Canada is accepting 15,000 applications to bring parents, grandparents to the country as permanent residents.
Canada is set to accept up to 15,000 applications for its family reunification program this year, which would allow Canadian citizens to reunite with their families by bringing them to the country as permanent residents.
As announced by parliament members Sonia Sidhu and Shafqat Ali on Oct 11, will be accepting up to 15,000 complete applications for sponsorship under the Parents and Grandparents Program this year.
Sidhu highlighted that family reunification is important as it plays a significant role in Canada's immigration system.
"We recognize that reuniting parents and grandparents with their families in Canada provides immense contributions to our communities. Parents, their children and their grandchildren want to be together, and our government has made significant progress toward that," Sidhu said.
"Today’s announcement will help reunite more families in Canada and is an important step in the right direction."
To make sure that the goal of 15,000 applications is met, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will begin sending out invitations to 23,100 interested sponsors over the course of two weeks. The invitations will be sent out randomly based on the pool of sponsor forms submitted back in 2020.
Once invited to the program, applicants will need to use the new Permanent Residence Portal or the Representative Permanent Residence Portal to submit their applications electronically. This is part of IRCC's effort to expedite the process and improve Canada’s immigration system.
According to IRCC, they will maintain a lower income requirement for the sponsorship of parents and grandparents due to the challenges of the global pandemic, which may have left potential sponsors experiencing financial difficulties.
The income requirement for sponsors for the 2020 and 2021 tax years will be the minimum necessary income. Additionally, regular employment insurance benefits as well as temporary COVID-19 assistance, such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, will be allowed to be included to the sponsor’s income.
For those who did not receive an invitation, they can still have another opportunity to reunite with their parents and grandparents by having them apply for a super visa, which is a multiple-entry visa that is valid for 10 years. This will allow them to stay in Canda for up to five years at a time and have the option to extend their stay without leaving the country.
According to data gathered by the Commission on Filipinos Overseas, Canada is one of the most popular countries of destination among Filipino emigrants from 1981-2018.