
Getting married in the Philippines and sponsoring your spouse to come to Canada can change your life.
However, it is also a challenging process with lots of documentation, certifications, forms, and fees of all kinds – at both ends of the process. You have to deal with a variety of requirements in the Philippines when you get married. Then you face another set of requirements when you put together an application to IRCC in Canada, in order to sponsor your new spouse.
And if you try to take shortcuts, for example, and not present exactly what a government agency in the Philippines requests, or what IRCC officials in Canada tell you they need, you usually end up setting the process back by weeks or months, or even getting summarily rejected in some cases.
We’ll give you a general overview of both processes, but please remember that putting together a sponsorship without the experience and training of an immigration lawyer or an immigration consultant takes time, patience, and an ability to focus on the details as you gather your documentation.
For example, in the Philippines, if your to-be spouse is young, for example, do you know the difference between a Parental Letter of Consent and a Letter of Advice? And when you might need either one?
Do you know who has to submit a Financial Evaluation (IMM 1283) form to IRCC when sponsoring a spouse in Canada? And who is exempt from this requirement?
It’s not quantum mechanics, but it is a lengthy process with lots of steps where mistakes will often delay you, sometimes for months. So, let’s review Marriage in the Philippines and then Sponsoring a Spouse to Canada.
Marriage in the Philippines
The first thing to realize is that in the past there has been some opposition in the Philippines to so-called mail-order brides that use intermediary services to contract marriage with a foreign partner. The Anti-Mail Order Bride Act of 2013 reportedly became law in 2016 and has fairly severe penalties for those who owned, operated, or managed so-called online matching services in the Philippines, including jail terms and fines.
Legitimate dating services are apparently exempt from the law. As well, how rigorously the law is enforced is up for debate. However, one has to be aware of this context and be well prepared when marrying in the Philippines.
Next, a Canadian, for example, planning to get married to Filipina (or a Filipino) has to prove their status as a single person. Because Canada does not have a national Civil Registry, you have to apply for what’s called a Statement in lieu of a certificate of non-impediment to marriage abroad. Check with your Local Civil Registrar Office (LCRO) where you’ll be getting married to see if they accept these statements in lieu of, or if they require additional proof of your status.
If an LCRO does not accept your Statement in lieu of, you may have to obtain what is called a Certificate of Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage. This requires supporting documentation from Canada like birth certificates, passports, citizenship certificates, as well as divorce or death certificates if you are divorced or a widow/widower. With this supporting documentation, in the Philippines you then have to request a notary service and fill out and sign a statutory declaration in order to get your Certificate of Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage.
Your future spouse will also have to gather a number of documents in the Philippines to prove their legal capacity for marriage, in order to prepare for the marriage. For example, the government there will need to ensure there are no legal impediments to marriage. This refers to a couple that are related to each other and should not be an issue with foreign partners.
First off, a Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR) is required along with additional supporting documentation.
The next step is obtaining your Marriage License at your Local Civil Registry Office (LCRO) for which your partner (and you) will need a number of supporting documents, for example:
- Birth Certificates
- Baptismal Certificates (if applicable)
- CENOMAR (see above)
- Affidavit of Parental Consent or Advice (if applicable)
- Copy of original marriage certificate (if marriage was annulled in the Philippines)
- Certificate of Attendance in a Pre-Marriage Counselling Seminar (if required by your LCRO)
- Cedula (also called a Community Tax Clearance)
If your wedding is going to be in a church you may have additional requirements like baptismal and confirmation certificates and proof of attendance at marriage preparation seminars in a parish church.
After applying for your marriage license, you should receive it after a 10-day waiting period where it is publically posted to ensure that there are no objections to the wedding.
Your marriage license will generally have a validity of 120 days (4 months), so make sure you plan your wedding accordingly.
After your marriage ceremony, you (or your solemnizing officer in the case of a civil wedding) then register your marriage with your LCRO within 15 days after the wedding. Once you have your marriage registered with the local registry office, you can request Certificate of Marriage from the Philippine Statistic Authority (PSA) and you should then receive your marriage certificate in 1 to 2 months. For the spousal sponsorship application, you will need to submit the marriage certificate issued by the PSA office. The marriage certificate issued by the local office will not be accepted by IRCC.
Don’t forget that at every stage of the process you will have to ensure you pay all the required fees. Most will be in Philippine Pesos. One or two fees for you the foreign spouse may be in US$.
Sponsoring your Spouse to Canada
The spousal sponsorship process in Canada is now done online, rather than on paper, unless you qualify for special treatment, including disabilities, that prevent you from applying online. This means you will have to register with and use IRCC’s Online Portal for permanent residence applications (of which spousal sponsorship is one of the main types along with economic applications through Express Entry).
There are several key takeaways to the spousal sponsorship process in Canada:
- You have to apply to IRCC to qualify as a sponsor. That means giving information on your job, income, and savings (as well as other information) to ensure that you can successfully support your spouse and any accompanying dependents when they come to live in Canada. If you are deemed ineligible to be a sponsor, the application is often cancelled, although you can appeal.
- Your spouse has to apply for permanent residence in Canada, which means they have to satisfy all the eligibility requirements that IRCC has in place for permanent residents.
- The forms your spouse fills out are region-specific or even country-specific. In this case, they will have to download and fill out and submit those forms appropriate to a permanent resident application from the Philippines.
- You have to decide whether you want to do:
- an overseas sponsorship where your spouse remains in the Philippines until your application is successful and they have their PR visa, or
- an inland sponsorship where they get a visitor visa to visit Canada and you apply from inside Canada. You can also apply in Canada if your spouse is on a work or study permit.
- As a sponsor, you should know what your “undertaking” (a contractual obligation to support your spouse) involves and for how long you will be responsible for your sponsored spouse and any dependents.
I have a problem …
In a multitrack process like marriage abroad combined with spousal sponsorship there will inevitably be problems with documentation and status, among other things. Here are some typical areas that can slow down your application or even result in a rejection:
- Insufficient evidence of a relationship: one of the main red flags for IRCC officials is the suspicion that a spousal sponsorship is for immigration purposes only. Either party to the relationship/marriage may be suspected of using the sponsorship for the wrong reasons. So, please realize it’s essential that you convince IRCC your relationship is genuine.
- Sponsor’s eligibility: you may feel you are more than capable of being a responsible and caring sponsor, but there are financial metrics you have to meet. It depends in large part on whether your spouse has dependent children.
- Misrepresentation: it is never a good idea to bend the facts in any application whatsoever when dealing with IRCC. You may be lucky and get away with it but it is much more likely that a misrepresentation will put you in IRCC’s crosshairs. Cleaning up a misrepresentation is never easy and may also require a waiting period of years.
- Criminality: this is perhaps the toughest one. It depends on whether it involves a misdemeanor or a felony and means a complex process of appeals to various agencies or departments of the Canadian government.
The key is to be patient and prepare as much as possible when putting together your application – and when planning and doing your wedding in the Philippines as well. That wonderful change to your life can indeed happen as long as you are focused, patient, and prepared.