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Check your offerFamily class · spouse, partner, children
Two lives,one application.Spousal & partner sponsorship in Canada
We turn your relationship into a submission-ready case — consistent forms, organized proof, and an officer-friendly package for spouses, partners, and children.
- RCIC-led
- Brampton & London
- Officer-ready files
Who you can sponsor
Reunite with the people who matter most.
Spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner, and dependent children — biological or adopted. Adoption follows its own kit and steps.
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01
Spouse
Married
A legally married partner in a genuine relationship. The applicant must also meet IRCC admissibility checks.
Sponsoring a spouse → -
02
Common-law partner
12+ months cohabiting
Living together in a conjugal relationship for at least 12 consecutive months. Short, temporary separations may be acceptable.
Sponsoring a common-law partner → -
03
Conjugal partner
1+ year, barriers apply
Outside Canada, not married or common-law, in an exclusive interdependent relationship for at least a year, with real barriers to living together or marrying.
Sponsoring a conjugal partner → -
04
Dependent children
Under 22, with exceptions
Biological or adopted. Generally under 22 and not married or common-law — or 22+ with a qualifying condition and long-term dependency.
Sponsoring a child → -
05
Adoption
Separate kit
Adopted children and intercountry adoption follow separate kits and steps — don’t file the spouse or child kit by mistake.
Sponsoring an adopted child →
Family members you did not declare when you immigrated.
A spouse, partner or child who was not declared and examined when you became a permanent resident is excluded from the family class under section 117(9)(d). The public policy that relaxed this rule for refugees and sponsored spouses ended on 10 September 2026; applications received by that date are still assessed under it. Everyone else needs a humanitarian and compassionate request. What is left after the policy ended.
Inland or outland
Two ways to file — and they are not interchangeable.
Where your partner lives, whether you can keep living together, and what happens if the file is refused all turn on this choice. We settle it before anything is submitted.
| InlandSpouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada class | OutlandFamily Class, processed by a visa office | |
|---|---|---|
| Where your partner is | Already in Canada and living with you. | Inside or outside Canada. The file goes through the visa office responsible for your partner’s country of nationality or legal residence. |
| Living together | You are expected to keep cohabiting while the application is processed. | Not required for this route. |
| Open work permit | Generally available to the applicant while the application is in progress. | Not an automatic feature of this route. |
| If it is refused | No appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division. The remedy is judicial review at the Federal Court. | Sponsors generally keep a right of appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division. |
| Travel | Leaving Canada while the application is open carries re-entry risk. | Not tied to the application, subject to admissibility and valid documents. |
Where the route has the edge. A partner whose temporary status has lapsed can still be processed inland under a longstanding public policy — explained below.
Choosing the wrong stream is one of the costliest mistakes in family sponsorship — it can cost an appeal right, a work permit, or a year of processing. Confirm the current rules on canada.ca before you file.
Out-of-status spouses
Status lapsed? You may still be sponsored from inside Canada.
A public policy made under subsection 25(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act lets genuine spouses and common-law partners who are living with their Canadian citizen or permanent resident sponsor be processed in the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada class even when their temporary status has run out.
Valid temporary status
The requirement to hold valid status in the class, and the inadmissibility that flows from not having it. Every other requirement of the class still applies in full.
- 01An eligible sponsor with a valid undertaking
- 02A genuine relationship
- 03Living together in Canada
The undertaking is the key.
Without a sponsorship undertaking on file, the case is assessed under general humanitarian and compassionate rules instead — a considerably harder test.
This summarises a long-standing federal public policy. It is general information, not legal advice, and the operating guidance is periodically revised — read the policy on canada.ca and get your own case assessed before acting on it.
How we help
A sponsorship built to be believed.
Sponsorship turns on whether an officer believes your relationship is genuine. We make that easy to see: a clean evidence plan, a consistent narrative, and a package that reads fast and credible from the first page.
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01Confirm the right pathway
Spouse, common-law, conjugal, or child — and sponsor eligibility — settled before anything is filed.
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02Build the evidence plan
The right proof of a genuine, continuing relationship — organized so it’s easy to follow and hard to doubt.
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03Assemble a clean file
Consistent forms and a coherent narrative, with common refusal triggers addressed before submission.
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04Guide you to the finish
Clear next steps and calm communication through submission, requests, and any follow-up from IRCC.
Good to know
Questions, answered.
The questions we hear most on this topic, answered by our consultants. The full list is in the Help Centre.
Can I sponsor a spouse or child I did not declare when I immigrated?
Can a humanitarian and compassionate request overcome the undeclared family member exclusion?
Who can sponsor a spouse or partner?
Can my partner work while we wait?
Can my partner be sponsored if their status has expired?
More questions on this topic are answered in the Help Centre.
Read next on family sponsorship.
Longer guides on the questions this page raises most: what is left now the undeclared family member policy has ended, how the out-of-status spouse policy works, and whether you can leave Canada while a humanitarian application is open.
The undeclared family member window has closed. Here is what is left.
For seven years a public policy let refugees and sponsored spouses bring in a spouse or child they had not declared when they…Sep 13, 2026· 5 min readProgramsSponsoring a spouse who is out of status in Canada
An IRPA 25(1) public policy lets genuine spouses living with their Canadian sponsor apply inland without valid status. What it…Aug 7, 2026· 6 min readProgramsCan you leave Canada while a humanitarian and compassionate application is under review?
Leaving does not cancel your H&C application. Getting back into Canada is the part that goes wrong. What the law actually says…Sep 9, 2026· 7 min readStart your sponsorship
Get a clear plan for your case.
Tell us who you’re sponsoring and a licensed RCIC will follow up — usually the same business day — with the right pathway and your document plan.
Thanks — we’ll be in touch
A licensed RCIC will reach out, usually the same business day.
Message us on WhatsApp →Official IRCC pages
Confirm the details on canada.ca.
Requirements and kits change — always verify the current guidance on the Government of Canada website before filing.
Explore more
Other ways we can help.
General information only, not legal advice. Contacting us or submitting a form does not create a client–consultant relationship until a written retainer is signed. Requirements change — confirm current rules on canada.ca. IRCC makes all final decisions.
Does your status in Canada depend on your partner?
When status flows through a spouse or partner, it can be used as leverage. Canada has a measure for exactly that — fee-exempt status in your own name, an open work permit, and healthcare coverage.