As reported by Torstar News, government documents reveal that just under 50% of spousal sponsorship applications are refused from certain regions such as southern China, Western Africa. In other areas refusal rates are also unacceptably high.
MP Olivia Chow calls this high refusal rate “cruel and arbitrary”. I cannot agree more. At our office, we see and handle an increasing number of spousal sponsorship refusals. Of course, some of these rejected applications are indeed justified where there is a clear “marriage of convenience” between the parties. However, in many cases, there is no reason for such refusals. Spouses who have been separated in some cases, for many months or years are bewildered by these refusals and are faced with further delays in being united as they must appeal these decisions to the Immigration Adjudication Division (IAD).
We have found that the while there are no guarantees for sponsorship approvals, making sure your application is very well documented goes a long way towards reducing your risk of rejection. Knowing that your relationship with your spouse or partner is legitimate and genuine is not enough to ensure a positive result for your sponsorship application. Visa Officers, these days, appear to assume the worst and you have to go the extra mile in terms of preparation to overcome their suspicions.
We have written about immigration application refusals in a previous blog here. And if your sponsorship or any other immigration application was refused, it is important to take decisive and timely action to secure your rights to appeal.
President & CEO
Michael Niren
Mr. Niren is CEO of VisaPlace LLC and the President and Managing Partner of VisaPlace Legal Canada, an immigration law firm based in Toronto, and VisaPlace Legal US a law firm registered in The District of Columbia, USA. Mr. Niren is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, the Canadian Bar Association’s Citizenship and Immigration Section, American Lawyers Association, and an Associate Member of the American Bar Association.
