sally_skellington

My boyfriend lives in canada and I would like to move there with to live with him. I'll need a PR, naturally. What is the best way- and fastest, to acheive that?

Virgosah

Well... if you are not married to him, living as common law or conjugal partners, then him living in Canada will not help you at all. You would need to apply as a skilled worker, which if I understand correctly, can take up to 24 months to obtain. In the meantime - all you can hope for is a holiday! Start with this:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/

Jim Humphries

Go to Canada, marry and be sponsored. That would be the fastest way. Otherwise you would have to prove at least one year of living together as common law spouses before he could sponsor you.

sally_skellington

ok but how long would it take to be sponsored in that case? would i be able to be in canada as a visitor during all that time? i don't need a visa to visit canada from my country.

Virgosah

You can stay in Canada as a visitor for 6 months (to stay longer you need to apply for extension of this visitors visa). To be sponsored as a spouse it can take anywhere from 6 months to over a year (depending on your individual circumstances)...plus you'd have to get married first! If you apply as common law, firstly you'd need to have been living together for at least a year, and then it could take from 6 months to over a year. There isn't really an exact time in which applications are processed - you just have to be patient.

sally_skellington

Well, my question was mainly, how long I'd need to be a mooch and not be able to work legally. But thank you for your help!

Virgosah

You cannot work until you have your permanent residency...so, I did answer your question! You need to get married first, then submit the application, then wait 6 months to over a year. So , essentially you'd be a mooch for a while...

sally_skellington

it wasn't a sarcastic thanks! and will i need an extended visa if i don't need a visa to visit in the first place? all very confusing...

Jim Humphries

OK - come to Canada. Be frank with the officer at the port of entry if asked about the purpose of your visit. Marry. Be sponsored under the new Inland Spouse Category. Apply to extend your temporary status, it will be approved if you tell them you are in the process of being sponsoered as a spouse. Submit the application as per instructions and wait at least 8 months for approval in principle. Then wait another couple of months until you are called for the landing interview. Then you can work.

Virgosah

I didn't think it was sarcastic!

The word "visa" is used with many different meanings. If you don't need a visa to enter Canada you still need a visitors "visa" to stay in Canada (this is when the immigration officer at the airport stamps your passport). That stamp indicates that you are allowed to be in Canada for 6 months from that date. If you know you want to stay in Canada for longer than that 6 months you need to apply to further this "visa"

sally_skellington

ok but will i be able to enter canada with a one way ticket and tell them i'm not planning on getting out? or what do i say? cos last time i visited, i had to specify when i'm planning on leaving. i have millions of questions!

Jonny

I think you would need a return ticket. I know you will be refused entry as a visitor/tourist with a one-way ticket and this is essentially what you are doing, but if you are declaring to immigration when you land that you intend to marry and apply for PR this might not be the case . It would be safer to get a return ticket and have the return part dated 6 months from arrival, then you can tell the immigration officer when you land that you will leave Canada or apply to extend your visitors visa. Try to get an open ticket or a ticket that you can change the date of the return portion of for a small fee.

Even if you decided not to use the return portion, it might be worth the return ticket. In any case, a return ticket often costs only a little more than a one way ticket. Remember that while your application is in process you are a tourist so you cannot work and you might also have to proove to immigration when you land that you have sufficient funds to support yourself while "on holiday" in Canada for 6 months.

sally_skellington

oh no... i won't be able to do that... it's alot of money! is there any way this would be made possible? you're being very helpful but i'm very frustrated at the thought this won't work.

Jonny

If you can't show that you can support yourself for the length of time of your stay I would suspect that you would be refused entry and sent home. This usually isn't a problem for a normal 2-4 week holiday when they wouldn't usually check, but if you plan to stay for 6 months I would suspect immigration would want you to prove you can support yourself for this period, even if you have a PR application in process.

You can make this a little easier by getting a letter from your boyfriend or his parents that says you can live with him rent free, but you would still need to show that you can support yourself while you are "on holiday". Could you ask for a loan from your boyfriend? Or depending on how close you are to your parents or to your boyfriends parents you could ask them for a little loan so you can wave wads of cash and travellers cheques at immigration when you arrive. It's just to get you past immigration then you can pay them back again.

The other option is for him to come to the UK and you get married here, then apply for PR from the UK. This will take around 6 months, but can take longer if your application is incomplete or not straight forward. He can either just come over for the wedding and go home again while your application is processed, or he can stay here for the entire trip. But he would be subject to the same restrictions coming into the UK, i.e. he would have to prove that he can support himself while "on holiday" here.

Hope that makes sense...

sally_skellington

it does make sense.... problem is... i'm not from the UK. getting a loan seems to be a good option. how much money will they want to see?