Spouse Refused? OPTIONS
You sponsored your spouse and they got refused? What are your options?
Your range of options should have been considered before you even submitted your spousal application. Your selection of which route to take should depend on your personal situations and those of your spouse. Don’t let anyone tell you that you do not need to seek immigration advice because a spousal application is simple and they applied successfully themselves without trouble.
Spouses that are already in Canada can be sponsored from within Canada regardless of their status with IRCC. You can sponsor your spouse if they are in Canada, from within Canada or from abroad as long as they are in Canada. If you decide to sponsor your in-status spouse from within Canada they must remain in Canada during all of the processing.
IN-LAND SPOUSAL SPONSORSHIPS
This option is mainly used when the couple do not wish to be separated for a year or more while processing is in process. If your spouse is a valid visitor, student or on a temporary work permit an In-Land application holds the least risk. Keeping your spouse in status while processing is proceeding is not that difficult.
If your spouse is Out-of-Status because all they did was overstay when they fell in love with you it is unlikely that they will face arrest if they behave themselves. Those that have applied for asylum and been refused and never left, applied for an extension and told to leave and didn’t probably have a warrant for their arrest on file. When the Immigration Officer finally gets around to assessing your spouses application it is very likely he/she will inform the (CBSA) Canada Border Service Agency there is a warrant for your spouses arrest. There are scenarios available to prevent the applicants arrest.
CBSA will probably show up around 5 a.m. and arrest your spouse if there is a warrant on file. They will demand that you surrender their passport to CBSA before any release would even be considered. Having an application in progress will NOT prevent CBSA from putting your loved one on a plane back home. Once outside of Canada that In-Land spousal application is ended and you will be required to reapply Out-Land.
If you choose to be penny wise and pound foolish by DIY spousal application route and the two of you are called for an interview be scared. The IRCC Officer is already of the opinion that your spouse is using you to gain status under the act or that he/she paid you to marry them. The IRCC Officer will act as your friend to get you to relax too much.
TYPICAL SPOUSAL INTERVIEW QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD AVOID;
When did your relationship become one of a more romantic nature? What you classify as a “romantic nature” could be totally different to what your spouse calls a “romantic nature”! It is best to respond to that question with a question, Do you mean ________?
Which side of the bed do you sleep on? Always respond to that question by saying from the foot of the bed I sleep on the _________ side! The way you and your spouse view the bed in their minds makes a huge difference.
Describe your residence from walking in the front door? The answer should be practised again and again because what a man sees as important to mention or leave out is totally differnet then what a woman deems important to mention. Women will normally never forget that their is a mirror right inside the entrance but a man will forget to mention that. Men can get turned around thinking the bathroom is on the left when actually it is on the right. Even if both of you bought a painting at Homesense and he mounted it on the wall in three months if anyone asks him what is that painting about he just won’t know.
If you get refused an In-Land application their is NO OPTION to appeal the refusal. It would be best to let him/her leave and apply from abroad this time with an experienced Immigration Counsel.
OUTLAND SPOUSAL SPONSORSHIP
Hiring an experienced (reputable) Immigration Counsel has a task to decrease the chances of you being called for an interview, thereby saving you months in processing times. It is not so much about the quantity of documentary evidence you submit but about the quality of that evidence that is submitted.
When you decide to DIY own application and start submitting excessive amounts of evidence it frustrates the Visa Post Officer because they start thinking the two of you are trying too hard to prove your relationship. Be very careful of submitting text to prove a relationship because the text does not show the tone of the conversation or what the author may be hinting at.
Yesterday I saw a spousal sponsorship refusal letter mainly based on nothing but a text message. I was consulting with the applicant over ZOOM for more than an hour explaining all of his options. They were a couple from two different ethnic groups. The applicant felt the Visa Officer could not accept a women from her ethnic group would want to marry a man from his ethnic group. The Visa Post Officer was not a Canadian but a local who had been Designated as a Visa Office. He thought it was simple, they got married because they LOVE each other.
The young couple decided to submit a whole bunch of text messages to show they were maintianing communication. They thought the volume of text messages would be impressive and did not really expect the Visa Post Officer to read all of their messages. Some text messages were very personal and some very bland.
The Visa Post Officer mainly focused one ONE Text Message from a Sponsor where she suggested her then Canadian visitor boyfirend should look for a place to rent in Canada. There was nothing in that text message that implied she wanted him to move in with her. Was she not interested in living with him? Did she want to maintain her independence? Did she want to maintain her chaste reputation? Was she actually hinting that he should move in with her? Text messagin is open to interpretations.
The applicant was asked to explain why his sponsor was suggesting he look for a place to rent when she owns a house in Toronto with lots of space. Nothing the applicant could say would sway the Visa Post Officer opinion that at that particular time there was no real boyfriend-girlfriend relationship which there was. Of course there was other reasons for the refusal but the Visa Post Officer started with this text message questions and from that point the spousal interview went downhill fast.
When any Out-Land spousal sponsorship application is refused you have two options. To appeal or reapply.
I would never recommend to reapply because of experience dealing with Immigration. These Visa Post Officers work together everyday and can’t hang out with locals because then they would be accused of approving clients for money. Overrulling a co-worker will cause all kinds of problems in the office.
The best option for a Out-Land spousal sponsorship refusal is to appeal and hope for a (ADR) alternate dispute resolution hearing. An ADR is when the Immigration Appeal Division feels the Ministers reasons for refusal aare not that strong and the appeal may be dealt with in not such a formal hearing setting. After submitting a submission package designed to overcome the reasons for refusal a Ministers Counsel asks the sponsor to explain why certain things were submitted, not submitted or said by the applicant. If the Ministers Counsel is of the opinion that if this case proceeded to a Full Hearing that the appellant would like win their appeal. If no ADR is offered or refused the best option is still to go for a FULL Appeal Hearing in most situations. If the appellant wins the ADR the IAD orders the visa post to continue processing the spousal application.
During the Full Appeal Hearing the Sponsor is called by their Counsel first. Their Counsel asks all the questions necessary to prove the couple are in a genuine relationship. Then the Minister Counsel gets their turn to attempt to prove the marriage is bogus. The (IAD) Immigration Appeal Division member may interupt either Counsels and ask additional questions they feel are necessary to reach a decision.
After the appellant/sponsor has testified their Counsel will need to call the applicant to clarify further matters and the same procedure continues. Once all the witnesses have testified verbal submissions from both Counsels are heard. Rarely are written submissions asked for unless the time is very late.
Normally the member reserves their decision and submits it to both parties in writing. Sometimes the decision which is obvious can be given at the end of the hearing. When a positive decision is reach the Hearings Office informs the Visa post to continue processing the spousal application.
