Outland Spousal Sponsorship Canada: Step-by-Step Guide (2026)

Checked against IRCC sources by MAK on 1 November 2026. General information, not advice for your case.

Outland spousal sponsorship in Canada is the Family Class route, used when the spouse or partner you are sponsoring lives outside Canada, as set out in IRCC’s sponsorship guide (Guide 5289) (checked 1 November 2026). This page walks through it step by step, in the order the work actually happens: checking eligibility, the country checklist, police certificates, fees, submitting, what IRCC does next, visiting while you wait, and appeals.

For the full rules on who can sponsor and who can be sponsored, see MAK’s 2026 spousal sponsorship guide. This page stays on the outland steps.

On this page

1. What is outland spousal sponsorship?
2. The steps at a glance
3. Step 1: Check that you can sponsor
4. Step 2: Get the package and your spouse’s country checklist
5. Step 3: Police certificates and translations
6. Step 4: Pay the IRCC fees
7. Step 5: Submit online
8. Step 6: What IRCC does after you submit
9. Step 7: Approval and arrival in Canada
10. How long does it take?
11. Can your spouse visit Canada while you wait?
12. Can you appeal a refusal?
13. Inland or outland?
14. Frequently asked questions

What is outland spousal sponsorship?

Outland spousal sponsorship means applying under the Family Class, which Guide 5289 says to use when the person you want to sponsor lives outside Canada (checked 1 November 2026). The same guide says to use the Family Class if your partner lives with you in Canada but does not plan to stay while the file is processed, if you plan to appeal if it is refused, or if you are sponsoring a conjugal partner.

“Outland” is the everyday name for this Family Class route. The other route, “inland”, is the Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada class.

What are the steps of outland spousal sponsorship, in order?

IRCC’s how to apply page lists four steps before submission: create an account or sign in, get your forms and documents ready, pay your fees, and submit the completed application (checked 1 November 2026). After that, IRCC’s after you apply page describes the acknowledgement of receipt, the sponsor assessment, the assessment of your spouse, and, if approved, the permanent resident visa and arrival in Canada.

The table puts the whole order on one screen, with who does each part.

Sources: IRCC how to apply (page details 2026-09-11), IRCC after you apply (page details 2026-07-28), both read 1 November 2026.

Step 1: Can you sponsor a spouse who lives outside Canada?

You can sponsor if you are at least 18 and a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident, or a person registered in Canada under the Indian Act, according to IRCC’s eligibility page (checked 1 November 2026). Your own location matters too: IRCC says a permanent resident living outside Canada cannot sponsor, and a Canadian citizen living outside Canada must show they plan to live in Canada when the sponsored person becomes a permanent resident.

The same page lists who cannot sponsor, including the rule that you may not be eligible if you were sponsored by a spouse or partner and became a permanent resident less than 5 years ago. MAK’s spousal sponsorship guide covers every bar and the three kinds of partner IRCC accepts.

When you sponsor, you sign an undertaking, a promise to support your partner. For sponsors outside Quebec it lasts 3 years from the day your spouse or partner becomes a permanent resident, according to Guide 5289.

Step 2: Where do you find the forms and your spouse’s country checklist?

The forms, the document checklist and the country-specific instructions all come from IRCC’s application package for spouses and partners, which asks you to choose the country or territory where your spouse lives to get the matching instructions (date modified 2026-10-06, checked 1 November 2026). IRCC’s how to apply page confirms the package holds the checklist, all the forms, and “country-specific forms and instructions based on where the people you’re sponsoring live”.

Because the instructions depend on the country, two couples in Canada can face different document lists. Use the checklist for your spouse’s country, not one a friend used.

The package lists the forms your spouse fills in online, including the Generic Application Form for Canada (IMM 0008), Schedule A – Background/Declaration (IMM 5669), Additional Family Information (IMM 5406), and Supplementary Information – Your Travels (IMM 5562) if it applies. The sponsor fills in separate PDF forms from the same package. The principal applicant and each accompanying family member also give 1 photo (how to apply page).

