Something just clicked for me.
So a lot of Syrians got refugee status in Canada over the last few years. Not all of them have actually made it to Canada. There's a thing in Canada where any individual or group of people can sponsor any refugee/refugee family to come to Canada if they've been "pre-screened" and already been given the proper status. It's not uncommon for church groups or community leagues to just "adopt" refugees and bring them over. This has been the case in Canada for decades and is by no means specific to Syrians, but that's the most recent group to get a lot of attention from the public. The "adopters" have to agree to support the refugees for two years and are responsible for getting them set up with a place to live, arranging language courses, seeing to it that their healthcare is set up, getting their kids registered in schools, etc. (though this is usually handed off to community organizations). It's a way to let the government focus on the really tough cases while individual Canadians can volunteer to get other people off the list.
If Salad the Syrian was pre-approved to come to Canada as a refugee, but he kept missing out on the draw, then getting a Canadian citizen to sponsor him would get him out of Kuwait and into Canada. He doesn't have to marry Chantal for this, but marrying her -- or "marrying" her -- would definitely make her more inclined to sponsor him.
Maybe it IS a citizenship thing. Kind of. Because Chantal would have to pay his rent regardless of whether or not they're married, living together, or even on speaking terms. He didn't need her to get refugee status and he won't need her to start the process of becoming a permanent resident -- he just needs her to get into the country and set him up.
