When compared to January 2022, the number of permanent residents who entered Canada through the Parents and Grandparents Programme (PGP) grew by over 60%. In January 2023, the PGP received 2,065 new permanent residents, up from 1,300 in January 2022.

Canada plans to use the PGP to bring in 28,500 permanent residents by 2023. 27,255 permanent residents entered Canada through the PGP in 2022, a 132% increase over the 11,740 that entered in 2021.

The goal of Canada's Immigration Level Plans 2023–2025 is to accept 465,000 permanent immigrants in 2023. 50,885 new permanent residents arrived in Canada in January 2023, over 44 percent more than the 35,450 immigrants who arrived in January of the previous year.

106,500 permanent residents will fall under the family sponsorship category of the immigration target for 2023. Under the PGP, family sponsorship comprises parents, grandparents, spouses, common-law partners, and children. 13,000 immigrants have previously entered Canada through the PGP and spousal/child sponsorship.

How the PGP works

Canadian citizens and permanent residents are able to sponsor their parents and grandparents to immigrate to Canada. If approved under this program, a parent or grandparent will be granted Canadian permanent residence and may eventually be able to apply for Canadian citizenship.

In order to be eligible for the PGP in the past, sponsors must have met the following criteria:

• Have completed an Interest to Sponsor form on IRCC’s website between October 13, 2020 (12:00 PM EDT) and November 3, 2020 (12:00 PM EST).
• Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada, or a registered Indian under the Canadian Indian Act;
• Be 18 years of age or older;
• Be residing in Canada (potential applicants will need to provide a proof of status during the Interest to Sponsor phase);
• Exceed the minimum necessary income level for this program (if married or in a common-law relationship, the income of both the sponsor and spouse can be included) and provide proof of income to IRCC; and
• Sign an undertaking to financially support the sponsored for 20 years (starting when they become permanent residents); and to repay any social assistance benefits paid to the sponsored family members (if applicable) for a period of 20 years.
• If the sponsor resides in Quebec, an additional “undertaking” must be signed with the province of Quebec.

IRCC has not posted details on the 2023 PGP. In previous years, IRCC has utilized a lottery system to randomly select which interested sponsors would receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) through the PGP.

All ITAs for the PGP since 2020 has been given to applicants who expressed interest to sponsor through the PGP between October and November 2020. The last PGP lottery was in October of 2022. At the time of the 2022 lottery, there were still approximately 155,000 potential sponsors remaining in the pool.

Super Visa

The Super Visa, an alternative to the PGP, enables grandparents and parents of Canadian citizens to enter the country as guests for up to five years after their original trip without having to reapply for status.

Parents and grandparents who now have a Super Visa will be eligible to request for an extension, which could grant them permission to stay in Canada as visitors for up to seven years. They can also enter Canada several times for a period of up to ten years. All year long, the Super Visa is accessible.

Parents and grandparents who reside in a nation where a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) is necessary for admission into Canada have the option of applying for a Super Visa. They won't need to keep applying for the TRV because they will be able to travel between Canada and their home country with the Super Visa.

Parents and grandparents from nations that are exempt from a TRV, such as the United States, can also benefit from the Super Visa. Canadian residents may enter and stay for up to six months at a time. Visitors can enter Canada and stay for up to 5 years each admission with the Super Visa.

The application process is similar to the TRV process, but additional documentation is required to show that parents and grandparents will be supported during their stay in Canada. These include:

• A letter of invitation from the child or grandchild residing in Canada;
• Documents that prove the child or grandchild meets the Low-Income Cut-Off (LICO) minimum;
• Proof of parental relationship with child or grandchild, such as a birth certificate that names him or her as a parent; and
• Proof of medical insurance coverage for at least one year with a Canadian insurance company.