The Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) allows Canadian citizens and permanent residents outside Quebec to sponsor their parents and/or grandparents to become permanent residents of Canada.
The federal government’s immigration levels plan currently targets an intake of 23,500 new permanent residents per year under the PGP.
Parents and Grandparents Program: Process
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) operates a lottery system for the PGP.
Citizens and permanent residents must submit an Interest to Sponsor form, before being placed in a pool.
IRCC makes random draws from the pool and issues Invitations to Apply.
The sponsors and their parents and grandparents then have 60 days to submit a full application.
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Who Is Eligible To Sponsor Parents Or Grandparents?
Sponsors must:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Live in Canada.
- Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act.
- Have enough money to support those they want to sponsor by meeting minimum income requirements for the previous three years. Candidates can include a co-signer in their application, allowing the combined income to be considered.
Sponsors must also:
- Agree to financially support the parent or grandparent for 20 years from the date they are approved for permanent residence.
- Reimburse the government for any social assistance paid out to the parent or grandparent during that time.
Sponsors Who Live In Quebec
Sponsors who live in Quebec must meet the Quebec immigration sponsorship requirements after being approved as a sponsor by IRCC. The Ministry of Immigration, Francisation and Integration (MIFI) also assesses the sponsor’s income and requires an undertaking to be signed.
Parents and Grandparents Program: Who Can Be Sponsored?
- Citizens and permanent residents can sponsor their own parents and grandparents, related by blood or adoption.
- In cases of divorce or separation, the spouses or common-law partners of parents and grandparents are also eligible.
- A sponsor’s brothers and sisters, or half brothers and sisters, are only eligible if they qualify as dependent children.
- More than one person or couple can be sponsors if the financial requirements are met.
Parents and Grandparents Super Visa
Those not successful in the PGP process should consider the Parents and Grandparents Super Visa, which allows a parent or grandparent to visit Canada for up to two years at a time. A super visa allows multiple entries for up to 10 years.