In the name of 'nuptial knots', Canadians are being hoodwinked by their foreign spouses.

Shah Moayedi married the love of his life in Cuba in 2003 and thought that the relationship would be a never ending one. But unfortunately, just six months after his new wife arrived in Canada, she left him after getting her permanent residency and told him to get on with his life.

Maoyedi said that he felt betrayed and devastated after the incident. He also said that this is a very critical moment and that he knows many people who acquired health problems or committed suicide after their spouse ditched them.

It is not anything new and has been happening for a long time. Some leave their newly engaged at the airport itself, while many like Maoyedi’s wife, leave their spouse after getting their permanent residency. And this was not enough, the sponsor also regrets on the loss of thousands of dollars that he spent as sponsorship fees and other expenses.

In marriages of convenience, both parties act according to the plan aimed to defraud the immigration system whereas in marriage only one person is the culprit. Generally, in marriage fraud, the parents of the sponsored person and family are also involved.

Most of the victims of marriage frauds say that they were completely unaware of the situation until they were actually left by their spouse. In order to crack down on fraudulent marriages, the Citizenship and Immigration Canada has been sending secret teams to foreign case to get more information on such marriages.

Richard Kurland, the immigration lawyer and policy analyst said that they are really concerned about the higher number of fraud marriages coming out from high fraud areas such as Vietnam, Cambodia and other places where the credibility of supporting documentation is very uncertain.

CIC spokesperson Danielle Norris said that Citizenship and Immigration Canada is investigating on these cases and Canadian officials sent around the world with this mission are monitoring for fraudulent activities. CIC said that everyone should take the act of sponsorship very seriously and should make sure that their marriage is genuine. It is to be noted that even if their marriage fails, the sponsors have to support their spouse for three years.

At present, immediately after their arrival, new spouses are given unconditional permanent resident status. But in countries like United States and Australia, foreign spouses have to wait for three years to become permanent residents. If the marriage dissolves during this period than the sponsored individual’s permanent resident status is cancelled and they are sent back to their country. Maybe this is the way Canada should grant permanent resident permit.