What do you need to know to sponsor your spouse, partner or children?

As of December 22, 2014, eligible spouses or common-law partners will be allowed to work in Canada while they are waiting for their permanent residence application to be processed. Also, starting August 1, 2014, CIC has redefined a dependent child as 19 years old or less, versus the previous 22 years of age or less. As a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, you may sponsor your:

·         Spouse or

·         common-law partner or

·         dependent children

to immigrate to Canada.

In order to sponsor a family member to immigrate to Canada you have to prove that you can:

·         meet both yours’ and your family’s essential needs, like food, shelter, and clothing.

·         financially support your relative and

·         ensure that your spouse or relative will not need any financial help from the government for at least 3 years after their arrival in Canada.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Which family members can I take with me when I immigrate to Canada?

Your spouse or common-law partner, your dependent child, your spouse or common-law partner’s dependent child, and the dependent child of a dependent child can come to Canada with you when you immigrate. Your parents and grandparents and other family members will not be able to immigrate to Canada with you.  After you immigrate to Canada and become a permanent resident or Canadian citizen, then you might be able to sponsor them to immigrate to Canada too.

How old does my spouse or common-law partner need to be so that I can sponsor them to immigrate to Canada?

As of June 10, 2015, your spouse or common-law partner’s minimum age must be 18 years old before you can sponsor them to come to Canada. Before June 10, 2015, the minimal spousal/partner sponsorship age was 18, but after this date any application for sponsoring a spouse or common-law partner who is under 18 will be rejected.

Will CIC accept marriages that are made by phone, internet, fax or proxy?

Effective June 10, 2015, CIC will not acknowledge marriages taking place abroad by any of these means – one or both parties to the marriage must actually be present at the ceremony. This new law does not apply to applications received before June 10, 2015.

How do I sponsor my eligible family members to immigrate to Canada?

If you wish to sponsor spouse, common-law partner or dependent child, you should send the necessary forms to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario. to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario. In order to sponsor multiple dependent children you will need to fill in a separate application fo reach child and send all of the applications in one envelope.  If you require help sponsoring your eligible family members kindly contact Eric Shawar at —– for a consultation. Consultations can be conducted by phone and will cost —–/ ½ hour. An honest assessment can be invaluable to the future success of your sponsorship application.