Canada Immigration FAQs

When a person wishes to travel to a country of which the person is not a citizen, the government of that country must grant permission to enter and stay in the country for a specified period. This permission is granted in the form of a visa which is usually a stamp marked on the passport of the traveller. The term “VISA” is an acronym for Visitors International Stay Admission. Note that a visa is not a guarantee of admission. When you arrive, a border services officer will ask to see your passport and other documents. You must convince the officer that you are still eligible for entry into the country. A person who has been granted a visa may still be denied entry into the country.

If a person becomes inadmissible he or she:

1. Is not allowed to enter Canada. Even if you arrive at a port of entry a Canadian immigration officer will not allow you to leave the port of entry.
2. Will be denied visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA); or
3. Will be removed from Canada.

A person could be found inadmissible for a number of reasons, such as:

• Security reasons (espionage or sabotage etc.);
• Human or international rights violations (war crimes, etc.);
• Committing a crime, including driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol in Canada;
• Medical reasons (endanger public health, endanger public safety);
• Financial reasons; or
• Misrepresentation, etc.

For immigration purposes, a common-law partner is a person (same or opposite gender) who lived with a Sponsor (his or her partner) for at least 12 consecutive months in a marriage-like relationship. A common-law partner need not be married to his or her partner.

The Canadian immigration legislation defines a conjugal partner as a person who:

• Is living outside Canada,
• Has been in a conjugal relationship with the sponsor for at least one year, and
• Could not live with the sponsor as a couple because of reasons beyond their control (for example, immigration barrier, cultural hostility to sexual orientation, religious discrimination, etc.).

This term applies to both opposite and same-gender couples. Note that you can sponsor a conjugal partner only if both of the following requirements are met:

1. You must have lived in a genuine relationship for at least 12 months where marriage or cohabitation was not possible because of cultural or social barriers.
2. During this period, you must have not only a physical relationship but a mutually interdependent relationship as well. This means that you must have a significant degree of attachment between the two of you (e.g. live together, financially depend on each other etc.).

An applicant’s child or the child of his or her spouse or common-law partner can be considered a dependent child if that child meets the following requirements on the day the application for permanent residency is submitted:

• Be under 22 years old, and
• Does not have a spouse or common-law partner.

Children 22 years old or older qualify as dependent children if they meet both of the following requirements:

• They have been dependent on their parents for financial support since before the age of 22, and
• They are unable to financially support themselves because of a mental or physical condition.

With the exception of age, dependent children must continue to meet the above requirements until the IRCC finishes processing an application for permanent residency.