On This Page, You Will Find:
- Who qualifies as a dependent child under IRCC rules
- The age lock-in date and why it matters
- Who can (and cannot) sponsor a dependent child
- Income requirements for sponsors
- The sponsorship undertaking and how long it lasts
- Government processing fees in 2026
- Medical exams, police certificates, biometrics and DNA evidence
- How long processing takes
- Frequently asked questions
Canadian citizens and permanent residents can sponsor their dependent children for permanent residence under the family class. This is one of the most direct routes to immigrate to Canada, and it does not require the child to have a job offer, education credential or language test result.
Eligibility turns on the child’s age and marital status at a specific point in the process, not on the age they happen to be when a decision is finally made. Government processing fees also changed on April 30, 2026. This guide walks through the current rules so you can apply with confidence.
Who Qualifies as a Dependent Child?
A dependent child is any biological or adopted child of the sponsor (or of the sponsor’s spouse or partner) who meets IRCC’s age and relationship test. The standard test is:
- The child is under 22 years old, and
- The child does not have a spouse or common-law partner.
A child who turns 22 or marries before the relevant date stops qualifying under the standard test, unless the over-22 exception below applies.
The Over-22 Exception for Children with a Disability
A child who is 22 or older can still qualify as a dependant if both of the following are true:
- They have depended on their parents for financial support since before they turned 22, and
- They cannot financially support themselves because of a mental or physical condition.
This exception exists specifically for adult children whose disability prevents financial independence. It does not apply to a child who is simply a student or between jobs.
The Age Lock-In Date: Why Timing Matters
IRCC “locks in” a dependent child’s age on a fixed date so that a slow-moving application does not cause an otherwise-eligible child to age out. For sponsorship of a spouse, partner or dependent child, the lock-in date is normally the date IRCC receives the complete application for permanent residence.
Once the lock-in date has passed, the child’s age on that date is what counts, even if they turn 22 (or older) while the application is still being processed. The child must, however, continue to have no spouse or common-law partner throughout processing – a change in marital status can still make them ineligible, no matter what their locked-in age was.
Who Can Sponsor a Dependent Child?
To sponsor a dependent child, you must:
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Be a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident, or a person registered under the Canadian Indian Act.
- Live in Canada, or, if you are a Canadian citizen living abroad, show that you plan to live in Canada once the child becomes a permanent resident. Permanent residents living outside Canada cannot sponsor.
- Sign an undertaking and sponsorship agreement committing to the child’s financial support.
- Meet all other requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations.
You may not be eligible to sponsor if you are in prison, are behind on an immigration loan, court-ordered family support payments, or a performance bond, are an undischarged bankrupt, are receiving social assistance for a reason other than a disability, were convicted of a violent or sexual offence, or are under an active removal order. IRCC will tell you the reason if it finds you ineligible.
Related programs: you can also sponsor your parents and grandparents, apply for the Parents and Grandparents Super Visa, or read the separate guide to sponsoring an adopted child.
Is There a Minimum Income Requirement?
In most cases, there is no minimum income requirement to sponsor a dependent child. You do need to show you can provide for the child’s basic needs, and you cannot be receiving social assistance for a reason other than a disability, but there is no set income threshold to meet.
The exception: if the dependent child you are sponsoring has one or more dependent children of their own, you must meet the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) threshold for your family size, using the Financial Evaluation Form.
The Sponsorship Undertaking: How Long You’re Responsible
When you sponsor a dependent child, you sign an undertaking committing to support them financially for a set period, called the undertaking period. It begins once the child becomes a permanent resident, and cannot be cancelled or shortened afterward.
- Dependent child under 22 years of age (on the date they become a permanent resident): 10 years, or until the child turns 25, whichever comes first.
- Dependent child 22 years of age or older: 3 years.
You remain responsible for the entire undertaking period even if the child becomes a Canadian citizen, your relationship changes, or either of you moves to another province or country. Dependent children under 22 do not sign the sponsorship agreement themselves – only the sponsor does.
Government Processing Fees in 2026
Permanent residence fees increased across the board on April 30, 2026. For sponsorship of a dependent child, the current fees are:
- Sponsorship fee (paid by the sponsor): $90.
