Pivot Legal

Family reunification is a central component of Canada's immigration laws. Among other things, this is a recognition by Canadian society that a new resident to Canada has a valuable network that extends beyond his or her direct economic boost to the marketplace.

Consistent with this set of principles, even economic migrants - be they skilled workers, entrepreneurs, or investors - are able to include their spouse and children directly on their initial application for permanent residence, allowing these family members to receive Canadian permanent residence simultaneously with the economic migrant, subject to exclusions and inadmissibilities, as applicable.

But there is a jarring disconnect. Whereas "immediate family" in many areas of the world encompasses not just spouse and children but also parents and even siblings, this is not reflected with equal force in the Canadian immigration context. Even where the parents, grandparents, and siblings of an economic migrant have resided with that individual for many years, and must be disclosed to immigration authorities, they are not "family members" for the purposes of direct inclusion for permanent residence in that individual's immigration application. Separation will therefore be inevitable, unless members of this 'extended family' are able to submit their own, independent immigration applications.

Once an individual has become a permanent resident, and resides in Canada permanently, they have the option to apply for sponsorship of some members of their extended family, provided that they meet basic requirements. There are financial eligibility benchmarks that they will need to meet, in addition to other conditions. This ‘sponsor' must meet these requirements for the whole of the application process. In addition, the individual will be required to also enter into a Sponsorship Agreement, whereby they agree to be responsible for the applicant family members' financial needs once they become permanent residents, and for the duration of the Agreement. The duration itself depends on the 'type' of relationship between the sponsor and the applicants (spouse, mother, daughter, grandmother, etc).

Aside from spouses and children, a Canadian citizen or permanent resident can apply to sponsor a number of other relatives, including (but not limited to) parents and grandparents. This aspect of the sponsorship 'system', so far, is commonly understood by the general Canadian population. What is considerably less well understood, however, is in the very real practical differences between these different sponsorship programs. This lack of widespread understanding about the differences between sponsorship regimes may come as a shock to any participant of the sponsorship programs outside of the realm of spouse, common-law partner, and dependent child.

To any such participant, however, the differences are clear enough to characterize the sponsorship of relatives outside of those classes as tantamount to a completely different regime. There are, of course, differences that quickly become apparent even from a cursory review of the applicable policy, law, and regulations: set minimum Low Income cut-offs which change every year, and which must be met by sponsor for the whole of the application process; a longer applicable period of financial obligation on the part of the sponsor, at this date 10 years; no possibility for sponsorship where the sponsor resides primarily outside Canada, even where the sponsor is a Canadian citizen; stricter health eligibility requirements for applicants; etc.

However, there are other differences that are no less significant for not being informed by the black letter law. Perhaps the simplest to point out, and arguably the most demoralizing for potential sponsors, are the long processing delays. Where many straightforward spousal sponsorship application can (depending on the processing visa office) be expected to be processed within one year, the same certainly does not hold for other relatives - such applications can take several years to be processed. A potential sponsor should carefully consider the estimated processing times provided by Citizenship and Immigration Canada for each visa office prior to initiating the process.

It is important to remember in this connection that the requirements of the sponsorship and application for permanent residence must continue to be met by all participants for the whole of the application process. Thus, for example, if a sponsor loses his or her employment in the course of the processing of the application, and falls short as a result of the Low-Income Cut Off, the processing office may ultimately deny the application. There may be some options, however, available for individuals - such as requesting discretionary consideration on humanitarian and compassionate grounds - and so, in such circumstances, a potential sponsor should quickly seek independent advice in this regard.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this article is intended to provide general information only. It does not constitute formal legal advice or give rise to any solicitor-client relationship. The author and Pivot Legal LLP disclaim any and all liability resulting from reliance upon this general information. The author and Pivot Legal LLP strongly recommend seeking formal legal advice from a competent solicitor before acting upon any information that may appear in this article.