My fiance is applying for admission to ESL program in Canada

[emik]

I have been on the Canada Immigration web site but I am confused. Here is our situation:

My fiance is a Russian citizen and lives in Russia. He is applying for admission to an ESL program with plans to transfer into the Accounting Diploma program after he finishes. He is 32 years old and has the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in physics but never used it for his career, his career has been with a completely different industry. He wants to learn good English and change careers.

Once he gets to Canada, I (U.S. citizen) want to join him there and apply for the work permit to be able to support us while he studies.

Questions

1) What are the chances that his study permit will be rejected? Since he is not the typical person to be going into this type of program...

2) Assuming he gets the study permit, what is the best way for me to join him? As a U.S. citizen, I am TRV exempt. Can I just go to Canada, marry him, and then apply for a spouse work permit in Canada? Or do I have to marry him, leave, and then apply from outside of Canada?

 

[PMM]

Hi

I have been on the Canada Immigration web site but I am confused. Here is our situation:

My fiance is a Russian citizen and lives in Russia. He is applying for admission to an ESL program with plans to transfer into the Accounting Diploma program after he finishes. He is 32 years old and has the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in physics but never used it for his career, his career has been with a completely different industry. He wants to learn good English and change careers.

Once he gets to Canada, I (U.S. citizen) want to join him there and apply for the work permit to be able to support us while he studies.

Questions

1) What are the chances that his study permit will be rejected? Since he is not the typical person to be going into this type of program...

2) Assuming he gets the study permit, what is the best way for me to join him? As a U.S. citizen, I am TRV exempt. Can I just go to Canada, marry him, and then apply for a spouse work permit in Canada? Or do I have to marry him, leave, and then apply from outside of Canada?

1. Pretty high for rejection, CHC will question why a 32 year old would want to expend the money to take an ESL course in Canada, rather than in Russia.
2. Since you are neither married nor a common/law partner and even if you were, with him in an ESL class, you would not get a spousal work permit. you would have to find an employer willing to get a Labour Market opinion after advertising on the job bank. Then proving to HRSDC that there are no Canadians/Permanent Residents available for the work.

 

[emik]

I thought it is HE who cannot work if he is in ESL, but his spouse (if we get married) still can. no?