- Sponsored dependent child who is the principal applicant – that is, a child under 22 with no spouse or partner who is being sponsored on their own, not accompanying a sponsored spouse or partner: $90.
- Accompanying dependent child – a child who is included as a dependant on a spouse or partner’s sponsorship application: $180.
- Sponsored principal applicant fee (applies to a spouse or partner, or to an over-22 dependent child sponsored under the disability exception): $570.
Dependent children do not pay the Right of Permanent Residence Fee (which rose to $600 on April 30, 2026) at any age – that fee applies only to the principal applicant and an accompanying spouse or common-law partner. You will also pay a biometrics fee of $85 per person, capped at $170 for a family applying together. Fees are adjusted periodically, so confirm the current amounts on IRCC’s official fee list before you pay.
Medical Exams, Police Certificates and DNA Evidence
Every dependent child included in an application must complete a medical exam with an IRCC-approved panel physician, whether or not they are coming to Canada with you. Medical results are valid for 12 months from the exam date.
Police certificates are required for dependants aged 18 and older. If a birth certificate or other document cannot establish a biological parent-child relationship, IRCC may offer DNA testing as an alternative way to verify the relationship.
How Long Does It Take?
IRCC’s published service standard for a dependent child sponsorship application submitted from outside Canada is 12 months, but actual processing times run longer and change from month to month with application volumes – recent published times for family class applications outside Quebec have been noticeably above the service standard. Check IRCC’s official processing-times tool for the current estimate that applies to your application rather than relying on a fixed figure.
How to Apply
The sponsorship application and the child’s permanent residence application are submitted together, online, through the PR Portal.
- The principal applicant – usually the child, or the sponsor if the child is a minor without their own account – creates a PR Portal account and completes both applications.
- Pay the sponsorship fee, the applicable processing fee, and the biometrics fee, and upload the payment receipts.
- Upload the required forms and supporting documents, including proof of the parent-child relationship and, where required, medical and police certificate results.
- Submit the completed application. IRCC will send an acknowledgment of receipt once it is accepted for processing.
If you live in Quebec, you must also complete a separate undertaking with the Quebec Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI) once IRCC tells you to – but not before. Quebec reopened intake of sponsorship undertaking applications on July 2, 2026 for a new period running to June 30, 2028, with a cap of 15,700 applications. Importantly for families sponsoring children, applications to sponsor dependent children – including dependent children aged 18 or older, orphaned children and children being adopted – are exempt from those intake caps, so they can be submitted at any time during the period. For general background on family-class routes, see the family sponsorship overview, and for other common questions see the Canada immigration FAQ.
Frequently Asked Questions
What age qualifies a child as a dependant for Canadian immigration purposes?
A child qualifies as a dependant if they are under 22 years old and do not have a spouse or common-law partner. A child 22 or older can still qualify if they have depended on their parents for financial support since before turning 22 and cannot support themselves because of a mental or physical condition.
What happens if my child turns 22 while our application is being processed?
It generally does not affect eligibility. IRCC locks in the child’s age on a fixed date – usually the date it receives the complete permanent residence application – and uses that age to decide eligibility, even if the child turns 22 or older before a decision is made. The child must still not have a spouse or common-law partner at any point during processing.
Is there a minimum income requirement to sponsor a dependent child?
In most cases, no. There is no set minimum income to sponsor a dependent child. The only exception is when the child being sponsored has one or more dependent children of their own, in which case the sponsor must meet the Minimum Necessary Income threshold for their family size.
How long am I financially responsible for a sponsored dependent child?
For a child sponsored while under 22, the undertaking lasts 10 years from the day they become a permanent resident, or until they turn 25, whichever comes first. For a child sponsored at 22 or older under the disability exception, the undertaking lasts 3 years. This commitment cannot be cancelled or shortened once the child becomes a permanent resident.
Do sponsored dependent children need a medical exam?
Yes. Every dependent child in the application must complete a medical exam with an IRCC-approved panel physician, whether or not they plan to move to Canada right away. The results are valid for 12 months. Police certificates are also required for dependants aged 18 and older.
