Dependent Child or other Family Member Sponsorship

This stream allows Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor their dependent children to become permanent residents of Canada.

Dependent Child Sponsorship

As of October 24, 2017, the definition of “dependent child” under section R2 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations IRPR states that a child must be in one of the following situations:

  • under 22 years of age and not a spouse or common-law partner
  • 22 years of age or older, have depended substantially on the financial support of the parent since before the age of 22 and be unable to support themselves financially due to a physical or mental condition (it is the financial dependency that must have been ongoing since before the age of 22. It is not necessary for the physical or mental condition to have existed before the age of 22.)

Dependent children who do not have a physical or mental condition must remain unmarried and not in a common-law relationship for the duration of processing, up until the point of becoming a permanent resident.

A dependent child is either a biological child or an adopted child of a parent.

Other Family Member Sponsorship

You can only sponsor relatives like a brother, sister, aunt or uncle in very specific situations.

Orphaned brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild

You can sponsor an orphaned brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild only if they meet all of these conditions:

  • they’re related to you by blood or adoption
  • both their mother and father passed away
  • they’re under 18 years of age
  • they’re single (not married or in a common-law or conjugal relationship)

You can’t sponsor your brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild if:

  • one of their parents is still alive
  • no one knows where their parents are
  • their parents abandoned them
  • someone else other than their parents is taking care of them while one or both their parents are alive
  • their parent is in jail or otherwise detained

Other relative

You may sponsor one relative, related by blood or adoption, of any age, if you meet all of these conditions:

  • you (the person who wants to sponsor your relative) don’t have a living relative you could sponsor instead, such as a:
    • spouse
    • common-law partner
    • conjugal partner
    • son or daughter
    • parent
    • grandparent
    • orphaned brother or sister
    • orphaned nephew or niece
    • orphaned grandchild
  • you (the sponsor) don’t have any relatives (aunt or uncle or any of the relatives listed above), who is a:
    • Canadian citizen
    • permanent resident
    • registered Indian under the Indian Act

If the relative you want to sponsor has a spouse, partner, or dependent children who will come with them to Canada, you must include them on the same sponsorship application.