Parents & Grandparents Program is expected to open in Late January 2019

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) recently announced that the much anticipated Parental and Grandparental Program is expected to open in late January 2019. Many expected that the program would open on January 2, 2019, similar to the opening date of the program in 2018, however this was not the case. Another major difference in the 2019 application process is that applications will be accepted on a first-come-first-serve basis, compared to the lottery system which was implemented in 2018. IRCC has also increased its quota to accepting 20,000 complete applications in 2019 under this program.

Canadian Citizens and permanent residents of Canada, over the age of 18, are eligible to sponsor their parents and/or grandparents to Canada. All sponsors must also meet certain income requirements based on the size of their family and support all their dependents financially. All applicants will have to provide police certificates, complete background checks and a medical examination during the application process. Most applicants will also be required to provide their biometrics with a few exemptions.

For further information on the Parental and Grandparental Program or any Canadian immigration matters, please contact pinaz@prmlaw.ca.