GUIDE 3999 Steps – Sponsorship Of A Spouse, Common-Law Partner, Conjugal Partner Or Dependent Child Living Outside Canada

Step 1. Gather Documents

What documents are required?

Use the appropriate visa office Document Checklist, which you can find in Part 3: Country Specific Instructions to assist you in gathering the necessary documentation.

Important information: If you do not provide all the requested information or documents, the processing of your application could be delayed.

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Police certificates

You and your family members who are 18 years of age and older and are not permanent residents or Canadian citizens must provide:

• valid police certificate, or
• police clearance, or
• record of no information.

These documents are to be provided for each country other than Canada, in which you have lived for six (6) consecutive months or longer since reaching the age of 18.

The certificate must have been issued no more than three (3) months prior to submitting your application. If the original certificate is not in English or French, then you will need to submit both the certificate and the original copy of the translation prepared by an accredited translator.

We will also do our own background checks to determine if there are grounds under which you and your dependants may be inadmissible to Canada.

For specific and up-to-date information, please consult How to get a police certificate (police check).

How to obtain police certificates

Step 1. Apply for certificates

It is your responsibility to contact the relevant authorities.

Certificates are usually issued by the police of the country concerned, but in some countries you will have to apply to municipal, provincial, federal or other government authorities. The country’s embassy or consulate in Canada may be able to give additional information.

When applying for police certificates, you should include for each person:

• A completed Request for Police Certificates/Clearances and Authorization for Release of Information) (PDF, 58.59 KB) form. Include photocopies for each applicant.
• A set of fingerprints, if required by the authority of the country. Your local police or RCMP may be able to tell you where you can get fingerprints done. Take the Fingerprint Request Letter (PDF, 55.88 KB) and your photo identification (passport, travel document, etc.) with you when you go to get fingerprints taken. You may have to pay a fee.
• Your complete mailing address (certificates will be sent directly to you).

Step 2. Submit the certificates

Include the police certificates with your application.

• If the police authorities notify you that they will submit the certificates directly to us, include this notice with your application.
• All police certificates must be originals; photocopies are not acceptable.
• If your certificates are in a language other than English or French, attach an original translation prepared by an accredited translator.

What if I cannot get the police certificates?

If you cannot get police certificates from any of the countries where you have lived, you must provide a written explanation with your application and an original letter from the police authority confirming that they will not issue a certificate.

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Criminality

Generally, persons with a criminal conviction are not admitted into Canada. However, if a prescribed period has passed after they have completed their sentence or committed an offence and during which they were not convicted of a subsequent offence, they may be deemed to have been rehabilitated.

If they are not deemed to have been rehabilitated, they may, under special circumstances, be eligible to apply for rehabilitation.

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Convictions / offences outside Canada

If you were convicted of or committed a criminal offence outside Canada, you may overcome this criminal inadmissibility

• by applying for rehabilitation, or
• you may be deemed to have been rehabilitated if at least ten years have passed since you completed the sentence imposed upon you, or since you committed the offence, if the offence is one that would, in Canada, be an indictable offence punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of less than ten years.

If the offence is one that would, in Canada, be prosecuted summarily, and if you were convicted for two (2) or more such offences, the period for rehabilitation is at least five (5) years after the sentences imposed were served or are to be served.

Convictions/offences in Canada

If you have a criminal conviction in Canada, you must seek a record suspension (formerly a pardon) from the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) before you will be admissible to Canada.

Note. Do not complete the forms in this guide until you have received your record suspension.
You can request a Record Suspension Application Guide or additional information from:

Parole Board of Canada
Clemency and Record Suspension Division
410 Laurier Avenue West
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0R1
Telephone: 1-800-874-2652 (Callers in Canada and the United States only)
Fax: 1-613-941-4981
Email: suspension@pbc-clcc.gc.ca
Website: http://pbc-clcc.gc.ca/index-eng.shtml
(The instructional guide and application forms can be downloaded from the website)

In order to be considered for a record suspension under the Criminal Records Act, a specified period of time must pass after the end of the sentence imposed. The sentence may have been payment of a fine, period of probation, or imprisonment.