Who’s eligible for the pilot project to sponsor undeclared family members?

When someone applies for permanent residence, all their family members must be declared and most also need to be examined. This means have criminal and security checks, and a medical exam. We need this information to make sure their family members don’t make them ineligible for permanent residence.

You may be eligible for the pilot project if:

• you’re applying to be sponsored as a spouse, common-law partner, or dependent child

AND

• you were not declared or examined when your sponsor became a permanent resident
  • as a resettled refugee
  • after being granted refugee protection in Canada
  • as a dependent of a resettled refugee/protected person
  • after being sponsored as a spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner, or dependent child under the Family Class or
  • after being sponsored as a spouse or common-law partner under the Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada Class

This pilot project only applies to family members who wouldn’t have made their sponsor ineligible to immigrate to Canada.

Who’s not eligible for the pilot project?

You won’t be eligible if:

• you weren’t declared or examined when your sponsor became a permanent resident
  • in an economic category (including as a caregiver)
  • after being sponsored in the family class other than as a spouse, partner or child (for example, parent/grandparent and their dependents, other relatives)
  • in the permit holder class
  • as an applicant in-Canada based on humanitarian and compassionate grounds

OR

• you would have made your sponsor ineligible to immigrate to Canada when they applied, for example, if your sponsor
  • immigrated as a spouse, but was married or in a common-law relationship with you at that time
  • was married or in a common-law relationship when they came as a dependent child on their parent’s application or
  • came to Canada under a program that required them to be single, with no dependants