Sponsorship of immigration to Canada
If you are a citizen or permanent resident of Canada and at least 18 years old, you can sponsor certain relatives to come to Canada for living, study and work under Family Class.
The list of persons who may be sponsored includes the following:
- spouses, common-law partners, and conjugal partners;
- dependent children;
- children intended for adoption;
- parents, grandparents, and their dependent children;
- brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, and grandchildren who are orphaned, under 18 years old, and not married or in common-law relationship;
- any relative, if the sponsor is alone in Canada and has none of the above family members to sponsor.
Family class immigration involves sponsorship by a qualifying individual – the sponsor. Current immigration regulations also provide the list of restrictions that bar potential sponsor from sponsorship. A successful sponsorship includes many elements, but hinges on the relationship of the permanent resident applicant (sponsored person) to the sponsor. Generally, sponsors must show that they have financial means to provide for all their family members, including those already residing in Canada and those they intend to sponsor. The minimum necessary income requirement is published annually by Statistics Canada in low income cut-off (LICO) levels. The LICO financial obligations do not apply to all relatives.
Book a consultation to check if you qualify as a sponsor.
In agreeing to enter into a sponsorship relationship, the sponsor makes a legal commitment to provide the basic living expenses of the family member being sponsored – called an undertaking – for a prescribed period of time:
- sponsoring spouses, common-law partners, and conjugal partners (3 years of undertaking);
- dependent children under 22 when become PR (10 years of undertaking or the day the child reaches the age of 25, whichever first);
- dependent children 22 years or older when become PR (3 years of undertaking);
- parents/grandparents and accompanying dependents (20 years of undertaking);
- any other relative (10 years of undertaking).
Our services
- Assistance in determining of compliance with requirements to sponsors
- Documents package preparation for Sponsorship Application: assistance in collecting required documents, building the evidence base for proving sponsor-sponsored person relationship, completing necessary sponsor and immigration forms
- Effective communication with immigration authorities on behalf of the client