Tag Archive: Family Class
Faster Spousal Temporary Resident (Visitor) Visa Processing Times; New Open Work Permit for Spousal and Family Class Applicants
May 26, 2023
Today, Friday, May 26, 2023, the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship announced new measures to strengthen family reunification, which include:
- faster temporary resident visa (TRV) processing times for spousal applicants
- new and dedicated processing tools for spousal TRV applicants
- a new open work permit for spousal and family class applicants
- open work permit extensions for open work permit holders expiring between August 1 and the end of 2023
Minister Fraser announced that, going forward, most TRV applications will be processed within 30 days, and applicants will benefit from processing measures specific to their circumstances as spouses and dependants.
Once in Canada, spouses, partners and dependants are now able to apply for and receive an open work permit as soon as they submit a complete permanent residence application under the spouse or common-law partner in Canada class (SPCLC) or other family class programs.
Finally, Minister Fraser announced that spousal applicants, along with other open work permit holders, whose open work permits expire between August 1 and the end of 2023, will be able to extend their work permits for an additional 18 months.
Parent/Grandparent Sponsorship Program to Reopen on October 13, 2020
October 5, 2020
Today, the Honourable Marco E. L. Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced details for the opening of the 2020 Parent and Grandparent Sponsorship Program (PGP).
Over a 3-week period, from 12 noon Eastern Daylight Time on October 13, 2020, to 12 noon Eastern Standard Time on November 3, 2020, Canadian citizens and permanent residents who wish to sponsor their parents and grandparents to come to Canada will have an opportunity to submit an interest to sponsor form online.
From those who submit an interest to sponsor form online, IRCC will randomly select potential sponsors and send them an invitation to submit an Application. Selected applicants will have 60 days to submit their Application. A maximum of 10,000 Applications will be accepted for processing as part of the 2020 PGP intake. In 2021, IRCC will open a new intake of interest to sponsor forms to accept a total of 30,000 new Applications.
Given that many sponsors may have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, IRCC is introducing a temporary public policy that will reduce the income requirement for the 2020 tax year to the minimum necessary income, instead of the minimum necessary income plus 30%.
If you are an existing PGP client of Abrams & Krochak and you require more information regarding today’s announcement, please send an e-mail to info@akcanada.com with your name and file number. If you are not yet a PGP client of Abrams & Krochak, but you are interested in sponsoring a parent or grandparent to immigrate to Canada with Abrams & Krochak’s assistance, please complete our Parent/Grandparent Sponsorship Online Eligibility Assessment Questionnaire at https://www.akcanada.com/assessment4.php and you will receive our assessment within one (1) business day.
Canada to Speed Up Spousal Sponsorship Application Processing
September 24, 2020
On September 24, 2020, the Honourable Marco E. L. Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship (IRCC), announced that the Government of Canada would be taking action to speed up the processing of Spousal Sponsorship Applications.
IRCC has increased the number of decision makers on Spousal Sponsorship Applications in Canada by 66%, to process these applications more quickly and reduce couples’ wait times.
With these initiatives, IRCC aims to accelerate, prioritize and finalize approximately 6,000 applications each month from October until December 2020. Combined with processing to date, this rate will lead to about 49,000 decisions by the end of this year.
Update on 2020 Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Program
March 27, 2020
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced, today, Friday, March 27, 2020, that the launch of the annual call for expressions of interest to apply to sponsor parents and grandparents will be delayed. It was anticipated that the program would reopen in the upcoming weeks; however, because IRCC is dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, it has put a temporary hold on accepting new Applications.
Applicants from previous years who already received an Invitation to Apply will continue to have their Applications processed by IRCC. As for new Applications, IRCC has indicated that they are committed to opening the 2020 program as soon as possible and will share any updates once they become available. Abrams & Krochak will continue to post those updates on this blog as soon as they are announced.
Government Announcement Regarding 2020 Parent and Grandparent Sponsorships
December 31, 2019
On December 30, 2019, the Government of Canada announced the postponement of the 2020 Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship Program until further notice to allow the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) sufficient time to complete the development of a new intake process for the program. IRCC wants to develop an intake process which will ensure that all interested sponsors have the same opportunity to submit an interest to sponsor form, and a fair chance to be invited to apply.
As a result of this announcement, as of January 1, 2020, no permanent resident visa applications made by parents or grandparents of a sponsor and no sponsorship applications made in relation to those applications will be accepted for processing until further instructions are issued by IRCC. IRCC intends to issue further instructions relating to the intake management process for the parents and grandparents program by April 1, 2020, at the latest.
Just as soon as any further instructions are released by IRCC or any announcements made, we will post them on our website. Affected clients with questions can send an e-mail to info@akcanada.com.
Parents/Grandparents Sponsorship Program to Reopen in New Year
December 22, 2017
In 2017, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) introduced a new process for application intake for sponsoring parents and grandparents. Now, potential sponsors must first notify IRCC that they are interested in sponsoring their parents and grandparents by submitting an “Interest to Sponsor” form. Using a random selection process, IRCC will then invite potential sponsors to apply to sponsor their parents and grandparents.
Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced that the Program will reopen in 2018 and that the “Interest to Sponsor” form will be available at noon EST on January 2, 2018. Those who wish to apply to sponsor their parents and grandparents in 2018 must first fill out this online form. It will be available until noon February 1, 2018.
Abrams & Krochak will be contacting all of its clients with pending Parent/Grandparent Sponsorship Applications at the beginning of January 2018.