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Questions &
Answers about sponsoring family members
 Who
qualifies for immigration under the Family Class?
Who
can be included in a Family Class application?
Who
qualifies as a "Dependent Child"?
What
if the dependents will not accompany the Family Class applicant
to Canada?
What
financial criteria must be satisfied to qualify as a sponsor?
What
does "Essential Needs" mean?
What
if the sponsor does not have the requisite financial ability?
What
other criteria must the sponsor satisfy?
As
a sponsor, what obligations are there toward the government?
Can
the "Undertaking to Assist a Member of the Family Class"
be revoked or modified?
What
if the sponsor does not fulfill the terms of the "Undertaking
to Assist a Member of the Family Class"?
What
other agreements must the sponsor enter into?
What
documents must the sponsor submit?
What
documents must the Family Class Immigrant submit?
Where
is the Family Class Immigrant's application submitted?
Are
there circumstances that may allow a Family Class Immigrant
to apply from within Canada?
Can
a Family Class Immigrant work or study in Canada while the
application is being processed?
Must
Family Class Immigrants and Sponsors attend interviews with
immigration officials?
How
long will the entire sponsorship process take?
Where
is the Application to Sponsor submitted?
Q: Who qualifies for
immigration under the Family Class?
A: Applicants under the Family Class are sponsored for a Canadian
Immigrant Visa by a close relative who is either a Canadian
citizen or a Canadian permanent resident. The Canadian relative
is known as the sponsor. To qualify under the Family Class,
an applicant must be related to the Canadian sponsor in one
of the following ways: The applicant must be the sponsor's
- spouse;
- fiance(e);
- parent or grandparent;
- orphaned brother, sister, nephew,
niece, or grandchild --under 19 and unmarried;
- a child under 19 who is either
orphaned or placed with a child welfare authority
for adoption - and who the sponsor
intends to adopt;
- the sponsor's dependent child;
- or, if the sponsor has no relative
as listed above and no relatives who are Canadian
citizens or Canadian permanent
residents, one other relative.
Q: Who can be included
in a Family Class application?
A: The spouse and dependent children of the principal Family
Class applicant can be included in the application for Canadian
permanent residence. All individuals included in the application
will be required to pass police and security clearances and
medical examinations.
Q: Who qualifies as a
"Dependent Child"?
A:For Canadian Immigration purposes, a "dependent child" means
a child who is:
- Under 19 and unmarried on the
date the application for sponsorship is submitted
(and still unmarried on the date the child lands in Canada);
- Of any age or marital status
and financially dependent on his or her parents as
a result of being either: continuously
enrolled and in attendance as a full-time
student in an educational institution
since the age of 19 (or since the date of
marriage, if married before 19);
- Unable to support him or herself
due to a physical or mental disability.
Students who interrupt their full-time
studies for less than one year in total
and remain financially dependent
upon their parents during that time will still
be considered "dependent children".
Q: What if the dependents
will not accompany the Family Class applicant to Canada?
A: All of the principal Family Class applicant's dependents
are required to pass applicable police and security clearances,
and medical examinations, whether they are accompanying the
principal Family Class applicant or not.
Q: What financial criteria
must be satisfied to qualify as a sponsor?
A: The sponsor must be able to demonstrate the financial ability
to provide for the essential needs of the Family Class applicant
and dependents (sponsored family members). The financial ability
requirements may not apply where the sponsored individual is
a spouse and/or one or more dependent children.
Q: What does "Essential
Needs" mean?
A: The sponsor and co-signing spouse (if applicable) have to
provide the sponsored family members with food, clothing, shelter
and other basic requirements of everyday living. This includes
dental and eye care and other health needs not covered by public
health services available to Canadian citizens and permanent
residents. The obligation to provide for the essential needs
of the sponsored relatives will only arise if the sponsored
relatives are unable to provide for these means on their own.
Q: What if the sponsor
does not have the requisite financial ability?
A: The spouse of the sponsor may act as a co-signor if the sponsor
does not have the required financial ability. In such case,
the spouses' combined financial abilities will be assessed,
and the co-signing spouse will be equally liable in case of
default. The co-signing spouse may be a common-law spouse, provided
that the common-law couple has been living together for at least
one year. If the combined financial abilities of the sponsor
and the co-signing spouse still do not meet the minimum requirements,
then the application for sponsorship will be refused. The foregoing
financial requirements may not apply where the individual being
sponsored is a spouse and/or one or more dependent children.
Q: What other criteria
must the sponsor satisfy?
A: The sponsor must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
at least 19 years old; physically reside in Canada (or demonstrate
an intention to reside in Canada by the time the sponsored family
member lands in Canada); not be in prison; not be bankrupt;
and not be under a removal order if a permanent resident.
Q: As a sponsor, what
obligations are there toward the government?
A: The sponsor and the sponsor's co-signing spouse (if applicable)
are obliged to sign an "Undertaking to Assist a Member of the
Family Class" with the Government of Canada. The signed document
is a promise to provide for the essential needs of the sponsored
family members for a period of 10 years following landing in
Canada. The purpose of this agreement is to ensure that the
sponsored family members do not become dependent on Canadian
public welfare assistance. The form of agreement is provided
by the Canadian Government. A similar provincial form is provided
for sponsors who reside in Quebec, with the notable difference
that the duration of the commitment is only three years in the
case of sponsored spouses.
