Spousal & Family Sponsorship
Canadian citizens and permanent residents can sponsor eligible family members to come to Canada and obtain permanent residence. Reuniting families is one of Canada's core immigration values.
Family sponsorship lets Canadian citizens and permanent residents aged 18 or older sponsor a spouse, dependent child, parent, or grandparent for permanent residence. The sponsor must meet the minimum necessary income (LICO). Processing ranges from about 12 months for a spouse to 24+ months for parents.
- Processing Time
- 12 months (spouse) to 24+ months (parents)
- Who You Can Sponsor
- Spouse · Parents · Children
- Pathway Type
- Permanent Residence (PR)
- Sponsor Income
- Must meet Low Income Cut-Off (LICO)
Compare Other Programs
Other routes in this category that may fit your situation
Who Is This For?
- You are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, 18 years of age or older
- You live in Canada (citizens abroad may sponsor spouses/children under certain conditions)
- You meet the minimum necessary income (LICO) to support your sponsored family member
- You are not in receipt of social assistance (except for disability)
- You have not been convicted of certain offences and are not in default of previous undertakings
- The person you wish to sponsor is a qualifying family member (spouse/partner, dependent child, parent, grandparent)
How It Works
- 1
Confirm eligibility
Both the sponsor and the sponsored person must meet IRCC's eligibility criteria. We assess your situation before you apply.
- 2
Submit the sponsorship application
File the sponsorship application with IRCC. For spouses, this can often be processed simultaneously with the PR application.
- 3
Sponsored person submits PR application
Your family member submits their permanent residence application including identity documents, medical exam, and police clearances.
- 4
IRCC processes both applications
IRCC reviews and links both files. Spouses may receive an open work permit (OWP) while waiting.
- 5
Medical and background checks
The sponsored person completes a medical exam with an IRCC-designated physician and obtains police clearances from all countries of residence.
- 6
Receive PR approval
Once approved, your family member receives their Confirmation of Permanent Residence and can land in Canada.
Reviewed by Ramin Asadi · RCIC · CICC #R407111 Verify
Figures on this page were last verified against their official sources on 10 September 2026.
The Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP): How It Works, and Its Current Status
The Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) is the family-class stream that leads all the way to permanent residence for parents and grandparents — different from the Super Visa below, which is a long-stay visitor visa only. In a normal intake year, IRCC opens an online 'interest to sponsor' form for a limited window, then randomly selects a capped number of people from that pool and invites only them to submit a full sponsorship application.
Since July 15, 2026, IRCC has paused all new intake: no interest-to-sponsor forms are being accepted and no new invitations are being issued, with no announced date to reopen. This is the third consecutive year the program has been effectively closed to brand-new applicants. Applications already in the system are unaffected and continue to be processed — IRCC plans to approve up to 15,000 parents and grandparents for permanent residence through the PGP in 2026, a 53% cut from the 32,000 approved in 2024, against a backlog of roughly 60,500 applications still awaiting a decision.
If you already have an interest-to-sponsor form or a full application in the system, nothing has changed for your file — IRCC continues processing it. If you have not yet applied, there is currently no way to start a new PGP sponsorship. The Super Visa is the government's own stated bridge option while the pause continues.
Source: IRCC — Canada takes steps to responsibly manage the Parents and Grandparents Program
PGP Sponsorship or the Super Visa? A Side-by-Side Comparison
While PGP intake is paused, most families choosing between the two are really deciding between waiting for permanent residence and bringing a parent to Canada now on a long-stay visa. Neither option is objectively better than the other — they answer different questions.
| PGP Sponsorship | Super Visa | |
|---|---|---|
| Outcome | Permanent residence | Temporary status only — does not lead to PR |
| Current availability | Paused since July 15, 2026 — no new applications | Open year-round, no lottery or annual cap |
| Income test | MNI (LICO + 30%) for 3 consecutive tax years | MNI (LICO + 30%), using either of the last 2 tax years |
| Medical insurance | Not required — applicant completes a standard immigration medical exam instead | Minimum $100,000 CAD private insurance, valid 1+ year, required before travel |
| Typical timeline | Years — the existing backlog alone is about 60,500 applications | Weeks to a few months once documents are ready |
Right for: PGP suits families set on permanent reunification who are already in the system or willing to wait for the next intake window. The Super Visa suits families who want a parent physically present now, with or without a pending PGP file.
The Income Test: Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) Explained
Not every sponsorship has to clear an income bar. Sponsoring only a spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner generally has no minimum income requirement at all — you only need to show you are not receiving social assistance for reasons other than disability. Parents and grandparents are different: you must meet the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI), which is the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) plus 30%, for each of the 3 consecutive tax years immediately before you apply.
Your household size for this test includes yourself, your dependants, the parent or grandparent you are sponsoring, and their dependants. A spouse or common-law partner can co-sign the application to combine incomes if you do not qualify alone. This 3-year, LICO+30% standard is stricter than the Super Visa's income test, which — since March 2026 — can be met using either of your last two tax years, and can even draw on the visiting parent's own income once your household independently clears 75% of the threshold.
Source: IRCC — Sponsor your parents and grandparents: check if you’re eligible
Who Actually Qualifies as a "Family Class" Member
Family class sponsorship covers four relationships: a spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner; a dependent child; a parent; and a grandparent. Siblings, adult children, aunts, uncles, and cousins do not qualify except in very narrow circumstances — see the FAQ below.
