This is good news for those who love a Canadian! The Canadian government has recently eliminated conditional permanent residence for spousal sponsorship applicants.
Prior to this change, a sponsored spouse or partner was required to live with his or her sponsor for at least two years after their spousal sponsorship application was approved. This rule was established in 2012 to discourage marriages of convenience for immigration purposes. It applied only to couples who had no children together and who had not been together for at least 2 years at the time of application.
Here is what Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) had to say about the recent change:
"Eliminating conditional permanent residence upholds the Government's commitment to family reunification and supports gender equality and combating gender violence...While cases of marriage fraud exist, the majority of relationships are genuine and most spousal sponsorship application are made in good faith." See the IRCC's full statement here.
No action is required to implement this change if you became a Canadian permanent resident via spousal sponsorship.
Do you have questions about permanent residence or spousal sponsorship? Please contact me to discuss your future in Canada.