December 11, 2018 – Canada’s immigration department says details of the 2019 Parents and Grandparents Program will be released soon.
The program will reopen in January 2019 with a first-come, first-served process, moving away from an unpopular lottery system that has been in place since the start of 2017.
“Family reunification is a top immigration priority for the Government of Canada,” a statement said.
“The Parents and Grandparents Program continues to be very popular, with high demand for sponsorship from Canadian citizens and permanent residents.
“Details on the 2019 intake system will be released in the coming weeks.”
Canada plans to accept 20,000 completed applications in 2019, up from a target of 17,000 in 2018.
The immigration levels plan released in October 2018 gives a target of 20,500 parent and grandparent admissions in 2019, rising to 21,000 in 2020 and 2021.
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Canada To Accept 20,000 Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Applications in 2019 Under First Apply Immigration System
Canada Announces Second Lottery Draw For Parents and Grandparents Program
Stinging Criticism of Canada’s Parent and Grandparent Program
Since 2017, names have been selected at random from all those who submitted an interest to sponsor.
Families complained that the randomized process gave them no way of knowing if they would ever be selected to reunite with their loved ones.
The process faced stinging criticism from potential sponsors, candidates and other stakeholders.
IRCC officials, including Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen, defended the system, saying it was designed to make the process fairer.
However, they have now accepted the lottery system has not worked by changing it to an online version of the previous first-come, first-served process.
How Will the Parents and Grandparents Program Change In 2019?
| 2019 Process | 2018 Process |
| 1) Application window to open in January for submission of ‘interest to sponsor’ forms.
2) Sponsors to be issued invitations to apply in the order ‘interest to sponsor’ forms are submitted. 3) Those issued invitations have 90 days to submit a complete application. |
1) Application window to open in January for submission of ‘interest to sponsor’ forms.
2) Sponsors are drawn at random from all those who submitted ‘interest to sponsor’ forms. The government conducted two draws in 2017 and two in 2018. 3) The sponsors drawn are issued invitations to apply, with 90 days to submit a full application. |
How Many Parents and Grandparents Does Canada Admit?
Canada plans to welcome 20,000 parents and grandparents in 2018, 20,500 in 2019 and 21,000 in 2020 and 2021, as per the multi-year immigration levels plan released in October 2018.
How to Sponsor a Relative for Canada Immigration
Interested employers: Kindly contact us here to receive further information.
Interested candidates: Find out whether you qualify to Canada by completing our free on-line evaluation. We will provide you with our evaluation within 1-2 business days.
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