Need help.

[Junks12]

My boyfriend, who I have a child with is in st Lucia and I want to sponser him but I don't know where to start.

 

[goodman36]

My boyfriend, who I have a child with is in st Lucia and I want to sponser him but I don't know where to start.

Have you lived with him for 12 months? Do you have proof of that like rental agreements, utility bills etc.?

You can sponsor him as a common-law-partner.

You should start here first: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/spouse.asp

After that, feel free to post your question here...

 

[Junks12]

We have never lived together, we are not married or common law. But we have been together for over 3 years and have a 17 month old son.

 

[goodman36]

We have never lived together, we are not married or common law. But we have been together for over 3 years and have a 17 month old son.

Since you are not married, what I know is, you have to live together for 12 months. May be another forum member will be able to provide more info.

Does your child's birth certificate have your boyfriend's name on it?

 

[frege]

We have never lived together, we are not married or common law. But we have been together for over 3 years and have a 17 month old son.

In practice, your only possibility will probably be to either get married or else arrange to live together for a year in some place you're both allowed to be. (I have a feeling it might be difficult for your boyfriend to get a visitor visa for Canada in these circumstances. I imagine St. Lucia would be more liberal the other way for you.)

If you haven't lived together and aren't married, the only possibility is the so-called "conjugal partner" category. However, the government is extremely stringent and tends to allow it only when people have very serious circumstances keeping them apart. (For example, a same-sex couple in a country where they would face persecution if they lived together.) For most people, this is out of the question.

For a boy who needs his father, I'm not in a position to say whether this would qualify, but the matter of why you wouldn't just get married would likely be raised by CIC. You might find yourself in a position of having to mount a legal challenge to the current administrative framework. There has been some mention of a possible "right not to marry." If you feel like trying this, speak to a good immigration lawyer.

I presume your boyfriend is most likely named on the child's birth certificate, but if this isn't the case, you might also want to speak to a lawyer in such a circumstance.