Parent & Grandparent Sponsorship Canada

Bringing your parents or grandparents to Canada as permanent residents is one of the most meaningful things you can do for your family — and one of the most difficult pathways to access. The Parent and Grandparent Program (PGP) is Canada's permanent residence pathway for parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and Registered Indians. It is heavily oversubscribed, operates through an unpredictable invitation-based process, and has been effectively closed to new entrants since 2020.

For the vast majority of Canadian families right now, the Super Visa is the only realistic way to bring parents or grandparents to Canada in the near term. Understanding the current state of the PGP — and what your options actually are — is the starting point for any honest conversation about this pathway.

At Magellan Immigration, we give families a clear picture of where things stand and what they can realistically do — whether that means preparing for a future PGP intake, applying for a Super Visa, or both.

The Current State of the Parent & Grandparent Sponsorship program

 

The PGP does not accept applications on a continuous basis. It operates through a staged intake process — and critically, it has been drawing from a single fixed pool of Interest to Sponsor forms collected during a three-week window in fall 2020. Over 203,000 forms were submitted during that period. Every intake since then — 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025 — has randomly selected sponsors from that same 2020 pool. No new Interest to Sponsor forms have been accepted since 2020.

If you did not submit a form in 2020 and have not yet received an invitation to apply, you currently have no path into the PGP under the existing pool. IRCC has not announced when — or whether — a new Interest to Sponsor period will open.

The 2025 intake closed October 9, 2025. IRCC sent 17,860 invitations from the 2020 pool with a target of 10,000 complete applications. New Ministerial Instructions came into effect January 1, 2026, allowing IRCC to continue processing existing applications. Details on the next intake have not been announced.

How the PGP Works — For Those in the 2020 Pool

 

If you submitted an Interest to Sponsor form in 2020 and have not yet been invited to apply, you may still be randomly selected in a future intake — provided a new intake is announced and applications are still being drawn from the 2020 pool. Here is how the process works if you are invited:

Step 1 — Invitation to Apply (ITA) IRCC randomly selects potential sponsors from the pool and sends ITAs. Receiving an ITA does not guarantee approval — it authorizes you to submit a full sponsorship application within a specified deadline, typically around 10 weeks. Missing this deadline means losing your invitation.

Step 2 — Full Application If invited, you submit a sponsorship application and your parents or grandparents simultaneously submit a permanent residence application through the IRCC Permanent Residence Portal. Both must be complete and accurate — incomplete applications are rejected and fees are not refunded.

Who Can Sponsor

To be eligible to sponsor your parents and grandparents you must:

  • Be invited to apply

  • Be at least 18 years of age

  • Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Indian Act

  • Live in Canada — your primary residential address must be in Canada when you submit your application and until a decision is made

  • Meet the income requirement for each of the three consecutive tax years immediately before the date of your application

  • Not be subject to any bars or restrictions that prevent sponsorship

Who Cannot Sponsor

You may not be eligible to sponsor if you are currently incarcerated, have not repaid an immigration loan, performance bond, or court-ordered family support payments, did not meet the terms of a previous sponsorship agreement, have declared undischarged bankruptcy, are receiving social assistance for reasons other than a disability, have been convicted of a violent or sexual offence, or are subject to a removal order.

Income Requirement

 

The PGP has a mandatory income requirement. You must demonstrate that your income meets or exceeds the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) threshold for each of the three consecutive tax years immediately before the date of your application. The MNI is calculated based on your family size — which includes all family members, including those who are not coming to Canada.

Your spouse or common-law partner may co-sign your application to combine your incomes. Proof of income is demonstrated through Canada Revenue Agency Notices of Assessment for the relevant tax years. You may provide consent for IRCC to obtain your income information directly from the CRA.

The Undertaking

When you sponsor your parents or grandparents, you sign a legally binding undertaking promising to financially support them and ensure they do not need to rely on government social assistance. The undertaking period for parents and grandparents is 20 years from the date they become permanent residents — the longest undertaking period of any family sponsorship category and a significant long-term financial commitment that continues regardless of changes in your circumstances.

The Super Visa — The Realistic Option Right Now

For families who are not in the 2020 pool, or who are in the pool but have not yet been invited, the Super Visa is currently the most practical path to having parents or grandparents in Canada. It is a multiple-entry visa that allows parents and grandparents to stay for up to five years per entry, with the ability to extend that stay by a further two years from inside Canada. It does not lead to permanent residence, but it allows extended family time together while waiting for a future PGP opportunity — which may be years away.

Key Super Visa requirements include meeting the Minimum Necessary Income threshold, mandatory private medical insurance of at least $100,000, and a medical examination. As of March 31, 2026, the Super Visa income rules are changing — hosts can now use either of the two most recent tax years to meet the threshold, and the visiting parent or grandparent's own income can supplement the host's income where the host meets a minimum percentage requirement. These changes may make the Super Visa accessible to families who previously did not qualify.

What We Do

 

  • Explain clearly where the PGP currently stands and what your realistic options are

  • Assess your eligibility if you are in the 2020 pool and a new intake is announced

  • Prepare and submit the complete PGP sponsorship and permanent residence applications when invited

  • Assess Super Visa eligibility and prepare Super Visa applications

  • Advise on the March 31, 2026 Super Visa income rule changes and whether they improve your eligibility

  • Handle sponsorship refusals and Immigration Appeal Division appeals