If you are a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada, and at least 18 years of age, you can sponsor eligible family members to become Canadian permanent residents. You must have sufficient income to support your family members when they arrive. If you live in Quebec, you must also meet Quebec sponsorship requirements.
The relationship between the sponsor and the sponsored person must be one of the following:
- spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner
- dependent child
- parent, grandparent
- brothers or sisters, nephews or nieces, granddaughters or grandsons who are orphaned, under 18 years of age and not married or in a common-law relationship
- a relative regardless of age or relationship only if you do not have a living spouse or common-law partner, conjugal partner, a son or daughter, parent, grandparent, sibling, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece who could be sponsored as a member of the family class, and you do not have any relative who is a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident or registered as an Indian under the Indian Act.
Spouse / Common-law Sponsorships
Canadian immigration officials carefully examine spousal and common-law sponsorships to ensure that the relationship is genuine, and was not entered into to facilitate the immigration of the person being sponsored. It is the responsibility of the applicants to prove their relationship is genuine.
Definitions
Spouse: You are a spouse if you are at least 16 years of age and legally married to your sponsor.
Common-law Partner: You are a common-law partner if you been in a relationship with your sponsor for at least one year and have you been living together.
Conjugal Partner: You are a conjugal partner if you have been in a relationship with your sponsor for at least one year but have been prevented from living together or marrying.
Dependent Child: A son or daughter is dependent when the child is under the age of 22 and does not have a spouse or common-law partner, or is over the age of 22, and has depended largely on the parent's financial support since before the age of 22 because of a physical or mental condition.