An Introduction to Family Class Immigration in Canada

If you are living in Canada and would like to bring a family member to the country to live with you it might not be as difficult as you might at first think. There are immigration visas that allow you to bring over your family through sponsorship. Permanent Canadian residents are able to sponsor one of their relatives as a candidate for immigration to Canada without them needing to be in possession of a Canadian work permit or skilled worker visa or business visa.

In order to qualify for a family class immigration visa, the Canadian resident or Canadian citizen that is sponsoring the immigrant must be at least 18 years old. They must also currently be residing within the borders of Canada. They must be willing to sponsor the immigrant for permanent residence for a period lasting between 3 and 10 years. After a period of only 3 years, the immigrant is allowed to apply for Canadian citizenship on their own.

The family class immigration visa is beneficial for immigrants because it allows them to seek employment upon arriving in Canada with no restrictions. No specific offer of employment is required for holders of this visa to take up employment in Canada. Basically there are no requirements or limitations imposed on the immigrant with the family class visa other than having a willing sponsor.

There are five common categories to the Canadian family class immigration visa. Category one is for dependant children, which includes adopted children. Dependant children are defined as being under the age of 22 and not having a spouse or common law partner. Or a full-time student that began studies before the age of 22 and depends on you for financial support. Or a child that has been financially dependant on you before the age of 22 due to a disability of some sort. Category two is for children under the age of 18 that you plan on adopting. Category three is for grandchildren, nephews, nieces, sisters or brothers that are orphans under the age of 18 that are not married or in a common law relationship. Category four is for parents or grandparents. And category five is for relatives of any age with the condition that you do not already have another family member in one of the other categories that you could sponsor or who is currently a citizen or permanent resident of Canada.

Sponsorship and immigration paperwork must be submitted before the person being sponsored can come to Canada under this visa. If you are a sponsor you have to show that you have sufficient financial resources to sponsor the relative. And if you have previously sponsored someone that received some form of social assistance then you are barred from sponsoring relatives in the future.