Ottawa, September 8, 2023—Family reunification is a pillar of Canada’s immigration system. Canada remains committed to helping Canadian citizens and permanent residents sponsor their loved ones to live and work alongside them in Canada. Our commitment to reuniting families through the Parents and Grandparents program is reflected in our historically high admissions numbers for parents and grandparents under the multi-year plan.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will continue to reunite families by accepting up to 15,000 complete sponsorship applications this year under the Parents and Grandparents Program. On October 10, 2023, IRCC will begin sending invitations to apply to 24,200 interested potential sponsors, with the aim of receiving up to 15,000 complete applications. Invitations will be sent within 2 weeks.

Due to the number of forms remaining in the 2020 submission pool, IRCC will send invitations to apply to randomly selected potential sponsors from this pool instead of opening a new interest to sponsor form. This is the same approach that was adopted for the 2021 and 2022 promotions. Anyone who submitted an interest to sponsor form in 2020, but did not receive an invitation to apply in 2021 or 2022, is encouraged to check the email account they provided in 2020 when they submitted their interest to sponsor form.

Those invited to apply as part of the Class of 2023 will continue to use the Permanent Residence Portal or the Permanent Residence Portal for Representatives, which allows applications to be submitted electronically. This is part of our commitment to modernizing Canada’s immigration system and making the application process faster and simpler.

Those who wish to reunite with their parents and grandparents in Canada, but are not invited this year, may consider asking their parents or grandparents to apply for a super visa, which is a multiple entry visa valid until 10 years. The super visa enhancements allow super visa holders to stay in Canada for 5 years at a time, with the option to extend their visit for up to 2 years at a time without leaving the country. These changes make it easier for Canadian citizens and permanent residents to reunite with their parents and grandparents in Canada for longer periods of time.

For more information on previous applications for the Parents and Grandparents Program, view the recently published admissions report on our website, The Parents and Grandparents Program: 2014 to 2019 Admissions Report A more recent admissions report covering 2020-2022 admissions applications will be released. by the end of the year.