Family Class Sponsorship
One of the primary goals of Canadian immigration policy is “to see that families are reunited in Canada”, and Canada is committed to reuniting more families as soon as possible.
Canadian immigration policy allows permanent immigration as a member of the family class based on their relationship as the spouse, common-law partner, child, parent or other prescribed member of a Canadian or permanent resident.
Who May Sponsor?
To sponsor a member of the family class, you are required to meet several requirements among them being;
- A Canadian or permanent resident of Canada
- 18 years or older
- A resident of Canada or intend to live in Canada after your spouse is granted permanent residence status.
- Able to financially support the sponsored individual(s)
Who May Be Sponsored?
- Spouses, common law partners and conjugal partners.
- Dependent children
- Adopted children
- Parents, grandparents, and their dependent children
- Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, and grandchildren who are orphaned, who are under 18, and who are not a spouse or common law partner; and
- Any relative if the sponsor is alone in Canada without family members and has none of the above family members to sponsor
Income Requirements to Sponsor
A sponsor is required to sign a Sponsorship Agreement with your sponsored family member.
This is a commitment by the sponsor to provide financial assistance for basic needs (food, clothing, shelter, and health needs not covered by public insurance) of the family member being sponsored.
In some sponsorship cases, you will be required to meet or exceed the Low-Income Cut-Off (LICO) including if;
- You are sponsoring a spouse or common-law partner who has a dependent child, and that dependent child has one or more children of their own, or
- You are sponsoring a dependent child who has one or more dependent children of their own, or
- You are sponsoring a parent or grandparent.
Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) is the minimum income requirement used by immigration officers to determine sponsors ability to sponsor applicants for permanent residence.
Sponsorship Undertaking
To become a sponsor, you will be legally required to financially take care of the persons you are sponsoring for a period, this is called "undertaking".
The length of the undertaking depends on the type of person you are sponsoring. The undertaking will detail the period during which you are financially responsible for the person you sponsored.
As a sponsor, you will be required to provide basic needs such as:
- Housing
- Food
- Clothing
- Medical expenses not covered by provincial health insurance (dental and eye care)