Canadian citizens and permanent residents may sponsor their spouse or common-law partner for immigration to Canada. If successful, the sponsored person obtains permanent resident status, allowing the couple (or family, if applicable) to build their lives in Canada.
The common-law / spousal sponsorship Canada immigration program is a part of the Family Class category, through which Canada welcomes a substantial number of new permanent residents annually.
If you are interested in this pathway to permanent residence, either as the sponsor or sponsored person, there is much to consider. Important considerations include:
Both the sponsor and sponsored person must be approved by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in order for the sponsored person to receive Canadian permanent residence.
Please note that if you reside in the province of Quebec, you must also satisfy Quebec’s additional requirements for sponsorship.
You can sponsor your spouse or common-law partner for Canadian immigration if you are:
If you are a Canadian citizen living outside Canada, you must show that you plan to live in Canada when your spouse or partner becomes a permanent resident. You can’t sponsor someone if you are a permanent resident living outside Canada.
Some other things to note:
For spousal sponsorship in Canada, a spouse is a partner with whom you are legally married. This includes both opposite- and same-sex relationships.
For common-law sponsorship in Canada, a common-law partner isn’t legally married to you, but has been living with you for at least 12 consecutive months, meaning:
The definition of common-law partner includes both opposite- and same-sex relationships.
For spousal sponsorship in Canada, a conjugal partner is a person outside Canada who has had a binding relationship with you for at least one year, but could not, for some reason(s), live with you. Individuals living in Canada are not eligible to be sponsored as conjugal partners.
The definition of conjugal partner includes both opposite- and same-sex relationships.
Two terms are commonly used to describe the types of application that may be submitted: Outland sponsorship, and Inland sponsorship. Though these terms are rarely, if ever, used by IRCC, they are nonetheless terms that applicants, representatives, and other stakeholders often use.
If the sponsored person resides outside Canada, the application for permanent residence must be submitted to IRCC’s Case Processing Centre in Sydney, Nova Scotia. This is referred to as Outland sponsorship.
Inland sponsorship may be pursued when the couple is together in Canada and the foreign spouse/common-law partner has temporary status in Canada, either as a worker, student, or visitor. Inland applications must be submitted to IRCC’s Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario.
Sponsored spouses who have temporary residence status in Canada may be eligible for an open work permit, allowing them to work in Canada while the application is being processed. This open work permit initiative first began as a pilot program in 2014, and has then been extended every year since after it became clear that it helped families across Canada. In May 2023, Canada announced that Outland candidates would also be eligible for an open work permit.
Applicants residing in Canada may choose to pursue Outland sponsorship, even though they reside in Canada (therefore also making Inland sponsorship an option). A potential advantage to the Outland pathway is that in some cases the processing time may be shorter. However, IRCC has taken steps to reduce processing times in the spousal/common-law sponsorship program, particularly Inland sponsorship applications, thereby making Inland sponsorship more attractive than before, particularly as this pathway includes the possibility of the sponsored person being allowed to work in Canada before processing of the sponsorship application has been completed.
