2021 PARENT & GRANDPARENT SPONSORSHIP INTAKE RULES ANNOUNCED
By Atty. Henry Moyal
The mystery around immigration processing never stops. In a bold move, the Honourable Marco E. L. Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced today that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will not accept new expression of interest applications for the parent / grandparent 2021 sponsorship intake.
While he announced that IRCC will invite a record number 30,000 people to apply under the 2021 intake, it was announced that the selection process will be from the pool of unselected applications from the 2020 intake program. Therefore, applicants who did not get selected in the last round of invitations, have a second opportunity. Very creative.
Invitations to apply will be sent over the course of 2 weeks, starting the week of September 20, 2021. Those who are invited to apply will have 60 days to submit the application.
Regarding income level, it is important to mention that for the 2020 tax year, the income requirement will continue to be the minimum necessary income, instead of the minimum necessary income plus 30%, and will allow regular Employment Insurance benefits and temporary COVID-19 benefits, such as the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, to be included towards the sponsor’s income. This measure will ensure that applicants are not penalized for losing income during the pandemic.
In other news, IRCC has also eased the border measures for fully vaccinated USA residents and USA citizens.
Effective August 9, 2021, fully vaccinated citizens and permanent residents of the United States (U.S.), currently residing in the U.S., will be permitted to enter Canada for discretionary (non-essential) travel. Entry to Canada will continue to be prohibited for U.S. travellers who are not fully vaccinated and for all other foreign nationals, unless they already meet an exemption set out in the Orders made under the Quarantine Act.
To be eligible to enter Canada, fully vaccinated American citizens and permanent residents must have received the full series of a vaccine – or combination of vaccines – accepted by the Government of Canada at least 14 days prior to entering Canada. Currently, those vaccines are manufactured by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca/COVISHIELD, and Janssen (Johnson & Johnson). Travellers can receive their vaccine in any country, and must provide evidence supporting their vaccination in English, French or with a certified translation (along with the original).
In addition, fully vaccinated travellers must also:
All travellers must still present a suitable quarantine plan, and be prepared to quarantine, should they not meet all of the conditions required to be exempt from quarantine. They will also be required to follow public health measures in place, such as monitoring for signs and symptoms of COVID-19, wearing a mask when in public and keeping a copy of their vaccination documentation and test results – as well as a list of close contacts and locations visited – for 14 days after entry to Canada. For air travel, passengers continue to have to wear a mask in Canadian airports and on board flights to, from and within Canada, with few exceptions, and regardless of their vaccination status.
Attorney Henry Moyal is a certified and licensed immigration lawyer in Toronto, Ontario.
The above article is general advice only and is not intended to act as a legal document.
Send questions to Attorney Moyal by email canada@moyal.com or call 416 733 3193
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