If the applicant is eligible, he can sponsor his spouse, partner or dependent children to become permanent residents of Canada.
Applicants must be able to:
- Support them financially
- Make sure they don’t need government social assistance
Requirement :
Applicants for a family reunion visa must have one of the following relationships with a Canadian citizen or permanent resident:
- Dependent children/parents/grandparents/spouse, de facto marriage partner or spouse relationship partner
- Siblings, nephews, nieces or grandchildren or granddaughters who are under 17 years old, unmarried and both parents have died
Definition of spouse or partner
- Spouse: legally married in the country of origin and in compliance with Canadian laws
- Marital relationship partner: Have a relationship of at least 12 months, but are prohibited from cohabiting due to religious reasons, immigration barriers, sexual orientation or marital status
- De facto marriage: Have an uninterrupted cohabitation relationship for at least 12 months
- Same-sex relationships will also be defined in accordance with the above categories, and they will all be regarded as valid immigration applications.
Definition of dependent children
The guarantor, the common-law partner of the guarantor, or the single child of the spouse who is 21 years old or younger are all defined as dependent children. If children need to be financially dependent on their parents at the age of 21 or before, and cannot be financially self-sufficient due to physical or psychological conditions, they will be regarded as dependent children even if they are 22 years of age or older.
Although the custody of the children belongs to the former spouse, they will still be regarded as dependent children. However, they must clearly state their relationship when applying for a family reunion visa. In addition, if the dependent children being sponsored also have at least one dependent child themselves, the guarantor must prove that they have sufficient financial capacity to meet the minimum income requirement.
Guarantor Qualification
Any permanent resident or citizen living in Canada can act as a guarantor (Canadian citizens currently living overseas can also act as guarantors as long as they plan to return to the place for permanent residence after their relatives arrive in Canada.)
There are many restrictions in the sponsored visa program. In the following situations, the applicant may not be able to become a guarantor:
- Imprisoned
- Repatriation order issued
- Is going through bankruptcy
- Have committed, attempted, or threatened to commit a crime related to violence or sex and have been convicted
- Are receiving social assistance from the government (except for disabilities)
- Failure to pay child support
- Failure to repay immigration loans
- Once sponsored a relative who was not eligible to apply for an immigrant visa
- Have sponsored a former spouse or partner who has been a non-permanent resident for more than 3 years
- Have sponsored yourself and have been a permanent resident for less than 5 years
Required Documents
Those who intend to sponsor their family members to apply for a dependant visa need to submit documents that can prove their financial status in the past 12 months to Immigration Canada (IRCC) to ensure that the sponsor has sufficient financial capacity to meet the applicant’s living expenses.
- The Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship of Canada (IRCC) announced that starting from October 24, 2017, the main applicant for a dependant visa can add unmarried and unmarried children under 21 years of age and not in a common-law relationship to the immigration application.
- The sponsored party must attach a medical report when submitting the application, while applicants from Africa, Europe and the Middle East must submit additional biometric data.
- In addition, the applicant and any relatives over 18 years of age must submit a criminal record certificate from the country of origin, living for a long time, or country where they have lived for more than 6 months.
- If the applicant intends to move to Quebec, in addition to meeting the above-mentioned conditions required by the federal government, the Quebec authorities may have other requirements. For example, a potential guarantor living in Quebec must submit a special agreement to the Quebec government after submitting an application.
Parent visa
On July 20, 2021, the Canadian Immigration and Immigration Service announced a new policy for sponsoring parent immigration in 2021: Starting from September 20, 2021, the Immigration Service will submit an application intention from 2020 but not selected for two consecutive weeks. Among the guarantors, 30,000 guarantors are randomly invited to submit formal applications. The selected guarantor must submit a formal application within 60 days.
The guarantor can guarantee the basic conditions of his parents and grandparents:
- At least 18 years old
- Live in Canada
- Must be a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident of Canada, or a person registered as an Indian in Canada [Canadian Indian Act]
- Have sufficient financial proof to support the applicant
- In order to prove that the guarantor has sufficient money, the guarantor must provide proof of income.