Step 3: Which police certificates and translations does your spouse need?

Guide 5289 asks for a valid police certificate for each country other than Canada where the person lived for 6 or more months in a row since the age of 18, and the certificate goes in the application package (checked 1 November 2026). How to get one depends on the country, and IRCC’s police certificate page gives separate instructions for each country or territory (page details 2026-08-13).

No certificate is needed for a country where the person was under 18 the whole time they lived there (Guide 5289). Start early, because some countries ask for fingerprints, photos, past addresses or a fee (IRCC police certificate page).

Any document not in English or French must come with an English or French translation. If the translator is not certified in Canada, an affidavit from the translator is also needed. Guide 5289 says translations “must not be done by the applicants themselves nor by members of the applicant’s family”, and translators certified in Canada do not need to supply an affidavit.

Relationship evidence is gathered alongside these documents. MAK’s guide to spousal sponsorship evidence lists what to gather.

Step 4: How much are the IRCC fees, and when do you pay them?

IRCC’s fee to sponsor a spouse or partner is CAD 1,260, which covers the sponsorship fee, the processing fee and the right of permanent residence fee, according to IRCC’s fee list (date modified 2026-09-21, checked 1 November 2026). Biometrics cost CAD 85 per person, or CAD 170 at most for a family of 2 or more applying at the same time, and each dependent child adds CAD 180.

The fee list also has a CAD 660 option without the CAD 600 right of permanent residence fee. IRCC’s how to apply page says that fee must be paid before the people you sponsor become permanent residents. Fees are paid online, and the receipt goes in with the application.

The same page says you may also pay third parties for a medical exam or a police certificate. A representative’s fee is separate and is never paid to IRCC. MAK’s spousal sponsorship cost guide adds up a full budget.

Step 5: How do you submit an outland spousal sponsorship?

The principal applicant, meaning the spouse or partner being sponsored, submits both the sponsorship application and the permanent residence application together online through the Permanent Residence (PR) Portal, according to IRCC’s how to apply page (checked 1 November 2026). Before submitting, they answer every question, sign electronically, add the fee receipt and upload all supporting documents, because IRCC says “If the application is incomplete, we’ll reject it.”

You do not need to hire a representative (same page). If you do, a paid representative must be authorized, cannot open a portal account for you, and cannot sign the application electronically for you. People who cannot apply online and need an accommodation, including for a disability, can ask IRCC for the package in braille, large print or paper.

If you live in Quebec, IRCC says you complete an undertaking with the Government of Quebec after the application is submitted, and you should not send it to Quebec until IRCC tells you to.

Step 6: What happens after you submit an outland application?

IRCC first checks the application is complete and sends an acknowledgement of receipt (AOR), then assesses the sponsor, then checks that the person being sponsored is eligible for permanent residence and not inadmissible to Canada, according to IRCC’s after you apply page (checked 1 November 2026). Guide 5289 adds that the sponsor gets an email or letter with the decision, and if the sponsorship is approved, the permanent residence application goes to “the appropriate processing office for further review.”

Biometrics

After a biometrics letter, your spouse has 30 days to give fingerprints and a photo at a biometric collection site (after you apply page).

Medical exam

Guide 5289 says not to worry if a medical request does not come right after applying, because “medical results can expire”. Once instructions are issued, the exam must be done within 30 days. If your spouse has already done an immigration medical exam, the details must be given.

Passport and interview

IRCC may ask for passports or photocopies of passports, and will say which. IRCC says “In some cases, your family members may need to meet with an immigration officer for an in-person interview” (after you apply page). Guide 5289 says an interview request comes in writing, with the date, time, location and a list of documents to bring. MAK’s guide to spousal sponsorship interview questions shows the kinds of topics covered.

If IRCC sends a procedural fairness letter, read the deadline first. MAK’s page on responding to a spousal procedural fairness letter explains what that letter is.

Changes in your family, such as a marriage, a birth, a divorce or a death, are reported to IRCC through its web form while the file is open (after you apply page).

Step 7: What happens when the outland application is approved?

