Citizenship and Immigration Canada respects your marital vow of till death do us part and will work within the specific guidelines to reunite you with your spouse. With thousands of people submitting their applications on a weekly basis, it takes the immigration team sometime to do a proper evaluation for each one. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, how long it typically takes to process a Canada Spouse Visa has been hugely impacted. On the average, spouse visa applications are processed at about 12 months or less. The reason why some take up to 36 months or so may depend on the following factors:

Location of Application

An applicant’s country of residence plays an important role in the processing time as it varies from country to country.

Number of Applications

Fewer applications mean your Canada spouse visa application gets processed faster and vice versa.

Completeness of Application

There are specific documents which need to be submitted. So the more complete your documentation is, the faster your application gets processed.

In summary, Canada spouse visa application processing time is not easily predictable. Besides the fact that visa offices have to deal with the varying challenges of their respective regions, there is a need to factor in the number of candidates putting in their applications.

Additionally, there’s the need for a CIC medical exam. You can access the list of every panel physician Canada approves to book an appointment with an IRCC medical exam panel. The test result of the medical screening an IRCC panel physician conducts plays an important role in the immigration process.

To avoid delays, it’s important to complete your application, including booking an early appointment with a panel physician IRCC recommends. This is because you’re expected to have a CIC panel physician conduct a physical exam for you within 30 days after you receive an instruction from CIC.

While CIC panel physicians don’t make the final decision after conducting an immigration medical exam, their input is important.

For more details and how to book for your Express Entry medical exam, visit our Panel Physicians page to learn more.