We understand how stressful and frustrating it can be to stay away from your loved ones and the importance of applying correctly to avoid any delays or complications. Many Canadian citizens and permanent residents have their family members living abroad, and family sponsorship programs offered by the Canadian government help uniting the families. Many relationships qualify for Family Class Sponsorship, including spouses and common-law partners, parents and grandparents, dependent children, and potentially other relationships under specific Provincial Family Class Sponsorship programs.
These programs allow Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor their spouse, common-law partner or conjugal partner to come to Canada. To immigrate through this immigration program, the sponsor and sponsored person must prove their relationship to be bona fide and meet the requirements.
Canadian citizens or Permanent residents can sponsor their spouses living outside of Canada, where applicants can still be in Canada and apply through the Outland program and may be permitted to travel in and out of Canada throughout the application process. The outland applications are processed through the visa office that serves the applicant’s country of origin or resided legally for at least one year.
The other potential option for Spousal/Common-Law Sponsorship is the Inland route. Inland sponsorship is when the couple is together in Canada, and the foreign spouse/common-law partner is a temporary resident of Canada, either as a worker, student, or visitor. In some instances, out-of-status applicants can also be sponsored. The sponsored person may be eligible for an Open work permit allowing a spouse to work for any employer in Canada while the sponsorship application is being processed.
As of October 24, 2017, the definition of “dependent child” under section R2, a child must be in one of the following situations:
- Under 22 years of age and not a spouse or common-law partner
- 22 years of age or older, have depended substantially on the financial support of the parent since before the age of 22 and be unable to support themselves financially due to a physical or mental condition (it is the financial dependency that must have been ongoing since before the age of 22. It is not necessary for the physical or mental condition to have existed before the age of 22.)
Permanent residents and citizens interested in sponsoring their parents or grandparents can apply for the Parent & Grandparent Sponsorship Program (PGP). This program is a lottery-based system and sponsors are invited to apply through invitations to apply letters. The sponsor must meet the financial requirements to show the proof of income.
