If you already living in Canada on a permanent basis, you may be able to sponsor your parents and grandparents to become permanent residents of Canada.
Applications for this programme are only permitted by invitation. In order to be considered for invitation, you must first submit a request to be considered as a sponsor, called an Interest to Sponsor Form.
There can be a delay of several years between submitting an Interest to Sponsor Form and an invitation to submit an application for permament residence for your parents or grandparents. In addition, there are only a limited number of invitations issued each year.
If you have not been invited to apply for this Program, your parents or grandparents may be able to stay in Canada with a ‘super visa’.
In 2024, 35,700 invitations were issued to the pool of potential sponsors for this programme, with a goal of accepting 20,500 applications. Invitations in 2024 were issued to individuals who had submitted an Interest to Sponsor Form in 2020.
Who is eligible to apply to sponsor parents and grandparents?
In order to be a sponsor for their own parents and grandparents, an individual must:
- be aged at least 18
- be living in Canada when they submit their Interest to Sponsor Form and at least until their application to sponsor is approved
- be a citizen of Canada, a permanent resident of Canada, or a person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act
- have enough money (either individually or in combination with a spouse or common-law partner) to be able to support anyone they intend to sponsor
- not be ineligible to sponsor due to issues such as:
- being in prison
- failing to repay an immigration loan or a court-ordered payment such as child support or alimony
- failing to provide financial support to previously sponsored visa applicants
- bankruptcy which has not been discharged
- being in receipt of social assistance (disability-related social assistance is acceptable)
- having been convicted of a violent or sexual criminal offence
- being in Canada illegally
As of 2024, the income requirements for Canadian visa sponsors are as follows:
| Total number of people you’ll be responsible for | Income required from 2023 | Income required from 2022 | Income required from 2021 |
| 2 | CAD 44,530 | CAD 43,082 | CAD 32,898 |
| 3 | CAD 54,743 | CAD 52,965 | CAD 40,444 |
| 4 | CAD 66,466 | CAD 64,306 | CAD 49,106 |
| 5 | CAD 75,384 | CAD 72,935 | CAD 55,694 |
| 6 | CAD 85,020 | CAD 82,259 | CAD 62,814 |
| 7 | CAD 94,658 | CAD 91,582 | CAD 69,934 |
| If more than 7 people, for each additional person, add: | CAD 9,636 | CAD 9,324 | CAD 7,120 |
Applicants for sponsorship will also be required to provide an ‘undertaking’, commiting that they will:
- Provide any necessary financial support to sponsored family members for a period of 20 years, beginnning when they become permanent residents.
- Repay any provincial, territorial or municipal social assistance (money from regional or local government) your sponsored family members get during that time
Sponsors living in Quebec are subject to that province’s own eligibility and income requirements, as set by Quebec’s authorities in charge of immigration.
What does the Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Visa Program offer?
Successful applicants under this program are granted permanent residence in Canada. Permanent residents are able to:
- live, work or study anywhere in Canada
- enter and leave the country freely
- access most social benefits available to Canadian citizens, including healthcare coverage
Permanent residents can also apply for Canadian citizenship once they have been living in Canada for at least three years.
How do I apply for the Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Visa Program?
You must be invited to apply for this program by Canadian authorities, at which point you will have a limited amount of time to submit an application to sponsor your parents or grandparents for permanent residence. Your parents or grandparents can not apply for permanent residence under this program independently.
Upon receiving an invitation to apply, you should ensure you complete your application within the time limit provided.
If you wish to be considered as a sponsor for this program and be eligible to receive an invitation, you must first submit an Interest to Sponsor Form. Once you have submitted your form, you should expect to have to wait a number of years before your request is considered for invitation.
The fee for an application to sponsor a parent or grandparent is around CAD $1200 per person. Any dependent children included in the application will cost an additional CAD $175.