It is very common for new immigrants to sponsor their spouse or common-law partner for permanent residence in Canada. However, you must be aware of certain factors that could get in the way of your sponsorship application being approved.
Most Common Reasons for Refusal of a Spousal Sponsorship Application
Ineligible Sponsor:
You should remember that simply being a Canadian citizen or permanent resident will not make you an eligible sponsor. You must meet the minimum requirements to be a sponsor. This includes meeting the minimum age and income requirements. If you sponsor anyone other than your spouse or dependent children, you will be required to meet the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) requirement.
Other eligibility requirements include having no criminal record or default on loan repayments or family support payments. You should also have sufficient proof of relationship to demonstrate your relationship with the relative that you intend to sponsor.
Ineligible to be Sponsored:
The family member being sponsored for permanent residence in Canada must also meet the basic eligibility requirements. This is to ensure that inadmissible individuals do not bypass the mandatory requirements to receive Canadian permanent residence.
Also, it is important to remember that you can sponsor only certain family members and relatives. You can not say, sponsor your fiance(e) or friend. The intended sponsor must not be medically or criminally inadmissible to Canada.
Sponsor Is Residing Outside Canada:
As a sponsor, only Canadian citizens are eligible to initiate the sponsorship process if they are residing outside Canada. This is not true for permanent resident sponsors. As a permanent resident of Canada, you have to be currently residing in the country to begin the sponsorship process for your family member or relative. If you are residing outside the country, then your application will be refused.
Undeclared Family Members:
As a sponsorship applicant, you will be required to declare all your family members in the application, even the ones you don’t intend to sponsor. Failing to mention all family members will result in refusal of your permanent residence application and may even affect the sponsor’s status as a permanent resident in Canada.
