# Immigration to Canada



## Polaroid (Mar 4, 2013)

I have a couple of questions about immigration to Canada under the Spousal Sponsorship--Partner in Canada Class. The first question is probably a silly one, but the guidelines aren't completely clear.

1. The guidelines suggest that the sponsored applicant should be in Canada on a valid visa, such as a visitor visa or a student visa or work permit. Since my wife is from a visa waiver country, is this good enough? Can she enter Canada for six months on an ETA and then begin the application?

2. I am Canadian by descent, and our children were born outside of Canada. I do not meet any of the exceptions, so I know without a doubt that my children are not Canadian citizens.

Guide 5525 Contains the Following:
"Children born to Canadian citizens
If you’re a Canadian citizen who is sponsoring a spouse or partner, and you have a child together, your child may be a Canadian citizen, even if they were not born in Canada.
A Canadian citizen is not eligible to be sponsored.
If you already have proof of Canadian citizenship for your child, provide a copy of this proof (citizenship certificate or copy of Canadian passport), to help us confirm that your child does not require immigrant processing.
If your child was born in Canada, you can provide a copy of their Canadian long form birth certificate(s) instead.
If you don’t have proof of Canadian citizenship for your child who was born outside Canada, you need to apply for a proof of citizenship to confirm whether your child is a Canadian citizen.
If it is confirmed that your child is a Canadian citizen, you’ll be able to apply for your child’s Canadian passport.
If your child is not a Canadian citizen, you’ll need to add them as a dependant on the sponsorship undertaking signed for your spouse or partner.
Important: If you’ve submitted an application for proof of citizenship for your child, and it hasn’t been finalized, you must provide details in a letter and include it as part of your application so that we can check the status."

This seems to say that I need to apply for proof of citizenship for my children, just to prove that they are not citizens, before sponsoring them. This seems like an excessive administrative burden and a waste of money. Since I already know that my children are not citizens, can I just add them as dependants on the application without going through the process of applying for proof of citizenship and being rejected?


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## WestCoastCanadianGirl (Mar 17, 2012)

I should think that the following would apply in your situation:

_*"If your child is not a Canadian citizen, you’ll need to add them as a dependant on the sponsorship undertaking signed for your spouse or partne*_r."

You know that you don't meet the standard for your children to be deemed Canadian and you don't intend to try to get them in as Canadians, so they will be treated as non-Canadian and, as such, are subject to the same immigration rules/regs that your wife must meet. 

TL;DR - you know the kids aren't Canucks and aen't trying to prove they _are_, so no proof of Canadian Citizenship (or lack thereof) is required... just add them to your wife's application and send in their paperwork.


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## Polaroid (Mar 4, 2013)

Thanks for your reply. I think I agree with you. As to my first question, I think I know the answer, but I still want confirmation of the following: 

- an ETA for a visa waiver person is essentially equivalent to a TRV, so I should be able to bring my family as visitors, then begin the process once they're in Canada. 

Assuming this is true, what do we tell the immigration officials at the border? Is it necessary that they have ongoing tickets out of Canada to show at the borderr? My inclination would be to acknowledge our intent of applying for PR, as well as the fact that we would leave if the application got denied. Obviously we're going to tell the truth, but would this be oversharing?


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