Quebec Family Sponsorship
Canada Immigration Law Firm
Much like the federal Family Class Sponsorship program, Quebec has a very similar Family Sponsorship program. Quebec sponsors must comply with the eligibility requirements set under the federal Family Class Sponsorship program as well as those established by the government of Quebec. Contact our Canada immigration law firm to schedule a free consultation with an experienced attorney.
Who can be a sponsor?
Canadian citizens and permanent residents who are at least 18 years of age and residing in Quebec can sponsor a close relative to immigrate to Quebec. A Canadian citizen or permanent resident cannot be a sponsor if: they do not meet certain financial standards; have been convicted of certain offences; are subject to a removal order or inadmissible report; they did not comply with previous Canadian sponsorship responsibilities; have been receiving financial social assistance; as well as a number of other circumstances which could render the sponsor ineligible.
Who can be sponsored person?
In order to be sponsored, the person must be a close relative belonging to the family class and meet certain requirements. Members of the family class include:
- spouses, common-law partners or conjugal partners (including same-sex).
- A dependent child, and adopted children
- Parents and grand parents
- Orphaned brother, sister, niece, nephew, granddaughter, grandson, who is under the age of 18, and not married or in a common-law relationship
If the sponsor was adopted, the sponsor cannot sponsor members of his or her biological family unless the adoption is revoked, however this only applies if the revocation was for some reason other than sponsorship purposes.
Responsibilities and obligations
Both the sponsor and the sponsored relative must meet the responsibilities and obligations they have towards each other and to the government of Quebec. The sponsor will be responsible to provide the basic needs of the sponsored person for a set duration of time. Such basic needs include food, clothing, personal necessities and housing costs. The duration of time that sponsors are responsible for the sponsored person depends on the relationship between the two. Sponsors also enter into a contractual agreement with the Quebec government to reimburse any government financial assistance and special allowances or that may be given to the sponsored person. Sponsors may also be responsible to repay significant housing costs if the sponsored person is living in pubic housing such as a public long-term care facility.
The sponsored person is responsible to keep the sponsor informed of how their basic needs are being met, whether they have taken any steps towards receiving financial aid, and whether they have changed addresses.
Note that the Quebec program has different financial criteria and different time durations for undertakings than the federal program. Also, the sponsor does not have to meet the financial criteria when sponsoring a spouse (or common-law, conjugal partner) unless that spouse has a dependent child who also has a dependent child of their own.