Sponsoring your family:


Certain relatives may be eligible to immigrate to Canada as permanent residents.

There must be a sponsor for any relative immigrating to Canada within the Family Class. Both the person sponsoring a relative and the person wishing to immigrate to Canada must meet certain requirements.

Applicants for permanent residence must go through medical, criminal and background checks.

Sponsoring an eligible relative

You can sponsor certain relatives if you are a citizen or permanent resident of Canada and if you are 18 years of age or older.

When you sponsor a relative to become a permanent resident of Canada, you must promise to support that person and their dependants financially. Therefore, you have to meet certain income requirements. If you have previously sponsored relatives who later turned to the Canadian government for financial assistance, you may not be allowed to sponsor another person. Sponsorship is a big commitment, so you must take this obligation seriously.

To be a sponsor:

• You and the sponsored relative must sign a sponsorship agreement that commits you to provide financial support for your relative if necessary. This agreement also states that the person becoming a permanent resident will make every effort to support themselves. Dependent children under age 22 do not have to sign this agreement. Quebec residents must sign an "undertaking" with the province of Quebec-a contract binding the sponsorship.
• You must promise to provide financial support for the relative and any other eligible relatives accompanying them for a period of three to ten years, depending on their age and relationship to you. This time period begins on the date they become a permanent resident.

To sponsor any other eligible relatives (for example, parents and grandparents), you must be living in Canada.

You can sponsor:

• parents
• grandparents
• brothers or sisters, nephews or nieces, granddaughters or grandsons who are orphaned, under 18 years of age and not married or in a common-law relationship
• another relative of any age or relationship but only under specific conditions (see Note below)
• accompanying relatives of the above (for example, spouse, partner and dependent children).

Other relatives, such as brothers and sisters over 18, or adult independent children cannot be sponsored. However, if they apply to immigrate under the Skilled Worker Class, they may get extra points for adaptability for having a relative in Canada.