Just finished preparing my clients in India for their immigration spousal sponsorship interview at the visa office in Chandigarh tomorrow. In my opinion, there is a huge advantage in preparing for the immigration interview rather than walking in cold.
The sponsor has been married twice before and is seeking to sponsor her husband from India. The issues for the visa officer will be the incompatibility in terms of marital history (the wife has been married before, and the husband has not), the age difference (7 or so years in favour of the wife) and the fact that the wife has two children from her first marriage. These differences may not appear to be significant (from a Western perspective) at first glance, however, I have found that visa officers (especially from overseas visa offices in Asia) rely on stereotypical views and would find these differences to be 'red-flags'.
You don't need an immigration lawyer to prepare the forms. However, if you're relationship raises any red flags or is unusual in any way, hiring an experienced immigration lawyer could be beneficial. The key is to present a cogent and detailed narrative of the relationship history in the immigration sponsorship application itself - from first contact/first meeting to the decision to marry. The immigration sponsorship application should include details as to the contact between the couple as well as their contact with each others family members. If there is any financial support this should be disclosed. This background should address many of the concerns that a sceptical or suspicious visa officer may have especially if the relationship is in any way out of the norm. In the best case scenario, a complete and thorough application will obviate the need for an interview of the spouse abroad.
However, immigration spousal interviews are an unfortunate fact of life. I understand that this can be a nerve wracking experience, especially for a immigrant spouse abroad that is unused to such examinations and (often times) probing questions into private matters. There's sometimes no avoiding the immigration interview - it's like a root canal, or other preventative dental procedure, something unpleasant and distasteful but necessary. Sometimes I've seen clients take offence at the mere insinuation that they are marrying their spouse just to get a visa to Canada.
In my experience, it's not about memorizing dates and places and regurgitating the same to the visa officer. I think the key is to understand the concerns of the immigration visa officer and to address those concerns. Explanations may be necessary - such as answering the all important question as to why you decided to marry this particular person, or how you overcame an incompatibility or acted contrary to cultural norms. I would suggest that the applicant address these concerns directly and head-on; no beating around the bush. Generalities are to be avoided - very often my clients explain their decision to marry with an all-encompassing statement, such as "I married my wife because she has a very good nature" [I've seen this comment regarding "nature" by Indian applicants many times in reviewing the officer's CAIPS notes in preparing for an appeal for a sponsorship refusal].
While I am frequently retained to handle the appeal of sponsorship refusals (to the Immigration Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board), I have noted that more and more individuals are retaining my services to prepare and submit the sponsorship application - perhaps to avoid a refusal in the first place (and save themselves the cost and time involved to go through the appeal process). We handle more immigration hearings than any other law firm (at least in Alberta). If you need experienced immigration counsel, turn to the best in the business. What we seek to do in preparing the spousal sponsorship is to address the concerns of an officer - who is statutorily obligated under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to investigate whether the relationship is genuine and/or was entered into primariy to simply gain status in Canada. That means an individual assessment of the application and tailoring the application to the specific circumstances of the sponsor and applicant.
Raj Sharma
Partner
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