Government announces changes to spousal sponsorship rules

Previous requirements had potential to trap migrants in abusive relationships

Starting early next year, migrants sponsored by their Canadian spouses won’t be required to stay in a relationship for two years in order to keep their permanent resident status in the country.

In a notice published Friday, the Liberal government said by the spring, it would repeal the condition introduced by its Tory predecessors to crack down on marriage fraud but criticized by advocates for potentially trapping vulnerable migrants, especially women, in abusive relationships.

“The proposed repeal of conditional permanent residence recognizes that the majority of relationships are genuine, and the majority of applications are made in good faith,” the government said in its plan.

“Eliminating conditional permanent residence would facilitate family reunification, remove the potential increased vulnerability faced by abused and neglected spouses and partners, and support the government’s commitment to combating gender-based violence.”

The so-called conditional permanent residence came into effect in late 2012, requiring a sponsored spouse to live with their Canadian partner for two years if they have no children together.

Otherwise, their permanent resident status would be revoked and they would have to leave Canada.

According to the government, 58,218 spouses and partners along with their children were admitted to Canada as conditional permanent residents from 2013 to 2015.

A sponsored spouse can request an exception to the two-year cohabitation requirement if their Canadian sponsor dies or if they are subject to abuse or neglect by the sponsor or a relative of the sponsor.

In the three years after the law took effect, 307 foreign spouses requested an exception to the requirement to live with their sponsor because of abuse or neglect.

Three-quarters of these requests came from women. Out of the 260 cases in which a decision had been made, 79 per cent were granted.

“While the conditional permanent residence provisions contain an exception . . . in cases of abuse or neglect, there is a risk that sponsored spouses and partners could remain in an abusive relationship,” the government said.

“This could be due to a lack of knowledge about the exception, the perceived challenge of applying for and receiving an exception, or the fear of losing their immigration status.”

The government argued the removal of the cohabitation requirement will not compromise the integrity of the system, as there are other measures to spot fraud and marriages of convenience.

For instance, sponsored spouses must still wait five years from the day they are granted permanent resident status in Canada before they them- selves are eligible to sponsor a new spouse.

In addition, the immigration status of a sponsored spouse could still be revoked under the “misrepresentation” provisions of the law.

“The (immigration) department is not able to conclude . . . whether or not conditional permanent residence has had its intended impact of deterring non-genuine sponsorship applications, as it is not possible to measure directly the number of deterred applications,” the government said.

“On balance, the program integrity benefits of conditional permanent residence have not been shown to outweigh the risks to vulnerable sponsored spouses and partners subject to the two-year cohabitation requirement.”