Xkage824

I am currently in Canada under a work permit which is closed to one employer and this ends in August, i no longer work for this company.
i have applied for the Bunac open work permit and am expected to receive confirmation if i have been granted or not the visa in a few weeks.
I am worried that if the Bunac visa does not get granted then i will have to return home to the UK, which i am at all costs trying to avoid.
My girlfriend here has offered to marry me if that means i will be able to stay as she could not cope with seeing me leave (we plan to get married anyway).
I do not live with me girlfriend yet as neither of us have jobs, she is starting a course at a school next month.
I am seeking some guidance... please help

christmasoompa

Hi,

Sorry to hear that you are no longer working for the company you got the TWP for.

You have pretty much outlined all of your options so not sure what guidance we can give to be honest!

If you haven't lived together for at least a year then you can't apply for spousal sponsorship, and your TWP is tied to the employer so to get another one you'd have to go through the LMO process again. Your only option is Bunac really (unless you qualify for SW visa or similar, but that will take quite a bit longer) as you are already aware.

Hopefully you should get Bunac very soon, best of luck.



Edited to add: make sure you start living with your girlfriend asap (and get as much proof as poss of this i.e. joint account, utility bills in both names, both names on rental agreement, joint insurances, wills naming each other as beneficiaries etc) so that at the end of your Bunac visa she can sponsor you and you don't have to go through this again. Or get PR applied for asap via another route so it's completed before the year is up.

iaink

Bunac would work for a year


Find another job, get another LMO and work permit (not so easy in the current climate)


Get married and apply for PR sponsorship


All three are workable options...but marriage for the sake of status is probably a mistake in the long term. She does not need to prove financial means for a spousal sponsorship, but CIC might be suspicious of your motivation and expect a lot of evidence of the validity and strength of your relationship.

Xkage824

what other routes is there for PR ?
So if Bunac fails then we are pretty much screwed ?
or would i be applicable to stay if i was waiting for a visa to work for a company and LMO was being processed ?

Xkage824

i just read that you only have to live together for one year if you are a common law partner not when you are married.
is this true?
what is all the evidence that would be needed to prove that we are seriously devoted to one another?
... someone i know said something about pictures?

iaink

There are many posts here from people who have done all that stuff...start in the wiki and then use the search function for specific terms and Im sure you will be overwhelmed with info.... I married my wife after I became a PR, so cant help directly.

I think you are right that if actually legally married then you dont need to live together the year, but you will be expected to show its not a marriage of convenience. Quick trip to Vegas on the horizon for you perhaps?

iaink

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Quick_...an_Immigration
http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Tempor...Permits-Canada

Have you even tried for another job / LMO? That seems the best non marriage related long term prospect....

As things stand you can stay until your original WP would have expired, the fact the job is gone now doesnt change that. I'm not sure what your status would be if you have a new application in process at that point. If it was a renewal of the old one its assumed your status is still good until proven otherwise (ie if its rejected for some reason)

christmasoompa

If you want to apply as common-law partners (having lived together for a minimum of one year), then basically you need to provide proof that you have been living as 'man and wife' for the year. So all of the stuff that I listed in my post above. Photos are useful but only as extra proof, you'll need much more concrete proof than that to start with.

Seems that Bunac and then common-law sponsorship (to PR) would be the most sensible solution for you as it won't involve marrying just to stay together or having to get another LMO.

But other routes to PR such as Skilled Worker visas are outlined in the Wiki, and Iaink has already given you some excellent links that should help.