Question Period Note: PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS (PGP) INTAKE PROCESS

For the 2023 intake of the parents and grandparents program, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) invited potential sponsors from the remaining pool of Interest to Sponsor forms from 2020. From October 10-23, 2023, IRCC invited 24,200 potential sponsors to apply. The deadline to apply is December 22, 2023.

• The number of people interested in sponsoring their parents and grandparents is significant. As a result of this demand, IRCC conducts periodic intakes of applications from interested potential sponsors.
• The application intake began on Oct. 10, 2023 where potential sponsors, who had expressed an interest to sponsor in 2020, were invited to submit applications using a random selection model. The goal is to accept up to 15,000 complete applications by the deadline of December 22, 2023.
• The random selection model ensures that the process is fair and transparent, and that all interested sponsors have an equal opportunity to be invited to apply.

If pressed:
• The Super Visa is an alternative pathway for parents and grandparents to reunite with their adult children and grandchildren in Canada. The Government made important enhancements to the Super Visa in 2022, increasing the length of stay from two to five years per entry. Parents and grandparents visiting on a super visa can also apply for 2-year extensions to their stay while still in Canada.

• The federal government sets the number of permanent residents to be admitted within each immigration category each year, which in turn helps determine how many applications need to be processed. Family Class parent and grandparent levels, similar to those in any category, are not unlimited as the immigration system must also balance other objectives within the economic, family, refugee and humanitarian categories, while considering the need for adequate capacity for infrastructure (e.g. housing, transportation), settlement services and health care. The 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan, as tabled in Parliament on November 1, 2022, sets admission targets for parents and grandparents at 28,500 in 2023, 34,000 in 2024, and 36,000 in 2025.
• The intake of parent and grandparent applications is managed through an annual application limit, which sets out the number of complete applications IRCC accepts for processing in a year. This application limit is set using Ministerial Instructions under the authority found in section 87.3 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. As a result, the number of people interested in sponsoring their parents and grandparents consistently exceeds the number of applications IRCC needs to meet Cabinet approved admission targets.
• For the 2023 intake, IRCC will assess the income of sponsors (and their co-signer, if applicable) for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 taxation years. Since many sponsors may have been affected financially by the pandemic, the income requirement for the 2020 and 2021 taxation years has been reduced to the minimum necessary income, instead of the minimum necessary income plus 30%. In addition, family class sponsors will be able to count regular Employment Insurance benefits and temporary COVID-19 related benefits as long as the benefits are not part of provincial social assistance programs in their income calculations for the 2020 and 2021 taxation years. The reduced income requirement and opportunity to include certain benefits is only applicable for these two taxation years.

2023 Intake:

• Ministerial Instructions were signed on July 6, 2023, which authorize IRCC to conduct a new intake in the fall of 2023. Between October 10 and 23, 2023, IRCC randomly invited 24,200 potential sponsors to apply from the remaining Interest to Sponsor forms submitted in 2020 in order to receive up to 15,000 complete applications.
• Those who will be invited to apply as part of 2023 intake will be directed to submit their applications electronically through the Permanent Residence Portal or the Representative Permanent Residence Portal. This is part of IRCC’s commitment to modernize Canada’s immigration system and simplify the application process. Those who are unable to apply online and require accommodations, including for a disability, may request an alternate format from IRCC.
• Invited potential sponsors will have until 11:59 PM EST on December 22, 2023 to submit their application.

Recent Intakes:

• For the 2020 intake, IRCC used a random selection process and invited 13,400 potential sponsors to apply, aiming to receive 10,000 complete applications.
• For the 2021 intake, IRCC randomly selected and invited 34,500 potential sponsors to apply from the pool of Interest to Sponsor forms submitted in 2020, aiming to receive 30,000 complete applications.
• For the 2022 intake, IRCC randomly selected and invited 23,100 potential sponsors to apply from the pool of Interest to Sponsor forms submitted in 2020, aiming to receive up to 15,000 complete applications.

RESPONSIVE ONLY: On parents and grandparents application processing times:

• As a result of recent intakes, the inventory sits at 58,769 parents and grandparents (persons) as of mid-August 2023. IRCC has more applications in its processing inventory than needed to meet Cabinet approved admission targets for at least 2 years. Files in the pre-existing backlog of inventory are also aging, which can make them more complex to process. This means new applications may take several years to be processed in accordance with admission targets in the levels plan.
• Processing times as of the end of August in this category are just under two years (23 months) for applicants destined outside of Quebec and just under 4 years (45 months) for applicants destined to Quebec. New applications received in 2023 will experience wait times of approximately three years to be processed, based on the 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan.

Super Visa:
• Parents and grandparents who are not invited to apply or who are waiting for their applications to be processed and wish to come to Canada may also be eligible to apply for a Super Visa, which is a multi-entry visa that allows parents or grandparents to stay in Canada for extended lengths of time.
• On June 22, 2023, private member’s bill C-242 received Royal Assent, enshrining enhancements to the Super Visa in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Super Visa holders may now visit Canada for five years at a time, without leaving the country. IRCC is also working towards an approach for Super Visa applicants and visa holders to purchase a health insurance policy from an insurance company outside Canada that is approved by the Minister.

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