Evidence

• Evidence of Cohabitation: Cohabitation denotes living together continuously. However, situations could arise where one or the other partner would need to leave the home for business travel, family obligations or work. In this scenario, the periods of separation must be as short as possible. Officers could rely on various items as providing evidence of cohabitation.
• These could include:
• Joint bank accounts or credit cards
• Joint ownership of residential property
• Joint rental receipts
• Joint residential leases
• Joint utilities accounts i.e. electricity, gas, telephone etc.
• Joint management of household expenses and activities
• Joint purchases of household goods
• Correspondence addressed to either or both parties at the same address
• Important documents that bear the same address for both the parties i.e. driver’s licenses, insurance documents etc.
• Evidence of children of one or both partners residing with the couple
• Telephone Calls
• Officers do not need to consider all of these items to prove cohabitation as some of these elements could be present in varying degrees
• This list is not exhaustive and could include other evidence as well
• Section 5.35 of OP 2 provided further details
• Evidence of a Conjugal Relationship: Officers could rely on various items as providing evidence of a conjugal relationship.
• These could include:
• Shared shelter (including sleeping arrangements)
• Sexual and personal behaviour (especially the presence of feelings like fidelity, commitment etc. for each other) – especially in cases that warrant an interview
• Services provided with respect to the conduct and habit of sharing household tasks
• Social activities e.g. their attitude and conduct as a couple in the community and among their families
• Economic support including financial arrangements, ownership of property etc.
• Children including their attitude and conduct when it comes to dealing with their children
• The perception of the society about the couple concerned
• Officers do not need to consider a combination of all of these items to prove the existence of a conjugal relationship or interdependency, as some of these elements could be present in varying degrees
• This list is not exhaustive and could include other evidence as well
• Section 5.26 of OP 2 provides a further list of elements and examples of supporting documents that officers could consider in this scenario
• Evidence of Abuse or Neglect or that the Sponsor Failed to Provide Protection from Abuse or Neglect: Officers could rely on various items in cases of abuse or neglect.
• These could include:
• Court documents or protective orders including:
• Release orders
• No-contact orders
• Bail orders
• Orders pending trial or appeal
• Recognisance orders
• Peace bonds
• Probation orders (following convictions)
• Conviction certificates
• Victim impact statements (that clearly state that incidents of abuse occurred  or are believed to have occurred)
• Letters, reports or statements from:
• Women’s shelters
• Domestic abuse support organisation
• Family services clinic
• Medical doctors or healthcare professionals
• Sworn statements or affidavits
• Police or incident reports and related documents including:
• Reports that indicate that passports or travel documents were withheld and that the police had to retrieve them
• Photographs that show the victim having injuries
• Hard copies of e-mail messages
• Affidavits from:
• Friends
• Family members
• Neighbours
• Co-workers
• Staff members of support agencies, law enforcement agencies etc.
• This list is merely indicative in nature and not exhaustive

• Evidence of Death: The CIC officer could accept the following as evidence of the death of the sponsor:
• A death certificate or,
• An attestation or confirmation from the funeral home

Source: Citizenship and Immigration