Sponsoring American spouse - advice?

[bluenosercrm]

I'm trying to figure out how we'd be best off getting my partner into Canada. Should we look into getting him a visitor visa so he can live here with me for more than the six months at a time? Up to now he's been coming to visit for a few weeks or a month at a time. I can't figure out if we'd be better off continuing as we have been, or trying to get him a temporary visa to then be extended when we apply for his immigration.

I know that he's visa-exempt regarding visiting, since he's come and he hasn't needed one, but does that make spousal immigration easier? Is there something we should AVOID doing during this process?

Thank you.

 

[Rob_TO]

I'm trying to figure out how we'd be best off getting my partner into Canada. Should we look into getting him a visitor visa so he can live here with me for more than the six months at a time? Up to now he's been coming to visit for a few weeks or a month at a time. I can't figure out if we'd be better off continuing as we have been, or trying to get him a temporary visa to then be extended when we apply for his immigration.

I know that he's visa-exempt regarding visiting, since he's come and he hasn't needed one, but does that make spousal immigration easier? Is there something we should AVOID doing during this process?

Thank you.

There is no such thing as a visitor visa for a US citizen, as they are visa-exempt. Any US citizen can simply apply to extend their visitor status from within Canada as needed.

Just avoid him "moving" to Canada before he becomes a PR, i.e. showing up at the border with a truck full of belongings. As long as he looks and acts like a visitor and keeps an address/ties to US, it should be fine. If he applies for PR INLAND, he'll get an open work permit and can stay in Canada with legal status for duration of processing.