The guarantor (and its co-signator, if any) must prove that they have sufficient income to support all those who will be financially responsible after becoming the guarantor. This includes yourself. If the applicant is invited to apply, the guarantor must provide proof that it can meet the income requirements for each of the three tax years preceding the application date.
The Immigration Bureau cannot assess whether the guarantor meets the income requirements until the guarantor officially applies.
(If you live outside of Quebec, to become a guarantor, you must commit to financially taking care of the person you sponsor for a period of time. We call this commitment a letter of commitment.)
Letter of Commitment:
The guarantor promises to provide 20 years of financial support to the sponsored family members and repay any provincial social assistance (funds from the government) that your sponsored family members receive during this period from the time they become permanent residents. You and your sponsored family members need to agree to assume certain responsibilities during the commitment period. We call it a “guarantee agreement.”
The Guarantee Agreement :
The guarantee agreement means that the guarantor will meet the basic needs of the sponsored family members, and the person you sponsor will make every effort to support themselves and their families. When applying, a form containing a commitment and guarantee agreement must be filled out and signed.
The minimum necessary income (MNI) is a key eligibility factor for the parent and grandparent immigration program. Immigration officials will assess the minimum necessary income of each guarantor for the 2020, 2019 and 2018 tax years. Only after the interest to sponsor form has been expressed through the online form, proof of the necessary income is required. However, those who are selected in the lottery and invited to submit a sponsorship application will be rejected if they do not meet the minimum necessary income requirements.
Note :Due to COVID-19, the Department of Immigration will only assess the minimum necessary income for the 2020 tax year. At the same time, it will not look at the usual minimum necessary income plus the 30% requirement. In addition, applicants can include employment insurance (EI) benefits, Canadian Emergency Response Benefits (CERB) and other income as their minimum necessary income for the 2020 tax year.
