Josue David Balarezo Flores would have been thrilled to receive Elections Canada’s voter registration notice — if the Ecuadorian migrant were already a permanent resident, let alone a citizen.

The Toronto resident is among a number of spouses being sponsored for permanent resident status who were surprised — and sometimes, humiliated — to get a letter bearing the Canadian government logo earlier this month, reminding them to register to vote.

“It’s crazy. We thought the law had changed and we were allowed to vote,” said the computer engineer, who married a Canadian and came to this country in 2013. His application to become a permanent resident has been in the queue for 17 long months.

“It is just so funny that we are not even permanent residents yet, and here we have a letter from the government telling us their records show we have not registered to vote.”

Troy Dearborn, of St. Pierre Jolys, Man., said his wife, Alice Campbell, a British citizen, also got the letter to would-be voters.

“Receiving this voter registration is like adding insult to injury. We’ve been waiting so long for some sort of acknowledgement from our government, and instead of receiving the permanent residency we are so desperately waiting for, we receive this voter registration,” said Dearborn, who married Campbell in 2013 and applied to sponsor her 14 months ago.

“This is a harsh reminder of the rights and privileges we don’t yet have. It’s like we’re being mocked by the very country we’re trying to call home.”

Balarezo Flores and Campbell are among thousands of people married to Canadians who are caught up in Ottawa’s backlog in processing in-country spousal sponsorships. Many foreign spouses already living here will have to wait more than two years for permanent status.

Now, they are also among 670,000 potential electors who were sent the federal government notice between Feb. 27 and March 6, intended to help Elections Canada update the voter rolls before the anticipated federal election in October.

According to elections officials, the mail-outs are not a mistake but part of an ongoing effort since 2000 to update the electorate data.

“As part of our preparation for an election, we mail notices to people who aren’t registered to vote in federal elections but who may be qualified,” said Elections Canada spokesperson Diane Benson.

“The purpose of the notice is to confirm that they are qualified to vote and, if they are qualified, to ask them to register.”

Benson said the notice was sent to individuals who consented to the transfer of their information to Elections Canada on their federal income tax return — many sponsored individuals are on their Canadian spouse’s tax return — and to potential electors identified from provincial driver’s licence data.

On the paper notice, recipients are asked to tick a box to confirm that they are citizens and return the notice in a prepaid envelope. If they are not citizens, their names will subsequently be removed from the list of potential electors, said Benson.

Elections Canada would not reveal what checks and balances it has in the system to ensure that people who respond to the voter registration notice are being truthful.

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“People who register or update their registration must affirm that the information they provide is current and correct ... It’s illegal to make false statements about voter registration information, and those convicted face penalties,” Benson said.

“Voting fraud — rare in Canada — is a punishable offence under the Canada Elections Act. The Commissioner of Canada Elections investigates all reported cases of non-Canadians who vote in federal elections.”