Family class sponsorship applications

General guidelines for family class sponsorship

If you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and are at least 18 years old, you may, subject to certain conditions, sponsor your spouse or members of your immediate family for permanent residence in Canada.

Sponsoring your spouse or partner

If you are a permanent resident or a Canadian citizen there are few restrictions for sponsoring your spouse (or common-law or conjugal partner). Provided you are a Canadian citizen, you can even do so while living outside Canada, but you must intend to live in Canada with your spouse when they take up residence in Canada. The family class covers what used to be known as the "fiance visa". Spouses and common law partners may be sponsored from within Canada, although in this instance there is no right of appeal if the application is denied. We specialise in helping couples deal with the practical ramifications of these issues and guiding them through the formalities. With an inland application, an open work permit can be obtained once the application has been approved in principle. If you are not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, marriage to a Canadian does not automatically entitle you to live in Canada - your spouse must sponsor you for immigration to Canada.

See copy of CIC announcement on May 18, 2005 about sponsorship of out-of-status spouses from within Canada.

Under the interim policy for same-sex couples, sponsorship of a same-sex partner is effected in the same way as sponsorship of an opposite-sex partner; provided a couple have lived together for at least one year, they are considered for immigration purposes to be common-law partners, or if they marry in Canada, to be spouses.

Sponsoring parents or grandparents

Since you are undertaking to sponsor your relatives, you will need to show proof that your income meets the guidelines. Your spouse can co-sign if he/she agrees to. If your parents or grandparents are wealthy, and you are not, they may need to legally "arrange" an income for you.

Sponsoring children or adopted children

In some circumstances your own children, or your spouse's children, may not have come to Canada with you, and it is nearly always possible to sponsor them, provided they are under age 22. If older, you may still sponsor them if they are financially dependent on you and studying or if they are physically or mentally handicapped. The same general considerations apply to adopted children, although there are safeguards built in to the Act to try and ensure the adoption is genuine and in the best interests of the child. Now that proposed changes to the laws regarding Citizenship have been enacted, a different mechanism may apply, and these adopted children may become Canadian citizens through adoption. However this is a situation where you may want to obtain professional advice: there are disadvantages for the children if they acquire citizenship by adoption, and ithey may be better advised to become permanent residents via the sponsorship process.

Sponsoring other relatives

Under the laws enacted by the Federal Government you may sponsor any of the following: brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces or grandchildren, but only if they are orphans, and under the age of 18 when th application is filed, and provided also that they are not married or living in a common-law relationship.

Several provinces have however enacted legislation whereby close relatives such as the above may be sponsored by a close relative who is a resident of that province, even though they may be aged over 18 and are not orphaned.

Other applications

Finally, if none of the above applies, and you are all alone in Canada, there is an exception to the Federal regulations whereby you are allowed to sponsor a sole remaining family member living outside Canada.

Specific details may vary in individual cases, so you may wish to Contact us or pay for an initial consultation before you initiate the sponsorship process.

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