The authorities decided to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) with the objective of introducing a new definition of the term “dependent child”. Some of the objectives that the authorities hope to achieve by implementing this revised definition across all Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) lines of business include:
- Enhancing the economic integration of immigrant dependent children for increasing Canada’s economic potential
- Increasing processing efficiencies
- Reducing the risk of frauds and,
- Promoting consistency across all programs
The amendments introduced by the authorities also contain various transitional provisions and new regulations. These describe the stage when the authorities would be locking in the age of dependent children. In addition, these amendments also contain new regulations that describe the duration of the undertaking, applicable for dependent children.
The new regulations came into effect from August 01, 2014. The authorities also published these new regulations in Part II of the Canada Gazette on June 18, 2014.
The New Definition of a Dependent Child
Effective August 01, 2014, the relevant section of Paragraph 2 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) declares that a:
“Dependent child”, in respect of a parent, means a child who:
- Has one of the following relationships with the parent, namely,
- Is the biological child of the parent, if the child has not been adopted by a person other than the spouse or common-law partner of the parent, or
- Is the adopted child of the parent; and
- Is in one of the following situations of dependency, namely,
- Is less than 19 years of age and is not a spouse or common-law partner, or
- Is 19 years of age or older and has depended substantially on the financial support of the parent since before the age of 19 and is unable to be financially self-supporting due to a physical or mental condition
As can be seen, this definition of a dependent child narrows the previous definition. It also involves the following two significant changes:
- The authorities have reduced the basic age limit for dependent children from the earlier limit of 22 years to the current limit of under 19 years and,
- The authorities have eliminated the eligibility for considering older children as dependent children because these children were students
Similarly, the authorities have retained two important provisions in the new definition for dependent children. These provisions concern:
- The civil status for certain dependent children and,
- The lack of capacity to be self-supporting for certain dependent children
For example, the authorities would not consider children to be dependent if the children are married or in a common-law relationship. Similarly, the authorities would consider children as being dependent if they have certain physical or mental conditions that prevents them from being able to support themselves financially.
The amended definition has come into effect from August 01, 2014. As such, it applies to all permanent resident applications received by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on or after August 01, 2014. The sole exceptions to this are applications that are subject to a transitional provision.
The authorities would also apply the new definition to determine whether the accompanying children of a temporary resident applicant qualify as dependents. Moreover, the authorities would interpret all other references to “dependent children” mentioned in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR), in terms of the new definition. These applications of the new definition have also come into effect from August 01, 2014.
The Continued Application of the Pre-amendment Definition to Certain Applications
Officers of the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) would need to assess all permanent resident applications that they receive prior to August 01, 2014 based on the pre-amendment definition of a dependent child.
In addition, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will typically receive certain permanent resident applications on or after August 01, 2014. These applications could come under programs covered by transitional provisions. In this situation, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) officers would need to assess these permanent resident applications, using the following pre-amendment definition of a dependent child:
“Dependent child”, in respect of a parent, means a child who
- Has one of the following relationships with the parent, namely,
- Is the biological child of the parent, if the child has not been adopted by a person other than the spouse or common-law partner of the parent, or
- Is the adopted child of the parent; and
- Is in one of the following situations of dependency, namely,
- Is less than 22 years of age and not a spouse or common-law partner,
- Has depended substantially on the financial support of the parent since before the age of 22—or if the child became a spouse or common-law partner before the age of 22, since becoming a spouse or common-law partner—and, since before the age of 22 or since becoming a spouse or common-law partner, as the case may be, has been a student:
- Continuously enrolled in and attending a post-secondary institution that is accredited by the relevant government authority, and
- Actively pursuing a course of academic, professional or vocational training on a full-time basis, or
- Is 22 years of age or older and has depended substantially on the financial support of the parent since before the age of 22 and is unable to be financially self-supporting due to a physical or mental condition
The Transitional Provisions
Transitional provisions have the ability to mitigate the impact of the amendment to the definition of a dependent child temporarily. These transitional provisions typically apply to cases pertaining to multiple-step permanent resident immigration programs where:
- The preliminary processes went underway by August 01, 2014 but,
- The applicant has not submitted the Application for Permanent Residence (APR) to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) yet
Thus, applicants could complete this process using the pre-amendment definition of a dependent child. However, this would only be applicable in case the applicants have already initiated their immigration process prior to August 01, 2014. The section titled ‘The New Procedures Applicable’ contains further details on this.
Applicants could derive benefits from a transitional provision at the Application for Permanent Residence (APR) stage. To achieve this, they would need to ensure that their dependent children are:
- Unmarried and,
- Not in a common-law relationship
This is especially so if these conditions were requirements for meeting the pre-amendment definition.
The Lock-in Regulations
For Applications for Permanent Residence (APRs) received by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) on or after August 01, 2014, the new lock-in provisions would apply. These new lock-in provisions would not apply to those applications, which benefit from any of the transitional provisions.
Among all the applications received by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), only some would meet completeness requirements. When they receive these applications submitted on paper, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) officers would need to give it a date stamp at the office designated to intake applications for the applicable program or category. This date stamp denotes the day on which Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) received the application. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) would also receive some applications electronically. For these applications, the date of receipt would be the date on which Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) promotes the application in the Global Case Management System (GCMS). These dates equate to the date of making an application. This is in accordance with the prescribed Regulations.
The authorities amended the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) as well. They did so to define clearly and consistently the requirements for assessing the locked in age of children. This exercise is crucial for evaluating whether or not the children meet the definition of a dependent child. Some applications might derive benefits from a transitional provision. These applications would be subject to the lock-in procedures in existence prior to the introduction of these amendments.
Currently, officers would need to lock in the age of a dependent child at the first formal stage of the application process, under which the principal applicant is applying. This is in accordance with the new lock-in regulations. Officers can generally divide permanent residence application processes into:
- Single step processes: These involve the submission of an Application for Permanent Residence (APR) along with a sponsorship application, wherever applicable. In these cases, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) officers would consider the age lock-in date to be the date on which Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) received the application.
- Multi-step processes: Under these processes, the principal applicant would initially need to apply for – and meet – the:
- Preliminary program requirements and / or,
- Obtain additional documents e.g. Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) or the provincial nominee certificate
Thereafter, the applicant would need to submit an Application for Permanent Residence (APR).
It is apparent that the activities required by both kinds of processes are different. As a result, the respective age lock-in dates would vary based on the program or category.
