The Family Class sponsorship program includes a stream for parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Citizenship and Immigration Canada has begun receiving 10,000 sponsorship applications for parents and grandparents (PGP) of Canadian citizens and permanent residents. Successful parents and grandparents under this program will receive Canadian permanent residence and may be able to apply for Canadian Citizenship four years thereafter. To qualify to sponsor PGP relatives, a Canadian citizen or permanent resident must meet, in addition to the general requirements for sponsorship, the following enhanced criteria:

• The sponsor must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
• The sponsor must be 18 years of age or older;
• Sign an undertaking to financially support the parent or grandparent, and reimburse the government for any social assistance paid out to the relative, for a period of 20 years from the date of permanent residence;
• Sponsors will have to prove that they meet the minimum income requirements by submitting notices of assessment issued by the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) in support of their sponsorship and they must also demonstrate they have met the minimum necessary income level for three consecutive years.

IF A CO-SIGNER IS INCLUDED IN THE SPONSORSHIP APPLICATION, THE COMBINED INCOME OF THE CO-SIGNER AND THE SPONSOR WILL BE CONSIDERED;

Any amounts from the following sources will be deducted from the sponsor and co-signer’s income for the purposes of financial eligibility:

• Provincial allowances received for a program of instruction or training;
• Social assistance received from a province;
• Financial assistance received from the Government of Canada under a resettlement program;
• Amounts received under the Employment Insurance Act, other than special benefits;
• Monthly guaranteed income supplement received under the Old Age Security Act;
• Canada child tax benefit received under the Income Tax Act;

the requirement to demonstrate past income through CRA issued documents means that new permanent residents to Canada will have to wait a minimum of 3 years from landing in Canada, before being eligible to sponsor their parents and grandparents, unless they held temporary status in the country prior to receiving permanent resident status.

As well, 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.

WHAT DOCUMENTS ARE REQUIRED FOR PARENTAL SPONSORSHIP OR CHECK YOUR PARENTAL SPONSORSHIP ELIGIBILITY?

Our experts will help you with preparing the complete list of the documents required for your application.