How to Bring Your Children and Their Mother to Canada Without Marriage

Quebec’s family sponsorship program has temporarily suspended applications from spouses and children over 18, but this doesn’t mean family reunification is impossible. There is an alternative route: if you are working in Quebec, your partner and children can come on a visitor visa and work permit while you arrange sponsorship or handle other procedures.

Sponsorship Is Not Closed, Only Partially Suspended

The family sponsorship program remains open, but Quebec is temporarily not accepting applications for commitment undertakings (engagement) for spouses and children over 18. This does not affect the sponsorship applications themselves at the federal level: the procedure starts and ends in Canada, and the Quebec portion will resume on June 25.

It’s important to understand that sponsorship and visa programs are separate procedures. The suspension affects only one step in the Quebec part of family sponsorship, not the entire program.

Two Options If Waiting Feels Too Long

If you believe that official sponsorship will take too long, you have choices. The first option is to relocate from Quebec. If you move to another Canadian province, your family’s sponsorship will be processed much faster, roughly 5–6 months.

The second option is to use a parallel visa procedure. Your family can arrive on a visitor visa and then switch to an open work permit. This is not an automatic process, but Canadian immigration services do provide for this possibility. An open work permit allows your family to work in Canada and await the completion of sponsorship without being separated from you.

Open Work Permit as an Intermediate Step

An open work permit is not automatically granted, but Canadian immigration authorities actively use this tool for families facing prolonged waiting periods. Family members gain the right to work full-time in Canada while their permanent resident status is being reviewed.

This route has already helped many families reunite within months of arriving on a visitor visa, rather than waiting the full 3 years apart from the sponsor.

If You Are Not Married to the Mother of Your Children

If you described yourself as single but want to sponsor the mother of your children, you have an option: get married right now and include her in sponsorship. However, there is a risk. If you have already submitted an application for permanent residence (PR) and then get married, you must declare this marriage in your file.

If the application was submitted through Express Entry, a new marriage could seriously compromise your application. For other programs, the effect depends on the specific situation and requires separate assessment. In some cases it will have a positive impact, in others it will be negative.

Alternative: once you obtain permanent residency, you can return to Cameroon, marry there, and then sponsor your family. Be sure to declare the marriage in your sponsorship application.

When the Decision Must Be a Family One

Choosing between fast sponsorship in another province and sponsorship from Quebec is a decision that should be made together as a family. Each family assesses what matters most to them: stable employment in Quebec, which means a few more months of separation, or faster reunification in another province.

This is not simply a matter of love—it’s a balance between economic opportunity, stability, and well-being. A shared and agreed decision will streamline the entire process and avoid disagreements throughout the sponsorship procedure.