Marriages of convenience

In a recent expose into how some individuals are abusing the immigration system, CBC has documented the marriages of convenience. The November 10, 2010, CBC news story titled – Marriages of convenience problems persist highlights the role of human smugglers, narcotics, and sex traders in this big money business. This sort of abuses often makes the legitimate applicants’ application process even more difficult and lengthy. While acknowledging that there is a problem, it is also to be stressed that the officers of the CIC are also at a loss as to how to screen for these people.

In the case of spousal sponsorship from Sri Lanka or India, it has been reported the Visa officers had requested honeymoon photos and photos of typica hindu weddings to prove that actual wedding took place. While not completely disagreeing with these requests it is also to be pointed out that not all the couples from Sri Lanka or India would opt to have a typical and the more grand traditional weddings these days. The onus is therefore on the applicant to prove the legitimacy of their wedding. But, the visa officers need to also be sensitive to these changes and be open to evidence that would demonstrate a real marriage, albeit without a grand Hindu wedding ceremony or a honeymoon at a holiday location.

Another problem that has been rearing its scary face is the problem of bribes by visa offices. It has been reported that visa officials in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India have reportedly asked for bribes even from couples that were able to demonstrate legitimate marriages to fast track their applications. This is a shame if this is actually happening and definitely warrants a full scale investigation.