OpenVisaWe're not married yet. Apply as common-law now or marry first?
Two doors into the same class: 12 months together, or a registered marriage.
If you have lived together for 12 continuous months, the common-law route is open now; if not, the spouse route opens once you hold the registered marriage certificate. Both routes lead to the same application, with a different checklist and different proof.
1. What's the difference between a spouse and a common-law partner?
A spouse is legally married, with a registered marriage certificate. A common-law partner has lived with you in a conjugal relationship for at least 12 months; the definition, and how the 12 months are counted, are on what counts as 12 months of cohabitation.
2. We have 12 months together. What do we file?
You use the common-law checklist (IMM 5589) instead of the spouse checklist (IMM 5533), and you give cohabitation documents from at least two of its six sets (the two sets) instead of a marriage certificate. The forms are the same.
3. We don't have 12 months yet. What are the options?
A spousal application can be filed once the registered certificate is issued, and a common-law application once the year of cohabitation is complete. The spouse route can't be filed with a Record of Solemnization (which certificate IRCC accepts).
4. What if we marry after applying as common-law?
Report it. A marriage during processing doesn't restart the application; you send the marriage certificate through the IRCC web form so the file reflects the new status (what must be reported). The relationship evidence you already submitted still stands.
5. On the form
The relationship form (IMM 5532) asks when you began living together and, if married, the date and place of the marriage. The common-law start date on IMM 5532 has to be supported by your cohabitation documents.
OpenVisa is software, not a lawyer or RCIC. This page explains what the rules and forms say; it is not advice about your case. You submit your application yourself.