1. parents and grandparents
2. dependent children, including adopted children; children under 18 years of age whom you intend to adopt;
3. brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces or grandchildren who are orphans, under the age of 18 and not married or in a common-law relationship
4. And any other relative if you have none of the above relatives or family members, either in Canada or abroad.
The sponsor starts the canadian immigration process by obtaining an application from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). The type of application and submission procedure differs depending on the relationship between the sponsor and the applicant, and whether the applicant is abroad or already in Canada.
If the applicant is the sponsor's spouse, common-law partner, conjugal partner or dependent child:
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has introduced a Joint Application Guide that is simpler and easier to use for both sponsors and applicants. The new guide is designed to promote quicker processing by streamlining the receipt of applications.
The sponsor will receive a joint application and guide, including the sponsorship and immigrant applications. It is then up to the sponsor to obtain the necessary documents and information from the applicant, whether abroad or in Canada, and submit both the sponsorship and immigrant applications and all supporting documents to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga, Ontario.
If the applicant is outside of Canada, the Case Processing Centre will complete the sponsorship assessment and then send the immigrant portion to a visa office that serves the area where the immigrant applicant lives. The visa office assesses the immigrant's application, interviews the applicant, if necessary, and conducts medical, security and criminality checks.
An application by a spouse or common-law partner under the In-Canada Class -- including interviews, and medical, security and criminality checks -- will be assessed by a Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) staff in Canada.
Other Family Class applicants
The sponsor starts the canadian immigration process by obtaining a Sponsorship Application from Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The sponsor fills out the application and submits it to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).
Once the application has been processed, the Case Processing Centre forwards a copy of the sponsorship to the responsible visa office and sends the Application Guide for Family Class to the sponsor. The sponsor must then forward this guide to the applicant abroad.
The applicant must complete the application and submit it to the responsible visa office. The name of the office will be indicated on the correspondence included with the guide. The visa office will take no action until it receives the completed application.
