Since January 2017, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has unfolded a lottery system for the Parent and Grandparent Sponsorship Program in which IRCC drawed names at random.
However, in 2019 the system went to some amendments, which are listed below:
To be a sponsor:
- Process shifted to a first-come, first-served
- Sponsors will still complete an ‘interest to sponsor’ form
- Candidates will be invited to apply in the order of form submission.
- Invited candidates must submit the application within 90 days.
The permanent resident or a Canadian citizen must meet general requirements in order to qualify to sponsor parents or grandparents. Below is the detailed criteria:
- Demonstrate income greater than the annual Minimum Necessary Income published by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for a period of 3 consecutive years prior to sponsorship.
- A signed agreement to financially support the grandparent or parent and repay the government for any social support paid out to the relative. It will be for a period of 20 years from the date of permanent residence.
In order to specify whether or not a sponsor meets the income requirements, below are the set of rules to comply with:
To establish whether a sponsor meets the income requirements, the following rules apply:
- To demonstrate the income for the three years, only official documents issued by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) are accepted for submission.
- If the co-signer is also added in the sponsorship application, then income of the co-signer and sponsor will be collectively considered,
- Any amounts from one of the following sources will be subtracted from the sponsor and co-signer’s income for the reasons of financial eligibility:
- Provincial allowances obtained for a program of training or instruction;
- Social assistance received from a province;
- Amounts received under the Employment Insurance Act, other than special benefits;
- Financial assistance received from the Government of Canada under a resettlement program;
- Canada child tax benefit received under the Income Tax Act;
- Monthly guaranteed income supplement received under the Old Age Security Act;
Practically, the requirement to demonstrate past income through CRA issued documents is implies:
- A new permanent resident can apply for sponsoring the parents and grandparents only after completing the 3 years in Canada.
- After becoming eligible to sponsor, the minimum required income must be met from the date on which the sponsorship application is signed until the day the sponsored family members become Canadian permanent residents.
Once an individual meets the above requirements and the general criteria for sponsoring family members, will be permitted to parents and grandparents for the Canadian permanent residence.
In case a qualified applicant does not meet the annual application intake threshold, then they may continue to apply for the temporary admission of parents and grandparents to Canada.
Super Visa
This visa is also known as an extended visitor visa which could be applied by a parent or grandparent of Canadian citizen or permanent residents, who intends to receive temporary residence to visit their close relatives.