Marriages of convenience
In some cases, sponsors and foreign applicants set up a "marriage of convenience." This is a marriage or common-law relationship whose sole purpose is to let the sponsored spouse or partner immigrate to Canada.
Our officers are trained to recognize real immigration applications. They know how to detect false marriages. They have many ways to spot marriage fraud, including:
document checks
visits to people’s homes, and
interviews with both sponsors and applicants.
Canadian citizens or permanent residents who are in a marriage of convenience for immigration reasons may be charged with a crime.