living in Canada:
• if you’re a Canadian citizen living outside Canada, you must show that you plan to live in Canada when your sponsored relative becomes a permanent resident.
• You can’t sponsor someone if you’re a permanent resident living outside of Canada.
• able to prove that you are not receiving social assistance for reasons other than a disability, and.

You must also be able to show that you can provide basic needs for:

• yourself,
• your spouse or partner,
• your spouse or partner’s dependent child(ren) (if applicable)
• your dependent child(ren) (if you’re sponsoring only your dependent child).

Note: In most cases, if you are sponsoring a spouse, partner or dependent child, there is no minimum necessary income (MNI) requirement you need to meet. However, you must meet the minimum income requirement if the spouse or partner you’re sponsoring has a dependent child who has dependent child of their own, or the dependent child you are sponsoring has a dependent child of their own. The income requirement is based on Statistics Canada’s annual Low-income Cut-Off (LICO).

Note: You can still sponsor if you are receiving maternity, parental and sickness benefits paid under the Employment Insurance Act. These benefits also count as income for the purposes of meeting the MNI.

You can still sponsor if you are receiving regular Employment Insurance and federal training allowances. These benefits don’t normally count towards income for the purposes of meeting the MNI.

If you’re a Canadian citizen living outside Canada, you can sponsor your:

• spouse,
• common-law partner,
• conjugal partner,
• dependent child.

You must show that you’ll live in Canada when the sponsored person becomes a permanent resident.

Note: Permanent residents living abroad can’t sponsor from outside of Canada.

Using this application, you can sponsor your spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner who is at least 18 years old, or your dependent child. The person you’re sponsoring, and their family members must pass background, security and medical checks.

• If you’re sponsoring your conjugal partner or dependent child, you must apply under the Family Class. These applications are processed outside Canada.
• If you’re sponsoring your spouse or common-law partner, you may sponsor them under the Family Class or under the Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada Class.

Apply under the Family Class if:

• the person you want to sponsor lives outside Canada.
• the person you want to sponsor currently lives with you in Canada but doesn’t plan to stay in Canada while the application is being processed.
• you plan to appeal if the application is refused.
• you’re sponsoring your conjugal partner or dependent child.

Apply under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class if your spouse or common-law partner:

• lives with you in Canada
• has valid temporary resident status in Canada, or is exempt from needing this status under a public policy.

These terms apply to couples of any gender.

If you’re married

You can sponsor the person as your spouse if your marriage is a legally valid civil marriage.

Marriages will be recognized for immigration purposes, where the marriage:

1. was legally performed in Canada, or
2. if performed outside of Canada, the marriage must be legally recognized both in the country where it took place and in Canada.

If you’re in a common-law relationship

You can sponsor the person as your common-law partner (any gender) as long as you’ve been living or have lived with your partner for at least 12 consecutive months in a marriage-like relationship.

If you’re in conjugal relationship

A conjugal partner is:

• a person who is living outside Canada,
• in a conjugal relationship with the sponsor for at least one year

You can sponsor a conjugal partner if:

• there is a significant degree of attachment between the two of you, implying not just a physical relationship but a mutually interdependent relationship, and
• you’ve been in a genuine (real) relationship for at least 12 months where marriage or cohabitation (living together) hasn’t been possible for any reason.

IMPORTANT: If you’re applying in the conjugal partner class, the person being sponsored cannot be living in Canada.

You will follow four steps while applying for spousal sponsorship. The application to sponsor your spouse or partner will also accompany the application for permanent residency of the spouse or partner. Following are the standard stepsfor the application:

• Download the application package from a relevant government site
• Pay the fees through online portal
• Following the instructions for the submission of the application
• Submission of supporting documents

There are multiple reasons for the refusal of spousal sponsorship application like:

• Lack of proper documentation
• Errors in the application forms
• Inability to meet eligibility criteria
• Misrepresentation
• Hiring an experienced consultant can help you avoid delays and refusals. Nrich Immigration offers expert and professional guidance to help you sponsor your loved ones by explaining all the process in detail.