Canada has just announced the application intake process for the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) 2022.
Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will issue invitations to apply over the next two weeks to 23,100 interested potential sponsors. IRCC has said this figure is enough to achieve its goal of accepting up to 15,000 complete applications for sponsorship under the PGP 2022. Invitations will begin later this week.
IRCC will draw from those who expressed their interest in sponsoring their parents and grandparents in autumn 2020. IRCC says there are some 155,000 potential sponsors remaining in the pool. Back then, potential sponsors were given three weeks to indicate their interest by completing a form on IRCC’s website. IRCC then held a lottery and accepted some 10,000 applications for the PGP 2020. Last year, IRCC drew from the same pool to accept some 30,000 applications for the PGP 2021.
Sponsor your parents and grandparents for Canadian immigration
Eligibility for the PGP
You are eligible to sponsor your parents and grandparents if:
- you completed an interest to sponsor form on IRCC’s website between 12 PM ET on October 13, 2020 and and 12 PM ET on November 3, 2020
- you are at least 18 years old
- you live in Canada
- you are a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act
- you have enough money to support the people you want to sponsor (by demonstrating you meet the Minimum Necessary Income)
The Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) is a key eligibility factor for the PGP. This proof of necessary income is only to be provided after interest in sponsorship has been expressed via the online form. However, applicants who are selected and invited to apply and who do not meet the minimum necessary income requirement will see their application refused.
Sponsors across Canada (in every province and territory except in Quebec) who are invited to apply and their co-signers (if applicable) will have to provide Notices of Assessment from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for each of the three taxation years immediately preceding the date of their application.
Interested sponsors will need to determine the size of their family in order to confirm that they meet the minimum necessary income requirements, which includes all persons for whom they will be financially responsible once they become sponsors, including :
- the interested sponsor;
- their spouse or common-law partner;
- their dependent children;
- their spouse’s or partner’s dependent children;
- any other person the interested sponsor may have sponsored in the past, for whom they’re still financially responsible;
- the parents and grandparents they want to sponsor and their dependents (spouse or partner and dependent children);
- any dependent children who won’t come to Canada with their parents or grandparents;
- their parent or grandparent’s spouse or partner, even if they won’t come to Canada;
- their parent or grandparents’ separated spouse.
Due to the loss of income that many have experienced during the coronavirus pandemic, IRCC is lowering its MNI thresholds for both the 2021 and 2020 calendar years by 30 per cent compared to what it would normally be. In addition, IRCC is allowing regular Employment Insurance benefits and temporary COVID-19 benefits (such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit) to be counted toward a sponsor’s income.
Sponsors who live in Quebec
Canadians who wish to sponsor a parent or grandparent and who live in Quebec have their income assessed by Quebec’s immigration ministry, based on the province’s income requirements.
Both IRCC and the Government of Quebec require a signed undertaking from interested sponsors. This undertaking sets out how long the sponsor will be financially responsible for the family members they are sponsoring from the time they become permanent residents of Canada.
The length of the undertaking for parents and grandparents is 20 years for residents of all Canadian provinces except Quebec. For residents of Quebec, the duration of that commitment is 10 years.
Super Visa
Parents and Grandparents of Canadians may also be eligible for the Super Visa, which is valid for 10 years and allows holders to stay in Canada as a visitor for five years without needing to renew their documents.