When processing is finished, IRCC issues your spouse a Confirmation of Permanent Residence (COPR) and, if they need one, a permanent resident visa in their passport, according to IRCC’s after you apply page (checked 1 November 2026). Your spouse then shows these documents to a border services officer at a Canadian port of entry before they expire.

IRCC’s advice is direct: “Make sure to check the expiry dates on the permanent resident visa and the Confirmation of Permanent Residence.” Plan the travel date around those dates, not the other way round.

How long does outland spousal sponsorship take in 2026?

IRCC’s current estimate for a spouse or partner living outside Canada is about 18 months for couples settling outside Quebec, and about 33 months for Quebec, in IRCC’s processing-times data dated 9 October 2026 (read by MAK on 1 November 2026). IRCC says its processing times are “not a maximum or a guarantee”.

For comparison, the same data gives about 26 months for a partner living in Canada, outside Quebec. The figures change monthly, so check them again before you plan a move. MAK’s guide to spousal sponsorship processing time explains how to read these estimates and what can slow a file.

Can your spouse visit Canada while the outland application is pending?

Yes, if your spouse or partner is outside Canada, they can apply for a visitor visa after you submit the permanent residence application, according to IRCC’s after you apply page (checked 1 November 2026). IRCC says they “may be eligible for faster processing for a visitor visa” only if you, the sponsor, have received an acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) confirming the permanent residence application is in progress, they have that AOR when they apply, and they meet all the eligibility requirements for a visitor visa; if they are eligible, the faster processing is automatic.

Applying before the AOR arrives means no faster processing. The visitor visa is a separate application from the sponsorship. A pending sponsorship does not make a visitor visa automatic. MAK’s guide to a visitor visa for your spouse while sponsorship is pending explains what the officer looks at and what to do after a refusal.

Can you appeal a refused outland spousal sponsorship?

Usually, yes. Under section 63(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, a sponsor who filed a Family Class sponsorship may appeal to the Immigration Appeal Division against a decision not to issue a permanent resident visa (Justice Laws, current to 30 September 2026, checked 1 November 2026).

The deadline is short. Rule 16(a) of the Immigration Appeal Division Rules, 2022 says the notice of appeal and accompanying documents must be received no later than 30 days after the day the appellant receives the officer’s decision and the written reasons, if any (Justice Laws, current to 30 September 2026).

There are exceptions. Section 64 of the Act removes the appeal where the person was found inadmissible for security, human or international rights violations, sanctions, serious criminality or organized criminality. A refusal based on misrepresentation can still be appealed when the person is the sponsor’s spouse, common-law partner or child (section 64(3)). Under section 65, the Division can weigh humanitarian and compassionate factors only if it finds your spouse is a member of the family class and you are an eligible sponsor.

This appeal right is one of the main differences from inland. IRCC says “You can’t appeal our decision” for a file in the Spouse or Common-law Partner in Canada class. MAK’s page on refusals and complex cases covers what to do first after a refusal.

Should you choose inland or outland?

Inland is only open when your spouse or common-law partner lives with you in Canada and has valid temporary resident status, or is exempt under a public policy, according to Guide 5289 (checked 1 November 2026). Outland is the route when your partner lives outside Canada, and it is also the route for a partner in Canada who does not plan to stay during processing, for couples who want to keep the appeal right, and for conjugal partners.

Guide 5289 also warns that an inland partner who leaves Canada before becoming a permanent resident “may not be allowed to come back”, and that leaving can cancel their temporary status. On IRCC’s 9 October 2026 data, outland is also the shorter estimate outside Quebec, about 18 months against about 26, but these estimates change monthly and are not a guarantee.

The choice depends on your facts. MAK’s inland versus outland comparison sets the two routes side by side, and the inland step-by-step guide covers the in-Canada route and its open work permit.

Frequently asked questions

Last checked against official sources: 1 November 2026. This page is general information, not advice for your case. Rules, fees and processing times change; confirm them on the linked Government of Canada pages. IRCC makes all final decisions.