{"id":119697,"date":"2023-05-01T23:17:04","date_gmt":"2023-05-02T03:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/immigration.ca\/growing-number-of-parents-and-grandparents-immigrating-to-canada\/"},"modified":"2023-05-01T23:17:04","modified_gmt":"2023-05-02T03:17:04","slug":"growing-number-of-parents-and-grandparents-immigrating-to-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/immigration.ca\/fr\/growing-number-of-parents-and-grandparents-immigrating-to-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"Growing Number Of Parents And Grandparents Immigrating To Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"

Canada\u2019s\u00a0Parents\u00a0and\u00a0Grandparents\u00a0Program<\/a>\u00a0(PGP) grew in popularity in February with number of new permanent residents rising 4.3 per cent, the latest data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) reveals.<\/p>\n

In February, the PGP welcomed 1,805 new permanent residents to Canada, up from 1,730 in January.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That growth in the program\u2019s popularity in February came on the heels of a month that was already up by a third over the number of new permanent residents under the PGP in January last year. In January, 2022, the PGP welcomed 1,300 new permanent residents.<\/p>\n

So far this year, 3,550 parents and grandparents have been able to rejoin their relatives in Canada through the PGP in January and February, up 44.9 per cent over the 2,450 who came here under the program during the comparable months last year.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The lion\u2019s share of the new arrivals, 2,000 new permanent residents in the first two months of this year or 56.3 per cent of the total so far this year, settled in Ontario, Canada\u2019s most populous province.<\/p>\n

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The second most popular destination in Canada for parents and grandparents arriving under the PGP in the first two months of this year was Alberta. That Prairie province welcomed 805 of these new permanent residents during January and February this year.<\/p>\n

The francophone province of Quebec welcomed 375 new permanent residents through the PGP and all of the four Atlantic Canadian provinces combined, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, took in another 60 of these parents and grandparents.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the remaining two Prairie provinces, there were 165 new permanent residents through the PGP in Manitoba and another 130 in Saskatchewan during the first two months of this year. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With Ottawa\u2019s much-higher immigration targets for the coming years, there\u2019s little doubt the\u00a0PGP\u00a0numbers will continue to climb throughout the remainder of this year.<\/p>\n

In its\u00a02023-2025\u00a0Immigration\u00a0Levels\u00a0Plan<\/i>, Ottawa has set the target for 2023 at 465,000 new permanent residents. The country is to welcome 485,000 new permanent residents in 2024 and another 500,000 in 2025.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a total of 1.45 million immigrants to Canada over the coming three years.<\/p>\n

PGP Applicants Pay $1,050 To Sponsor Parents Or Grandparents<\/h3>\n

Under the\u00a0PGP, applicants pay $1,050 to sponsor a\u00a0parent\u00a0or\u00a0grandparent\u00a0and the process takes up to 39 months, with the people being sponsored required to provide biometrics after they apply. That processing time includes the time to provide those biometrics.<\/p>\n

Once a Canadian citizen or permanent resident has submitted an interest in sponsoring these relatives, he or she is sent an Invitation to Apply (ITA0 and must then submit two applications to the\u00a0PGP:<\/p>\n

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  • the sponsorship application, and;<\/li>\n
  • the permanent residence application.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    If those applications get the green light, the sponsor signs an agreement called an undertaking which starts on the day the sponsoree becomes a permanent resident of Canada.<\/p>\n

    Among the several requirements which need to be met to determine eligibility to sponsor a\u00a0parent\u00a0or\u00a0grandparent, are:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • a receipt of an Invitation to Apply;<\/li>\n
    • being at least 18 years old;<\/li>\n
    • Canadian residency;<\/li>\n
    • being a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident of Canada, or a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act;<\/li>\n
    • sufficient funds to support the\u00a0parent\u00a0or\u00a0grandparent;<\/li>\n
    • proof of income, although a spouse or common-law partner can co-sign to combine their income with that of the sponsor, and;<\/li>\n
    • meeting all other requirements under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Sponsors Sign Undertaking To Financially Support Their Parents And Grandparents In Canada<\/h3>\n

      All sponsors living outside of the province of Quebec, which has its own immigration system, must promise to financially support the sponsorees for a period of time.<\/p>\n

      This undertaking commits the sponsor to:<\/p>\n

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      • providing financial support for sponsored family members for 20 years, starting when they become permanent residents;<\/li>\n
      • repaying any provincial social assistance (money from the government) sponsored family members get during that time, and;<\/li>\n
      • agreeing to certain responsibilities during the undertaking period in a sponsorship agreement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        That sponsorship agreement means that the sponsor will provide the basic needs of the sponsorees, including:<\/p>\n

          \n
        • food;<\/li>\n
        • clothing;<\/li>\n
        • utilities;<\/li>\n
        • personal requirements;<\/li>\n
        • shelter;<\/li>\n
        • fuel;<\/li>\n
        • household supplies, and;<\/li>\n
        • healthcare not covered by public health insurance, such as eye and dental care.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          The sponsorship agreement is not one to be entered into lightly as it obliges the sponsor to meet those requirements even in the case of:<\/p>\n

            \n
          • separation or divorce;<\/li>\n
          • family rifts;<\/li>\n
          • unemployment;<\/li>\n
          • change in finances, and even;<\/li>\n
          • death of the main applicant.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            Sponsors who live in Quebec must meet that province\u2019s immigration sponsorship requirements after the IRCC approves the sponsor. The length of the undertaking is 10 years for Quebec.<\/p>\n

            Those In Trouble With The Law Cannot Sponsor Under The PGP<\/h3>\n

            Due to the need for sponsors to accept responsibility for their\u00a0parents\u00a0and\u00a0grandparents\u00a0through sponsorship agreements under the\u00a0PGP, past criminality and serious financial troubles can render a Canadian citizen or permanent resident ineligible for this program.<\/p>\n

            Applicants may not be eligible to sponsor their\u00a0parents\u00a0or\u00a0grandparents\u00a0if the sponsors:<\/p>\n

              \n
            • are in a jail, prison or penitentiary;<\/li>\n
            • didn\u2019t pay back an immigration loan or performance bond;<\/li>\n
            • failed to make court-ordered family support payments such as alimony or child support;<\/li>\n
            • didn\u2019t give the financial support specified under a sponsorship agreement to sponsor someone else in the past;<\/li>\n
            • declared bankruptcy and are not discharged;<\/li>\n
            • receive social assistance for a reason other than a disability;<\/li>\n
            • were convicted of a violent criminal offence, any offence against a relative or any sexual offence inside or outside Canada, or;<\/li>\n
            • can\u2019t legally stay in Canada and must leave the country because they received a removal order.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              The applicant cannot sponsor his or her spouse\u2019s\u00a0parents\u00a0or\u00a0grandparents, aka their in-laws, but can be a co-signer on that spouse\u2019s application to bring to Canada his or her\u00a0parents\u00a0and\u00a0grandparents.<\/p>\n

              The\u00a0PGP\u00a0program also does not allow a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to sponsor someone who is otherwise inadmissible to come to Canada.<\/p>\n

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              Watch the Video<\/b><\/p>\n