Liberals repeal Conservative immigrant residency requirement targeting marriage fraud

The Liberal government is repealing a measure brought in by the Conservatives that required newcomers to live with their sponsoring spouse for two years or face deportation.

The conditional permanent residency status policy, which kicked in October 2012, was designed to clamp down on marriage fraud. But immigrant advocates said it had the effect of trapping some people in violent, abusive relationships. 

Scrapping the two-year probation for permanent residency checks off another 2015 Liberal campaign promise, which the government signalled it would pursue last fall. 

According to the Privy Council Office website, the cabinet decision was formally taken April 13 and will be published on May 3 in the Canada Gazette, the government's official newsletter.

A formal government announcement on the change is expected Friday.

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Under the Conservative policy, sponsored spouses and partners were given a status of "conditional" permanent residence, and were required to cohabit and remain in a conjugal relationship with their sponsor for two years. If they didn't, their status could be revoked, leading to deportation.

At the time, former immigration minister Jason Kenney said the change targeted con artists who dupe Canadians into marriage then dump them once they get to Canada. The measure was also designed to deal with "marriages of convenience," where two persons pretend to be in love for one to gain entry to Canada, often in exchange for money.

Exemptions for abuse

The probation policy allowed for exemptions when there was abuse or neglect by the sponsor, but Janet Dench of the Canadian Council for Refugees said many people didn't understand the process. They remained trapped in violent relationships, while others who applied for an exception found the ordeal excruciating.

"They often end up getting the exception, but it's a very difficult process, retraumatizing people who are already broken down by the panic of correspondence and interviews and having to go through everything that they suffered," she told CBC News.

Dench said reports of fraudulent marriage have been blown out of proportion, and noted there are already provisions in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to crack down on people who misrepresent themselves or make false claims.

But Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel said the 2012 policy was brought in to address a real problem of marriage fraud, and called the Liberal move to repeal it a "giant step backward."

"I think it's the wrong approach," she said. "I think it erodes public confidence in the integrity of the immigration system and it puts vulnerable persons at greater risk."