If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
Jun 24th 2015, 2:54 am
#1
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Joined: Nov 2012
Location: NZ
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If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
Hi,
I'm about to leave Canada after 2 years on IEC. In that time I have spent 18 months working for a job which is ranked 'B' for NOC. I also have 4 years UK experience within an NOC 'A' job.
I'm going to NZ for a year, then to the UK for a year. After that I will be looking to return to Canada. I will be 32 at that point. My girlfriend is from Quebec, a Canadian national. She's coming with me to NZ and the UK, and we're talking about our options for returning to Canada (BC, not QB) afterwards.
Can someone please advise re the requirements for entering Canada as common-law/married partners? We have been talking about getting married to enable me to return to Canada and thus stay together, but we've heard conflicting information such as that simply being married is not enough to enable me as a UK resident to live and work over here. Does it matter that she's originally from Quebec?
I am also considering taking the IELTS and applying for EE in the near future, just to be in the selection pool, but I'm finding it hard to find information about how long I can be in the pool for, i.e. if I were offered an ITA then would I have to accept it/arrive within a certain timeframe? I know I can pass it easily and will happily book it tomorrow, but lots of sites are suggesting that it is only valid for 2 years (so I'll likely take it once I return to the UK).
It's one of those situations which is so far ahead (2 years at least) that it's not a serious proposition right now, but it would be good to hear from anyone with anything to suggest. I like to plan ahead.
Thank you for any suggestions, if it wasn't for the contributions from this website I would never even be in BC to ask these questions in the first place.
I'm about to leave Canada after 2 years on IEC. In that time I have spent 18 months working for a job which is ranked 'B' for NOC. I also have 4 years UK experience within an NOC 'A' job.
I'm going to NZ for a year, then to the UK for a year. After that I will be looking to return to Canada. I will be 32 at that point. My girlfriend is from Quebec, a Canadian national. She's coming with me to NZ and the UK, and we're talking about our options for returning to Canada (BC, not QB) afterwards.
Can someone please advise re the requirements for entering Canada as common-law/married partners? We have been talking about getting married to enable me to return to Canada and thus stay together, but we've heard conflicting information such as that simply being married is not enough to enable me as a UK resident to live and work over here. Does it matter that she's originally from Quebec?
I am also considering taking the IELTS and applying for EE in the near future, just to be in the selection pool, but I'm finding it hard to find information about how long I can be in the pool for, i.e. if I were offered an ITA then would I have to accept it/arrive within a certain timeframe? I know I can pass it easily and will happily book it tomorrow, but lots of sites are suggesting that it is only valid for 2 years (so I'll likely take it once I return to the UK).
It's one of those situations which is so far ahead (2 years at least) that it's not a serious proposition right now, but it would be good to hear from anyone with anything to suggest. I like to plan ahead.
Thank you for any suggestions, if it wasn't for the contributions from this website I would never even be in BC to ask these questions in the first place.
Jun 24th 2015, 2:57 am
#2
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2011
Location: Somewhere between Vancouver & St Johns
Posts: 19,849
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
Read this link and several of your questions will be answered
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
Jun 24th 2015, 3:00 am
#3
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2012
Location: NZ
Posts: 102
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
Read this link and several of your questions will be answered
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
Jun 24th 2015, 3:10 am
#4
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2012
Location: NZ
Posts: 102
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
Read this link and several of your questions will be answered
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
Sponsor your spouse, partner or children
She *can* potentially sponsor me under common-law and it says she is financially responsible for me for up to 3 years - though I must "attempt to support myself". This brings me back to my original point - can I work?
Jun 24th 2015, 3:12 am
#5
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Joined: Nov 2012
Location: NZ
Posts: 102
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
My girlfriend is originally from QB but no longer resident there. Does this mean that she has to meet the QB criteria as well as the standard Canadian criteria? Her family is still living there so she has links (and thinking about it, she also uses her parents' address for some things. I can foresee this requiring to meet QB criteria too).
She *can* potentially sponsor me under common-law and it says she is financially responsible for me for up to 3 years - though I must "attempt to support myself". This brings me back to my original point - can I work?
She *can* potentially sponsor me under common-law and it says she is financially responsible for me for up to 3 years - though I must "attempt to support myself". This brings me back to my original point - can I work?
Jun 24th 2015, 8:24 am
#6
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Posts: 34,033
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
If you apply 'inland', then yes you'd get an open work permit about 4 months after applying (assuming that the pilot program giving work permits is still in place then - it's a new thing).
But tbh, I can't see why you'd even consider applying inland if you're going to be living together for the next 2 years. If you apply 'outland' after you've lived together for a year or more (make sure you document it), then you'd have PR before you move back to Canada so would enter as a Permanent Resident and have all the rights that entails, including being able to work from day 1.
HTH a bit, good luck.
But tbh, I can't see why you'd even consider applying inland if you're going to be living together for the next 2 years. If you apply 'outland' after you've lived together for a year or more (make sure you document it), then you'd have PR before you move back to Canada so would enter as a Permanent Resident and have all the rights that entails, including being able to work from day 1.
HTH a bit, good luck.
Jun 24th 2015, 11:33 am
#7
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2011
Location: Somewhere between Vancouver & St Johns
Posts: 19,849
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
My girlfriend is originally from QB but no longer resident there. Does this mean that she has to meet the QB criteria as well as the standard Canadian criteria? Her family is still living there so she has links (and thinking about it, she also uses her parents' address for some things. I can foresee this requiring to meet QB criteria too).
She *can* potentially sponsor me under common-law and it says she is financially responsible for me for up to 3 years - though I must "attempt to support myself". This brings me back to my original point - can I work?
She *can* potentially sponsor me under common-law and it says she is financially responsible for me for up to 3 years - though I must "attempt to support myself". This brings me back to my original point - can I work?
Jun 24th 2015, 1:49 pm
#8
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Joined: Jun 2011
Location: Oakville, ON, CA
Posts: 8,320
Re: If I marry my Canadian gf, am I able to work here?
It would be worth reading the Spousal Sponsorship article on the wiki as well, that explains the pros and cons of inland vs outland.
I personally think you should just get an outland application filed. If you have been living together for 12 months and can prove it then you can apply as common-law. If you aren't planning on moving back to Canada for 2 years, then you'll certainly have your PR sorted out well before the 2-year mark - it will be in hand when you want to move back so you don't have to wait later to get it sorted. Applications through London are taking roughly a year at the moment, so you need a bit of lead time to get it sorted. Once you have your full PR in hand you can go straight to work.
The option for the work permit requires both you and your sponsor to be physically living inside Canada, and you wouldn't be able to work for the first 4ish months until your work permit comes in. So I personally think you are better off applying outland and sorting it all well before you are actually planning on moving.
I personally think you should just get an outland application filed. If you have been living together for 12 months and can prove it then you can apply as common-law. If you aren't planning on moving back to Canada for 2 years, then you'll certainly have your PR sorted out well before the 2-year mark - it will be in hand when you want to move back so you don't have to wait later to get it sorted. Applications through London are taking roughly a year at the moment, so you need a bit of lead time to get it sorted. Once you have your full PR in hand you can go straight to work.
The option for the work permit requires both you and your sponsor to be physically living inside Canada, and you wouldn't be able to work for the first 4ish months until your work permit comes in. So I personally think you are better off applying outland and sorting it all well before you are actually planning on moving.
