getting married... (wedding, to live in, moving to)

[2faraway]

Hi everyone!

i need advice regarding my situation...please help!

im a Canadian citizen and in a long distance relationship with my boyfriend for a very long time now. i really what him to come here to canada so that we can spend time together before we start a family. but the problem is he can't come here as an immigrant and i think the only way he can come is as visitor to canada. so we are planning to maybe he will come here as tourist and we'll elope once he's here but my concerns are what should we do when we decided to get married? because as i read from the CIC website, tourists can only stay here no longer than six months...so what happens after we get married? do i sponsor him? how does it work? please help me.

Thank you in advance.

[Moose Jockey USA]

Have him come up for six months and see if he wants to even consider immigrating. You could very well end up moving to the US. Use the six month's Tourist VISA to get re-acquainted after so much time apart. It'll give you both some time to make sure that Canada, and not the US, is where the opportunities are for you both.
You can do all kinds of things in six months. Plan a wedding, get to know each other again, start to put some foundation work into your future together. Do it right, set yourselves up for success, use the time to make sure it's the right place for you both to be. Who knows, there are loads of states and provinces, and you're in the position where one can sponsor the other (via marriage possibly) to live in the country you choose. Explore your options to help ensure you make the right decision for the both of you. Who knows, he could have a hard time adjusting, or maybe be accustomed to a different way of life (big city/farm/etc..). Use the six months, you'll be glad you did. It'll also take a lot of pressure off of the both of you, with the end result being the same.

Good luck, and have fun with it. It's an exciting time and you'll both learn loads