A dependent child is either under 22 and not married or in a common-law relationship, or 22 or older and substantially dependent on a parent for financial support since before turning 22 because of a physical or mental condition. The child's age is 'locked in' on the day IRCC receives a complete application — not the day you mail it, and not the day a decision is made — so a birthday during processing does not disqualify a child who qualified when the complete application arrived.
Can a grandchild sponsor a grandparent directly?
Yes. A grandparent does not need to be sponsored through their own child — a Canadian citizen or permanent resident grandchild, 18 or older, can sponsor a grandparent directly under the same PGP rules.
Source: IRCC — Lock-in age of dependent children for immigration applications
What You’re Committing To, and How Long It Realistically Takes
Sponsorship is a legal commitment, not a formality. You sign an undertaking to support the person financially — covering food, clothing, shelter, and other basic needs — for a fixed number of years after they land, whether or not your relationship or finances change:
| Who you sponsor | Undertaking length | Starts |
|---|---|---|
| Spouse, common-law or conjugal partner | 3 years | The day they become a permanent resident |
| Dependent child, under 22 at landing | 10 years, or until they turn 25 — whichever comes first | The day they become a permanent resident |
| Dependent child, 22 or older at landing | 3 years | The day they become a permanent resident |
| Parent or grandparent | 20 years | The day they become a permanent resident |
Realistic timing
The undertaking does not end if you divorce, if the person becomes a Canadian citizen, or if your own income drops — if they receive social assistance during that window, you can be required to repay it. On timing: spousal sponsorship from outside Canada typically takes around 12 months. A new PGP application cannot currently be filed at all, and for the roughly 60,500 already in the queue, clearing that backlog at the current pace of about 15,000 approvals a year would take several years — plan accordingly.
Source: IRCC — How long am I financially responsible for the family member or relative I sponsor?
Why ITC iLand for This Program?
Family reunification is among the most personal immigration applications we handle. ITC iLand has reunited hundreds of families across spouse sponsorships, parent super visas, and dependent child applications — part of over 1,000 cases we've managed since 1998. Our RCICs know that these applications require precision and care in equal measure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Spousal and common-law partner sponsorship typically takes 12 months for applications submitted outside Canada. If your spouse is already in Canada with valid status, inland applications can take similar or slightly longer. ITC iLand monitors current IRCC processing times.
You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to sponsor. PRs can sponsor parents and grandparents. However, you must meet the minimum income threshold (LICO + 30%) for at least three consecutive years prior to application — though IRCC is not currently accepting any new PGP applications at all; see below.
The Super Visa is a multi-entry visitor visa allowing parents and grandparents to stay in Canada for up to 5 years per visit (valid for 10 years). It is faster than the sponsorship process but does not grant PR. Many families use it as a bridge while waiting for the Parents & Grandparents Program (PGP) lottery.
You can only sponsor adult children (18+) in very limited circumstances. Siblings can only be sponsored if both parents are deceased and the sibling is under 18. The family class is focused on spouses, dependent children, and parents/grandparents.
Yes, but you must wait 3 years after a previous spousal sponsorship is completed before sponsoring a new partner. This rule prevents misuse of the sponsorship program.
No. IRCC paused all new PGP intake on July 15, 2026 — no interest-to-sponsor forms and no new invitations are being issued, with no announced reopening date. This is the third consecutive year the program has been effectively closed to brand-new applicants.
Nothing changes for you. IRCC continues processing applications already in the system and plans to approve up to 15,000 parents and grandparents for permanent residence through the PGP in 2026.
Roughly 60,500 applications are still awaiting a final decision. At the current pace of about 15,000 approvals a year, clearing that backlog alone — without any new intake — would take several years.
MNI is the Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) plus 30%, and you must meet it for each of the 3 consecutive tax years immediately before you apply — a stricter test than the plain LICO that applies to some other sponsorships.
Yes. A spouse or common-law partner can co-sign the sponsorship application to combine incomes if you don't meet the Minimum Necessary Income threshold on your own.
No. Private medical insurance is a Super Visa requirement, not a PGP one. A parent or grandparent sponsored for PR completes the standard immigration medical exam instead.
The sponsorship undertaking for parents and grandparents is 20 years from the day they become a permanent resident, in every province except Quebec, which sets its own terms. It continues even if your relationship or finances change.
PGP requires MNI (LICO + 30%) across 3 consecutive tax years. The Super Visa's test is more flexible: since March 2026 it can be met using either of your last two tax years, and the visiting parent's own income can help once your household independently clears 75% of the threshold.
Yes. The two are not mutually exclusive — many families use the Super Visa to bring a parent to Canada now while an existing PGP application, filed before the pause, continues processing in the background.
Their age is 'locked in' on the day IRCC receives a complete application, not the day it's mailed or decided. A child who qualified as a dependant when the complete application arrived stays qualified even if they have a birthday while it's processed.
Yes. A Canadian citizen or permanent resident grandchild who is 18 or older can sponsor a grandparent directly under the same PGP eligibility rules — the grandparent does not need to be sponsored through their own child first.
Yes. Common-law and conjugal partners — opposite-sex or same-sex — qualify under the same family-class rules as a married spouse, with the same processing pathway.
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