Divorce and Your Immigration Status in Canada: What Sponsored Spouses Should Know

Canada.ca says that once the sponsored family members become permanent residents, there is no way to cancel or shorten the undertaking period. The sponsor stays responsible for the entire period even if the relationship with the sponsored person changes, even if either person moves to another province or country, and even if the sponsor runs into financial problems such as job loss or debt.

How long does it last? For a sponsored spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner, section 132(1)(b)(i) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations sets the end of the period at the last day of the three years following the day the sponsored person becomes a permanent resident. Quebec runs its own undertaking system with its own rules, so residents of that province should check the Quebec-specific information.

So if you sponsored your spouse and the marriage later broke down, your promise to the government continues for the full period. And if you were sponsored, your former spouse's undertaking does not disappear because the two of you divorced.

What Happened to Conditional Permanent Residence?

You may have heard that sponsored spouses must live with their sponsor for two years or lose their status. That rule no longer exists.

Between 2012 and 2017, some sponsored spouses and partners received permanent residence with a condition: under the old regulation, a sponsored spouse or partner had to live with their sponsor for two years if, at the time of applying, the relationship was less than two years old and the couple had no children in common. On April 28, 2017, the Government of Canada announced that it had removed this condition entirely. The repeal appears in the Regulations themselves, where the former Division 8 and section 72.1 are marked as repealed.

Canada.ca states that conditional permanent residence no longer applies to anyone. Even people whose Confirmation of Permanent Residence paperwork still mentioned the cohabitation condition were told the requirement no longer applies. In short, you do not have to stay in a marriage, or in a shared home, to keep permanent resident status on that basis.

What If You Separate Before Permanent Residence Is Granted?

Everything above concerns people who already hold permanent resident status. If your sponsorship application is still in process when the relationship breaks down, do not rely on general information, this post included. Before you move out, withdraw an application, or sign anything, get advice from an immigration lawyer about how a separation could affect the application. This is exactly the kind of question that sits on the immigration side of the line.

How Does the Divorce Itself Work?

The family-law side runs on its own track, separate from immigration processes. Under section 8(1) of the Divorce Act, a court may grant a divorce on the ground that there has been a breakdown of the marriage. Section 8(2) says breakdown is established by living separate and apart for at least one year, or by adultery or cruelty on the part of the other spouse.

Alongside the divorce itself, a separation usually raises parenting arrangements, child support, spousal support, and the division of property and debt under the Divorce Act and BC's Family Law Act. Many couples resolve some or all of these issues by agreement rather than in court. Our page on separation agreements in BC explains how that works, and our divorce in BC overview walks through the court process.

Where Does the Family Lawyer Stop and the Immigration Lawyer Begin?

A useful way to think about it:

• A family lawyer deals with the divorce, parenting arrangements, child support, spousal support, property division, and separation agreements.
• An immigration lawyer deals with your status, sponsorship applications and appeals, undertaking enforcement questions with the government, citizenship, and any fraud allegation.

Some situations touch both systems at once. For example, financial support can come up in a family-law case while a sponsorship undertaking is still in effect. How those two things interact in your situation is something to raise with your family lawyer and, where needed, an immigration lawyer as well. When both kinds of advice are needed, getting them early keeps you from making a decision in one system that causes problems in the other.

Getting Help with the Family-law Side

If you were sponsored by your spouse, or you sponsored a spouse and the marriage is ending, our Surrey divorce lawyers can address the family-law side: the divorce, parenting, support, property, and agreements. We also assist clients in Punjabi. You can learn more on our Punjabi speaking family lawyer in Surrey page.

This post is general information, not legal advice, and it is not immigration advice. For advice about your own situation, speak with a family lawyer, and for anything touching your status in Canada, speak with an immigration lawyer.