MARCO E. L. Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, on Monday announced details for the opening of the 2020 Parents and Grandparents (PGP) Program, building further on the government’s commitment to reuniting families.

Mendicino said: “Our government strongly believes in the importance of keeping families together—especially during difficult times. The Parents and Grandparents Program is a dedicated pathway to reuniting more families in Canada. Our government has strengthened the program by increasing the number of people who can apply, making the process intake more fair, and steadily increasing the number of families who will be able to reunite. Now, more than ever, family reunification is an important component of Canada’s immigration system. It plays a key role in attracting, retaining and integrating the best and the brightest from around the world.”

Over a three-week period, from 12 p.m. EDT on October 13 to 12 p.m. EST on November 3, Canadians 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.

In order to ensure a fair, transparent and equal opportunity for applicants, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) said it will randomly select potential sponsors and send them an invitation to submit an application. Selected applicants will have 60 days to submit their application.

Accommodation is available to persons with disabilities who are unable to use the online form. They can request the interest to sponsor form in an alternative format (paper copy, Braille or large print) by contacting the IRCC Client Support Centre at 1-888-242-2100 or by email until November 3, 2020.

Given that many sponsors may have been financially impacted by the exceptional circumstances of 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%.

The government said it knows how important it is for families to be together, especially during difficult times. The launch of the 2020 Parents and Grandparents Program builds on the government’s initiatives to prioritize the approval of 49,000 family sponsorship applications by December 31, 2020, as well as last week’s announcement of a process to reunite more families and approve compassionate cases within the current border restrictions.

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.  

Quick Facts

* The government says it is committed to ensuring that the PGP Program is accessible and fair for all Canadians and permanent residents. IRCC worked with stakeholders on ways to better accommodate people with disabilities in developing the 2020 program design.

* Due to COVID-19, the launch of the 2020 PGP Program was delayed to allow the government to prioritize its efforts to contribute to the whole-of-government response to the global pandemic.

Associated links:

·Backgrounder: How will the 2020 Parents and Grandparents Program intake process work?

·Ministerial Instructions

·Temporary public policy for family class

·Submit the interest to sponsor form

·Check if you’re eligible

·Help Centre: Frequently asked questions about sponsorship of parents and grandparents