Immigroup has simplified the confusing sponsorship application processes and qualification
guidelines of the Government of Canada for Family Class Sponsorship. One of the
objectives of Canadian immigration law is "to see that families are reunited in
Canada". This class of immigration is called the "Family Class".
Quick Index
Family Class Sponsorship Program Details
For a family be reunited in Canada, a sponsor must file an application with Citizenship
and Immigration. A sponsor must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident at
least 18 years of age living in Canada.
This category of immigration includes the following relatives of a sponsor: spouse,
common-law partner, conjugal partner, dependent child, adopted child, parent, grandparent,
or an orphaned relative under 18 years of age who is the sponsor's brother or sister,
nephew, niece, grandchild or adopted child. Each type of relationship has its own
set of forms, requirements, and supporting documents that must be submitted to Citizenship
and Immigration.
For International Marriage Visas
please click here
Federal and Provincial Programs for Family Class Sponsorship
Immigroup has simplified the confusing application process and qualification guidelines
of the Canadian Government this category of immigration. The grid below combines
the federal and provincial programs for sponsoring your family member. By clicking
on a box in the grid, you are directed to a page with qualification information
and a simplified sponsorship application process.
Sponsoring Parents, Grandparents or an Orphaned Relative
Sponsoring parents, grandparents, or an orphaned relative (under 18 years of age
who is the sponsor's brother or sister, nephew, niece, grandchild, or adopted child)
is permissible under this program of immigration providing the sponsor is a Canadian
citizen or permanent resident who lives in Canada and is at least 18 years of age.
The relationship between the sponsor and the sponsored person must be proven through
documents issued by civil authorities.
Documents that prove relationship of the sponsor to a parent:
- Sponsor's birth certificate
Documents that prove relationship of the sponsor to a grandparent:
- Sponsor's birth certificate
- Sponsor's parent's birth certificate through whom the sponsor is related to the
sponsored grandparent
Documents that prove relationship of the sponsor to an orphaned
relative:
Sponsor's brother or sister
- Sponsor's birth certificate
- Sponsor's brother or sister's birth certificate
- Sponsor's and sponsored brother's or sister's both parents' death certificates
Sponsor's nephew or niece:
- Sponsor's birth certificate
- Sponsor's late brother or sister's birth certificate
- Sponsored niece's or nephew's both parents' death certificates
Sponsor's grandchild:
- Sponsor's birth certificate
- Sponsor's son or daughter's birth certificate, through whom the sponsor is related
to the grandchild
- Sponsored grandchild's both parents' death certificates
Sponsor's adopted child:
- Adopted child's birth certificate (showing names of biological parents)
- Adopted child's amended birth certificate (showing sponsor's name as parent)
- Adopted child's both biological parents' death certificates
- Adoption decree, issued by authority of the country where the adoption took place
Federal and Provincial Programs for Family Class Sponsorship
Spousal Sponsorship
Marriage to a foreign spouse by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident under the
spousal sponsorship marriage immigration initiative is a complex process.
A spouse is a person who is at least 16 years of age and is legally married to the
sponsor by the civil authorities of a country. A marriage is valid in Canada if
it is valid in the country where it took place. A couple can prove they are legally
married if they have a marriage certificate issued by the civil authorities of the
country where the marriage took place.
Documents to prove the relationship to a spouse:
- Marriage certificate issued by the civil authority of the country where the marriage
took place.
- If one of the parties was married in the past, a divorce certificate issued by a
Court must be submitted.
Common-Law Sponsorship
A common-law partner is a person who has lived together with the sponsor
in a conjugal relationship for at least one year. In a common-law marriage, there
is no document to prove that a couple is living together. A common-law marriage
exists from the day a couple decides to physically live together. To qualify under
the Family Class, Canadian immigration law requires a couple to prove that they
have lived together continuously for at least one year. Documents that may prove
the existence of a common-law relationship:
- Joint bank accounts
- Joint credit cards
- Proof of property purchased in both names
- Invoices in both names
- Lease agreement showing both names
- Correspondence/bills sent to either party at the same address
- Insurance policies showing the other partner as beneficiary
Conjugal Relationship
A conjugal partner is a person who lives outside Canada and who has been in a conjugal
relationship with the sponsor for at least one year. A conjugal relationship is
one where there is a considerable amount of physical, emotional, social, and financial
attachment between the couple. Both partners are committed to each other in a permanent,
long-term and exclusive life together. They share the same values and interests;
they spend time together as a couple and with each other's families. Conjugal
partners socially present themselves as a couple with their friends, family, and
community, and they are viewed by others as being a couple. Documents that may prove
the existence of a conjugal relationship:
- Photos of the couple
- Long distance phone bills (pre-paid phone cards are usually not considered evidence)
- Plane tickets or boarding passes for visits of one partner to the other or for trips
the couple has made together
- E-mails, letters, greeting card
- Joint bank accounts
- Joint credit cards
- Money transfers
- Insurance policies showing the partner as beneficiary
- Declarations from family, friends or prominent members of the community (doctors,
lawyers, religious workers, etc.) stating their recognition of the couple being
in a conjugal relationship
IMPORTANT
In all relationships (spousal, common-law partner, conjugal relationship), if there
are minor children their birth certificates and Court resolution regarding their
custody must be submitted.
Dependent Children
According to Canadian immigration law, a dependent son or daughter is a biological
or adopted child who:
- Is less than 22 years of age and has not been married or in a common-law marriage
- Has been financially supported by a parent since before age 22, or if the child
has been married or in a common law marriage since before age 22, has been supported
by the parent since the date the child got married or into a common law marriage
and since before age 22 or since the child got married or in a common law marriage,
has been a post-secondary full-time student in an academic, professional or vocational
training.
- Is more than 22 years of age and financially supported by a parent since before
age 22 and is unable to support him or herself due to a mental or physical condition.
Sponsorship Time Lines
The Family Class is one of the objectives of Canadian immigration law therefore
applications submitted under this class are given processing priority.
When a sponsorship application is submitted to Citizenship and Immigration Canada,
with all the required forms properly completed, including all supporting documents
and information, it is usually processed within eight weeks from the date it is
submitted. It is then forwarded to the Canadian visa office responsible for processing
the application and issuing the permanent resident visa to the sponsor's relative.
Every Canadian visa office has its own processing time, according to the volume
of applications they receive.
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