家庭團聚簽證
如果申請人符合資格，可擔保其配偶、伴侶或受撫養子女成為加拿大的永久居民。
申請人必須能夠：
在經濟上支持他們
確保他們不需要政府的社會援助
申請資格
家庭團聚簽證申請人必須與一名加拿大公民或永久居民為下列關係其中之一：
受撫養子女/ 父母/ 祖父母/ 配偶、事實婚姻伴侶或夫妻關係伴侶
17歲以下、未婚和父母雙亡的兄弟姊妹、侄子、侄女或孫子、孫女
配偶或伴侶定義
- 配偶：在原籍國合法結婚，並符合加拿大的法律
- 夫妻關係伴侶：擁有至少12個月的戀愛關係，但是由於宗教理由、移民壁壘、性取向或婚姻狀況而被禁止同居
- 事實婚姻：擁有至少12個月不間斷的同居關係
- 同性關係亦會按照上述種類定義，而且均會被視作有效的移民申請。
受養子女定義
擔保人、擔保人的普通法伴侶或配偶的21歲或以下單身子女均會被定義為受撫養子女。如子女於21歲或以前均需要在經濟上依賴父母，並且由於生理或心理狀況而未能在經濟上自給自足，即使他們年滿22歲或以上都會被視為受撫養子女。
儘管子女的撫養權歸前度配偶，他們仍會被是為受撫養子女，然而他們必須在申請家庭團聚簽證的時候清楚列明關係。另外，假如被擔保的受撫養子女自己亦有至少一名受撫養子女，擔保人必須證明他們有足夠的經濟能力以符合最低收入要求。
擔保人資格
任何居住在加拿大的永久居民或公民均可作為擔保人（目前居住在海外的加拿大公民，只要計劃在被擔保親屬抵達加拿大後回當地永久居住，亦可作為擔保人。）
擔保簽證計劃當中有不少限制條款，在下列情況，申請人有可能無法成為擔保人：
- 被監禁
- 被發遣返令
- 正在經歷破產
- 曾經、試圖或威脅犯下與暴力或性有關的罪行而且被定罪
- 正在接受政府的社會援助（殘疾除外）
- 未能支付子女撫養費
- 未能償還移民貸款
- 曾經擔保一名不合資格申請移民簽證的親屬
- 曾經擔保一名擁有非永久居民身份超過3年的前度配偶或伴侶
- 曾經為自己作擔保並且成為永久居民不足5年
所需文件
打算擔保家人申請受養人簽證的人士，需要向加拿大移民部（IRCC）提交能夠證明過去12個月財務狀況的文件，以確定擔保人有足夠的經濟能力應付申請人的生活開支。
- 加拿大移民、難民及公民部（IRCC）宣佈自2017年10月24日起，受養人簽證的主申請人可以在移民申請中加上其21歲或以下未婚和沒有同居關係的子女。
- 被擔保的一方必須在提交申請的同時附上體檢報告，而來自非洲、歐洲和中東的申請人則需額外提交生物特徵數據。
- 此外，申請人和任何年滿18歲的親屬必須提交來自原籍國、長時間生活或居住滿6個月以上的國家之刑事紀錄證明。
- 而申請者有意移居魁北克省，除符合上述聯邦政府所要求的條件外，魁北克省當局可能有其他要求。例如，居住在魁北克省的潛在擔保人在提交申請後必須向魁北克政府提交一份特別協議等。
父母簽證
2021年7月20日，加拿大移民局公佈了2021年度擔保父母移民的新政策： 從2021年9月20日起，移民局將連續兩個星期從2020年遞交了申請意向但未被抽中的擔保人中，隨機邀請30,000名擔保人遞交正式申請。被抽中的擔保人須在60天內遞交正式申請。
擔保人可擔保其父母和祖父母的基本條件：
- 至少 18 歲
- 住在加拿大
- 必須是加拿大公民、加拿大永久居民或在加拿大註冊為印第安人的人［加拿大印第安法案］
- 有足夠的財務證明來支持申請人
- 為了證明擔保人有足夠的錢，擔保人必須提供收入證明。
擔保人（以及其共同簽署人，如果有的話）必須證明有足夠的收入來支持以成為擔保人後將在經濟上負責的所有人。 這包括你自己。如果申請人被邀請申請，擔保人必須提供證明可滿足申請日期前 3 個納稅年度中每個納稅年度的收入要求。
移民局無法評估擔保人是否滿足收入要求直至擔保人正式申請。
如果住在魁北克以外，要成為擔保人，必須承諾在一段時間內在經濟上照顧您所擔保的人。 我們稱這個承諾為一項承諾書。
承諾書： 擔保人承諾為所擔保的家庭成員提供 20 年的經濟支持，從他們成為永久居民開始償還您的受資助家庭成員在此期間獲得的任何省級社會援助（來自政府的資金）此外，您和您的受資助家庭成員需要同意在承諾期間承擔某些責任。 我們稱之為「擔保協議」。
擔保協議意味著：擔保人將滿足受資助家庭成員的基本需求，您擔保的人將盡一切努力養活他們自己和他們的家人。申請時，必須填寫並簽署一份包含承諾和擔保協議的表格。
最低必要收入（MNI）是父母及祖父母移民計劃的關鍵資格因素。
移民部官員將評估每個擔保人在2020年、2019年和2018年納稅年度的最低必要收入。只有在通過在線表格表達了擔保興趣（ the interest to sponsor form）後，才需要提供該必要收入的證明。但是，在抽籤中被選中，並被邀請提交擔保申請的人，如果不符合最低必要收入的要求，他們的申請將被拒絕。
由於COVID-19，移民部將僅評估2020納稅年度的最低必要收入，同時，不會看通常的最低必要收入加30%的要求。此外，申請人可以將就業保險（EI）福利金、加拿大緊急響應福利（CERB）金等收入，算入本人2020納稅年度的最低必要收入。
