The Government of Canada has confirmed that it will not accept new applications for sponsoring parents and grandparents for permanent residence in 2025. Instead, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will concentrate on finalizing applications already submitted under the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) in 2024. The department’s processing target for 2025 is set at a maximum of 15,000 sponsorship files.
Beginning January 1, 2025, no fresh applications for parent or grandparent sponsorship, nor associated permanent residence visa requests, will be accepted unless new ministerial instructions are issued. Only applications filed in 2024 that satisfy specific requirements will continue to be processed into 2025.
Applications from 2024
Applications submitted last year remain valid for processing in 2025 if they comply with the Ministerial Instructions of April 12, 2024, which outlined the following:
Expression of Interest to Sponsor: Between October 13 and November 3, 2020, IRCC collected online expressions of interest. Alternate submission options were available for individuals with disabilities.
Randomized Invitations: In 2024, IRCC invited eligible sponsors through a lottery-style selection process. Invitations were non-transferable.
Electronic Filing Requirement: Applications had to be submitted online, unless the applicant was unable to do so due to specific circumstances. Paper applications not meeting these rules were returned with fees refunded.
Eligibility for Processing
To be considered, sponsorship applications submitted in 2024 must:
Come from an individual who received an official invitation.
Match the original expression of interest, or include a valid explanation for any discrepancies.
Contain all required documents and fees.
Be submitted within the stated deadline (minimum of 60 days).
Provide missing items within 30 days if requested by IRCC.
Permanent residence visa applications tied to these sponsorships must:
Be linked to a valid sponsorship file.
Include complete documentation and fees.
Respect the submission deadline in the sponsor’s invitation (with a 30-day grace period if additional documents are needed).
Processing Limits and Order
For 2025, IRCC will process up to 15,000 applications submitted in 2024. This number may change if further instructions are issued.
Applications will be handled in the order they are received, provided all conditions are met.
Requests for humanitarian and compassionate consideration submitted with applications that fall outside the instructions will not be processed.
Any applications that do not satisfy the conditions will be returned with a refund of fees.