missmayej

Hi everyone,

First post here, I've been reading through the Canadian government website and the resources here and I'm still confused.

I am a dual Canadian and UK citizen intending to sponsor my fiancé/common-law partner (a UK citizen) so he can become a Permanent Resident and we can settle in Canada. We are currently living together in the UK. I read that sometimes you can apply for an open work permit in Canada once you've submitted a PR application and are waiting for it to be processed - my question is, can he apply for this from the UK, so that we could potentially move to Canada earlier?

I saw that he could apply for the permit from Canada as long as he had legal status, but how could he get in to Canada with legal status in the first place if he doesn't have a work permit or PR? He can't afford not to work for several months, if he were to enter on a tourist visa, or something like that. Therefore, to me, it would make sense to:

1) send off our sponsorship application, which we're currently working on
2) apply for the open permit from the UK while we're waiting to hear back
3) if it's approved, move to Canada and both get any old job until
4) the sponsorship application is (hopefully) approved and he gets PR, we look for careers in our respective fields, etc.

I hope this question makes sense. Sorry if it's been posted elsewhere, I'm still learning how to navigate this forum!

Thanks so much

christmasoompa

Hi, welcome to BE.

You can only get an open work permit if you apply 'inland' i.e. from Canada (if you were already living there and your fiancé was there on another status i.e. a study permit or work permit). If you're applying from the UK ('outland') then it's not an option I'm afraid. If you've not discovered it already, then our Wiki has tons of useful info - https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spous...d_Applications

And this Wiki article will be invaluable for help completing the application - https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spous...lication_Forms

HTH, best of luck.

missmayej

Thank you, very helpful! I just couldn't seem to find an answer either way so now I know. Thanks also for the links, this forum is invaluable!