Canada begins sending invitations to apply for the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) from today.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is sending invitations to apply to 24,200 interested potential sponsors over a two-week period, with the goal of receiving up to 15,000 complete applications.
The invitations are limited to the families of those sponsors who have already submitted interest to sponsor forms.
IRCC announced the new round of invitations last months.
“Due to the number of forms remaining in the pool of submissions from 2020, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will send invitations to apply to randomly selected potential sponsors from that pool instead of opening a new interest to sponsor form,” it said on its website.
“This is the same approach taken for the 2021 and 2022 intakes. Anyone who submitted an interest to sponsor form in 2020, but did not receive Invitation to Apply (ITA) in 2021 or 2022, is encouraged to check the email account they provided in 2020 when they submitted their interest to sponsor form.”
“Those invited to apply as part of the 2023 intake will continue to use the Permanent Residence Portal or the Representative Permanent Residence Portal, which allow applications to be submitted electronically,” notes the IRCC.
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“This is part of our commitment to modernize Canada’s immigration system and to speed up and simplify the application process.”
The PGP operates on a lottery system, with citizens and permanent residents submitting an Interest to Sponsor form and being placed in a pool. IRCC then makes random draws from the pool and issues ITAs.
Sponsors and their parents and grandparents then have 60 days to submit a full application.
The sponsors have to:
- 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, and;
- 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.
Those sponsors agree to financially support the parent or grandparent for 20 years from the date they are approved for permanent residence and to reimburse the government for any social assistance paid out to the parent or grandparent during that time.
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.
Super Visa Is A Valuable Option For Those Not Sent ITAs
Citizens and permanent residents can sponsor their own parents and grandparents, related by blood or adoption. And, 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.
“Those who wish to reunite with their parents and grandparents in Canada, but who are not invited this year, may consider having their parents or grandparents apply for a Parents and Grandparents Super Visa, which is a multiple-entry visa that is valid for up to 10 years,” notes the IRCC.
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“Enhancements to the super visa allow super visa holders to stay in Canada for five years at a time, with the option to extend their visit by up to two years at a time without leaving the country. These changes make it easier for Canadian citizens and permanent residents to reunite with their parents and grandparents in Canada for longer periods.”
Ottawa is now also allowing international medical insurance companies to provide coverage to Super Visa candidates. Under the previous rules, only Canadian companies could provide the coverage required so that Super Visa holders could receive emergency health care without any cost to Canadian taxpayers.
International Insurance Companies Can Provide Coverage For Super Visa Holders
“The enhancements to the Super Visa program allow family members to reunite for longer in Canada, which helps everyday Canadian citizens and permanent residents succeed and contribute to society while affording their parents and grandparents invaluable opportunities to spend time with their family,” said then Immigration Minister Sean Fraser last year.
Canada’s multiple-entry Super Visa, first made available in 2011, is valid for 10 years and previously allowed candidates to stay for up to two years per visit. Under a regular multiple-entry visit visa, that period is usually six months or less.
The child or grandchild of the candidate in Canada must meet minimum income requirements to support the visa holder. The visa is an important alternative to the PGP which is regularly massively oversubscribed, leaving many wondering if they will ever have the option of bringing their family members to Canada.
Applications for the Super Visa must be made to a visa office outside of Canada.
The applicant must meet the following criteria:
- the applicant must me eligible for a regular visitor visa. This means that besides being in good health and having a valid travel document, the applicant must satisfy a Canadian immigration official that they will willingly leave the country at the end of their authorized stay, that they have sufficient ties to their home country such as a job, family or property, and that they have sufficient funds available to support themselves for the length of their stay.
- show that they are the parent or grandparent of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
- obtain medical insurance from a Canadian insurance company (or designated international companies from July 4, 2022) that is valid for at least one year, providing a minimum coverage of $100,000 for health care, hospitalization and repatriation, and;
- undergo a medical examination.
The applicant’s family member in Canada must:
- demonstrate that they are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
- provide the applicant with a letter of invitation which provides information about the applicant’s planned visit, about the child or grandchild’s occupation and economic situation in Canada. Most importantly, this letter must include a written and signed promise of financial support for the applicant for the duration of their visit, and;
- demonstrate their income is above a predetermined minimum level.
The Parents and Grandparents Super Visa allows those family members to join their children or grandchildren in Canada and live in the country while awaiting to be selected for permanent residence under the PGP.
