Spousal Sponsor - will I need to provide income statements/tax returns?

[LionMG]

Hello!

I'm a Canadian currently living in Thailand, and I'll be moving with my Thai wife to Canada next month.

I've been living full-time in Thailand for 4 years, and have been a Canadian non-resident for tax purposes in that time. I don't have recent Canadian tax returns and I was doing cryptocurrency investing/trading for the past year, so my recent financial history is a bit shaky.

So with that information in mind, are sponsors typically required to provide bank statements and/or tax returns? I've read conflicting information.

Any info would be much appreciated, thanks.

 

[mikeymyke]

No, but they have to prove they can support themselves and their spouse without going on assistance.

 

[LionMG]

No, but they have to prove they can support themselves and their spouse without going on assistance.

What would that typically entail? A letter guaranteeing, a bank statement, or something else?

Thanks.

 

[mikeymyke]

Since you're living in Thailand for a long time, you first have to prove you intend on residing in Canada long term. So for starters, you need to show proof you're looking for a job in Canada (or have one lined up already), proof you're looking for a place to live, proof you're making plans on selling your property in Thailand and severing any financial or employment ties there, etc. Anything to prove you're serious about living in Canada long term.

After that, then you need to demonstrate you can financially support you and your spouse. Typically that involves explaining what you and her will be doing for work, where you will be staying, how much money you have in the bank, etc, anything to prove you can support her. To be honest, I don't know how much positively or negatively they will look at your cryptocurrency investing in terms of support, but if you've been doing it for a while and making a decent living, it wouldn't hurt to mention it and show proof of what you're earning.

 

[LionMG]

Great, that is doable - thank you!