Q: Can the "Undertaking
to Assist a Member of the Family Class" be revoked or modified?
A: The Undertaking to Assist a Member of the Family Class, once
made, cannot be canceled or modified by the sponsor at any time
after the sponsored family members have landed in Canada.
Q: What if the sponsor
does not fulfill the terms of the "Undertaking to Assist a Member
of the Family Class"?
A: Failure to meet any of the commitments provided for in the
Undertaking to Assist a Member of the Family Class could result
in legal action being taken against the sponsor and the co-signer.
Q:What other agreements
must the sponsor enter into?
A:The sponsor is obliged to enter into a sponsorship agreement
with the sponsored family member(s). By signing this agreement,
the sponsor agrees to provide for the essential needs of the
sponsored family member(s).
Q: What documents must
the sponsor submit?
A: The sponsor and the sponsor's co-signing spouse (if applicable)
must complete and submit an "Application to Sponsor a Member
of the Family Class" form (IMM-1344A Form), as well as a "Financial
Evaluation" form (IMM-1283 Form) where the sponsor indicates
his or her financial ability to support the Family Class Immigrant
(and his or her spouse and dependents). The following additional
documents are required:
- the "Undertaking to Assist a
Member of the Family Class";
- the sponsorship agreement;
- the "Statutory Declaration of
Common-Law Union" form (only required where
the sponsor's co-signer is a common-law
spouse);
- documents supporting the sponsor's
"Financial Evaluation" form such as tax
returns, Notice of Assessment from
Revenue Canada, letters from employers
indicating salary and length of time
employed, pay stubs, proof of other income
such as rental and pension income,
and proof of financial obligations such as
mortgages, property/school taxes, personal
loans/lines of credit, alimony payments
and insurance payments. documents evidencing
the Canadian status of the Sponsor
(such as Record of Landing or Canadian
Birth Certificate or Citizenship Card or
Certificate of Registration of Birth
Abroad together with Certificate of Retention of
Canadian Citizenship);
- and documents evidencing relationship
to Family Class Immigrant (such as
marriage certificates, adoption orders,
passports indicating identity of parents/
children, etc.).
If the sponsor resides in the Province of Quebec, corresponding
forms provided by the Quebec Government will be required in
place of most Federal forms.
Q: What documents must
the Family Class Immigrant submit?
A: The Family Class Immigrant, spouse and each dependent child
aged 18 or over (whether accompanying the Family Class Immigrant
or not) will each be required to complete and submit an "Application
for Permanent Residence" form (IMM-008 Form). Applicants destined
to the Province of Quebec will be required to complete an Application
for a Quebec Certificate of Selection form. The following additional
documents are required:
- statutory documents (such as
local police good conduct certificates, birth
certificates, household register forms,
valid passport and ID cards, etc.);
- and documents proving the relationship
to the sponsor (such as marriage
certificates, household register forms,
valid passport and ID cards, etc.).
Q: Where is the Family
Class Immigrant's application submitted?
A: The Family Class Immigrant's application is an Application
For Canadian Permanent Residence In Canada and as a general
rule it is submitted to a Canadian Visa Office located outside
of Canada. If the intended destination is within the Province
of Quebec, an additional application for a Quebec Selection
Certificate is submitted to the Quebec Government.
Q: Are there circumstances
that may allow a Family Class Immigrant to apply from within
Canada?
A: For humanitarian and compassionate reasons, certain Family
Class Immigrants are allowed to submit their applications for
permanent residence from within Canada. To qualify, an immigration
official will have to be convinced that the Family Class Immigrant
would suffer excessive hardship in applying for permanent residence
from outside of Canada. Family Class Immigrants applying from
within Canada are required to submit additional government forms
in support of their applications for permanent residence. They
must also ensure that their Canadian visitor status remains
intact while they wait for their Immigrant Visas to be issued.
Q: Can a Family Class
Immigrant work or study in Canada while the application is being
processed?
A: While waiting for their Immigrant Visas, Family Class Immigrants
are allowed to work or study in Canada only if they have been
granted an Employment Authorization or Student Authorization.
Family Class Immigrants entitled to apply for permanent residence
from within Canada can apply for an open Employment Authorization
after their applications have been approved in principle by
immigration officials.
Q: Must Family Class
Immigrants and Sponsors attend interviews with immigration officials?
A: In certain cases, immigration officials will convene Family
Class Immigrants and their dependents for a selection interview.
The main purpose of the interview is to satisfy the immigration
official as to the family relationship to the Canadian sponsor.
In other cases, the Canadian sponsor may be interviewed in Canada
to verify financial ability and to confirm family relationship.
In some cases, however, no interviews take place.
Q: How long will the
entire sponsorship process take?
A: The length of the sponsorship process varies depending on
the Visa Office to which the Family Class Immigrant's application
is submitted. Sponsorship cases are a priority at all Visa Offices
and such applications are processed ahead of skilled worker
applications and applications under the Business Immigration
Program.
Q: Where is the Application
to Sponsor submitted?
A: The Canadian sponsor submits the application to Immigration
Canada's Case Processing Centre located in Mississauga, Ontario.
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B213 - 2099 Lougheed Hwy, Shaughnessy Square, Port Coquitlam, BC.V3B1A8 Canada.
