Sibling Sponsorship in Canada - The Complete Guide

The Canadian government places a high value on family, so Canada offers immigration programs that enable sibling sponsorship in Canada.

Canada is a country that offers a wealth of opportunities with free universal health care, quality education, and an abundance of job opportunities. These factors underpin its appeal to foreign nationals and their families. 

To ensure that their siblings, i.e., brothers and sisters, can become eligible to immigrate to Canada and become permanent residents, many Canadian immigrants use the Family Class Sponsorship Program to answer the questions: Can I bring my siblings to Canada with me?

The following provides a helpful guide to permanent residents in Canada interested in sponsoring their siblings to move to Canada about all the information they need about Sibling Sponsorship.

Family Sponsorship Program

The Family Class Sponsorship is for permanent residents or citizens of Canada who are 18 years or older and who wish to bring their family members to live and work in Canada. This is one of the most widely used streams under Canadian immigration since the program makes bringing your spouse or sibling to Canada easy.

Step-by-Step Guide to Sibling Sponsorship in Canada

Please note the following steps about navigating the Family Sponsorship Program for gaining permanent residency status in Canada.

Step 1: Know How The Family Class Sponsorship Works

To sponsor a relative, you need the following:

• To be 18 years or older
• To be registered as a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
• To live in Canada
• To have an income equal to or higher than the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) for three consecutive taxation years before the application date.
• To give a valid undertaking with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
• To be able to support your relatives when settling in Canada financially.

The minimum income required for sponsors differs according to how many people they sponsor. The MNI for Family sponsorship is currently as follows.

Fees and Processing Time

How accurately you provide the information on your application and how well you comply with instructions are major contributing factors that will largely influence the processing time of your application. Note that processing times will start when your completed application is received. The most important application processing fees for sibling sponsorship include the following: 

• Sponsorship fee (per person): 75 CAD
• Right of permanent residence fee: 515 CAD
• Principal applicant processing fee: 490 CAD
• Inclusion of sponsored spouse or partner processing fee: 570 CAD

Checking Processing times

Processing time will vary from country to country. To track your processing time, you must answer questions about application type, who you’re sponsoring, and where the relative lives. You can track your processing time and follow the instructions from there onward.

Step 2: Check If You’re Eligible To Sponsor a Relative

There are certain requirements for the person sponsoring their relative, and there’s a set of requirements for the relative settling in Canada.

Sponsoring a family member while you’re out of Canada is possible. If you’re a Canadian citizen who is living abroad temporarily, you should be:

• Living in Canada or planning to return so you can be there when your relative immigrate to Canada and
• Sponsoring your spouse or common-law partner, or dependent child who should have no other dependent children

You cannot sponsor a relative/sibling if:

• You’re convicted of a violent or sexual crime, and you’re in prison;
• You have not paid child support or in arrears with child support;
• You have been declared bankrupt;
• You received social assistance when you’re not disabled;
• You’re in arrears with immigration payments or loans;
• You fail to meet the sponsorship conditions or any other offense not listed.

Please note that different provinces may have different sponsorship conditions. Quebec, for instance, may require you to sign a contract as an undertaking, binding your sponsorship.

Step 3: Check If Your Relative Is Eligible

Relative/Sibling Sponsorship allows your brother, sister, aunt, or uncle to immigrate to Canada under specific circumstances. The following presents the two most common scenarios that allow you to sponsor a relative.

1. Family sponsorship of an orphaned brother, sister, nephew, niece, or grandchild: The family member should be related to you by blood or adoption, while both parents must be passed on. The relative should be under 18 years of age, single or unmarried. This is the most applicable sponsorship stream to sponsor a sibling.
2. Other family members: You can sponsor a blood relative or an adopted family member of any age. This is only applicable if you, the sponsor, don’t have any other relative that’s still alive who you could sponsor; or if you don’t have a relative that’s a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who you could sponsor instead.

The following summarizes the eligibility criteria for sibling sponsorship in Canada.

Eligibility for Sibling Sponsorship in Canada

• The sponsor has a sibling related by blood or adoption while both parents are passed on.
• The relative should be under 18 years of age, single or unmarried.
• You can’t sponsor your brother, sister, nephew, niece, or grandchild if the parents are still alive, have abandoned them, or can’t be found or are in jail.

If your family sponsorship application is unsuccessful, don’t despair. With the right guidance, you can be informed about other programs that accommodate various circumstances and needs. You can learn more about how you can go from temporary to permanent residence in Canada.

Step 4: The Application Process

Your siblings can become permanent residents in two ways:

1. You can apply to sponsor your siblings, or
2. Your siblings can apply for permanent residency to live and work in Canada.

Remember that you’re required to send both your sibling sponsorship application and your permanent resident application at the same time. After that, your application will be processed, and you’ll be informed whether or not your application has been approved.

Let’s look at applying for Sibling Sponsorship in three steps.

1. Get the Application Package for the Family Class Sponsorship

The application package is important as it will contain information such as your instruction guide, relevant forms, and a document checklist. Note that the sponsor must ensure that they meet the requirements and comply with the conditions of the sponsorship before applying.

2. Required Documents

When submitting your application, make sure to:

• Attach of proof of income;
• Prove that your sibling can provide for themselves;
• State in writing that you’re able to support your siblings for a certain amount of time;
• Provide all supporting documents according to the checklist;
• State the number of siblings you wish to sponsor and any other potential information that could influence the status of your application.

All information provided must be truthful, as things will be verified later. Your application will be rejected should you be dishonest or provide inaccurate information. In turn, the relative being sponsored must be truthful about the information they provide and should be open to criminality checks.