How can my common-law spouse and I prove that we have lived together for at least one uninterrupted year ?
Important: please note it is difficult to prove you have lived together with your common-law partner for one continuous year. If possible, you should consider getting married in the United States before the person seeking entry into Canada goes to a Canadian port of entry. A marriage certificate is reliable proof of a relationship.
Here are the kinds of proof that can be shown to the Canadian Border Services Agency officer when asking to enter Canada to seek asylum and to rejoin your common-law partner in Canada:
• A statutory declaration of a common-law union
• Statements for shared bank accounts
• Shared credit cards
• Proof of shared ownership of residential property
• Shared residential leases
• Shared rental receipts
• Bills for shared utility accounts, such as electricity, gas, and telephone
• Proof of shared management of household expenses
• Evidence of shared purchases (especially of household items)
• Mail addressed to either or both of you at the same address,
• Important documents for both of you showing the same address, such as:
Identification documents
Driver's licenses
Insurance policies
Any other documents that show you have been living together.
Information provided by Vive Shelter, Buffalo, New York State, USA
Here are the kinds of proof that can be shown to the Canadian Border Services Agency officer when asking to enter Canada to seek asylum and to rejoin your common-law partner in Canada:
• A statutory declaration of a common-law union
• Statements for shared bank accounts
• Shared credit cards
• Proof of shared ownership of residential property
• Shared residential leases
• Shared rental receipts
• Bills for shared utility accounts, such as electricity, gas, and telephone
• Proof of shared management of household expenses
• Evidence of shared purchases (especially of household items)
• Mail addressed to either or both of you at the same address,
• Important documents for both of you showing the same address, such as:
Identification documents
Driver's licenses
Insurance policies
Any other documents that show you have been living together.
Information provided by Vive Shelter, Buffalo, New York State, USA