The federal sponsorship package for sponsors in Quebec typically includes information concerning the provincial income test. This enables Quebec sponsors to assess their financial situation and determine whether they meet the income test prior to applying. These sponsors will usually need to pay the federal sponsorship and immigration processing fees. In addition, they will need to pay a processing fee to the Quebec government for the processing of their undertaking.
The sponsors will need to submit a sponsorship application i.e. IMM 1344AE to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M). In addition, they will need to submit proof of payment of the federal sponsorship and immigration processing fees. They do not complete the Sponsorship Agreement (IMM 1344BE) or the Financial Evaluation (IMM 1283E).
The Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M) will need to:
- Assess the sponsor against federal sponsorship eligibility requirements
- Send a copy of the IMM 1344AE to the Service aux garants, ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) in Montreal in case the sponsor meets the prescribed eligibility requirements
The sponsor will need to correctly complete, sign and return the demande d’engagement in accordance with the instructions sent by the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) to the address specified by the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC).
The ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) will need to:
- Verify the settlement arrangements
- Inform the sponsor in case the authorities approve or refuse the application
- In case the authorities approve the application, the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) will need to send the sponsor two copies of the engagement
- One of these copies will need to have the notation Copie conforme- MICC Sponsor:#, an MICC stamp, and the ministerial decree number of the employee who signed it
The sponsor will need to send the copy with the notation and the stamp to the sponsored applicant. The sponsored applicant will need to attach this copy to the application for permanent residence.
In some cases, it is possible that the sponsor might not meet the prescribed federal criteria. In this scenario, the sponsor is not eligible. As such, the sponsor has the option of discontinuing the application – refer to the section titled ‘The Procedures for Handling a Discontinued or Withdrawn Undertaking’ i.e. section 12 of IP 2.
In case an ineligible sponsor opts to continue processing:
- The Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M) will need to forward the IMM 1344AE to both the visa office and the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) with an explanatory note
- It is worth mentioning that the visa office has the ability to refuse the application without waiting for the input from the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC)
- The Case Processing Centre in Vegreville (CPC-V) will need to refer the application to the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC)
- It is worth mentioning that the Case Processing Centre in Vegreville (CPC-V) has the ability to refuse the application without waiting for the input from the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC)
For more information, officers will need to refer to the following sections:
- The section titled ‘The Federal Requirements that Apply to Quebec Sponsors’ that appears subsequently in this document i.e. section 24.1 of IP 2
- The section titled ‘The Federal Requirements that Do Not Apply to Quebec Sponsors’ that appears subsequently in this document i.e. section 24.2 of IP 2 and,
- The section titled ‘The Quebec Requirements’ that appears subsequently in this document i.e. section 24.3 of IP 2
The Federal Requirements that Apply to Quebec Sponsors
A sponsor will typically need to meet the requirements specified in R130 as well as the requirements specified in R133. Under the terms of these requirements, the authorities require the sponsor:
- To not be under a removal order
- To not be detained in a penitentiary, jail, reformatory or prison
- To not be convicted of a sexual offence or offence involving domestic violence unless five years have elapsed since the completion of the sentence of if a rehabilitation or a pardon was not granted, at least five years have elapsed since the completion of the sentence
- To not be in default of payments of any debt to the government e.g. transportation loan and,
- To not be on social assistance, except for reasons if disability
The officers will typically suspend the processing of the application in case the sponsor is subject to:
- Citizenship revocation proceedings
- An A44 (1) report
- Serious criminal charges and,
- A situation where the sponsor has made an appeal of a decision on residency obligations, where the authorities have not reached any final determination
In case any of these situations apply, the Case Processing Centres (CPCs) will need to follow the procedures given in the section titled ‘The Guidelines for Assessing Bars to Sponsorship’ i.e. section 14 of IP 2.
Unless the sponsor opts to discontinue the processing of the application (refer to the section titled ‘The Procedures for Handling a Discontinued or Withdrawn Undertaking’ i.e. section 12 of IP 2):
- The Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M) will need to inform the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) at the same time as the visa office and,
- The Case Processing Centre in Vegreville (CPC-V) will need to inform the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) and refuse the application for permanent residence
The Federal Requirements that Do Not Apply to Quebec Sponsors
The federal requirements that do not apply to Quebec sponsors specify that Quebec sponsors should:
- Not be bankrupt
- Not be in default of a previous undertaking
- Not be in default of court-ordered support payments
- Comply with the provisions mentioned in the Sponsorship Agreement and,
- Must meet the federal minimum necessary income
The Quebec Requirements
It is worth mentioning that the province of Quebec has the authority to impose its own requirements on Quebec sponsors. These requirements could typically include:
- Financial tests
- The decision to include co-signers in the income assessment
- The duration of the undertakings – officers will need to refer to the section titled ‘The Duration of Undertakings’ i.e. section 5.22 of IP 2
- Specifications on default:
- For instance, the authorities do not bar Quebec sponsors in default of a previous undertaking given to Quebec from sponsoring again in Quebec under federal regulations
- However, Quebec will usually not approve an undertaking by a sponsor who has defaulted on a previous undertaking in Quebec
- Similarly, the authorities bar people who defaulted on a previous undertaking given to Quebec from sponsoring again in another province
- The authorities require the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) to approve the undertaking before the officers issue a visa or grant permanent residence in Canada
- In some cases, Quebec might not approve the undertaking
- In this scenario, the sponsor has the option of discontinuing the application – refer to the section titled ‘The Procedures for Handling a Discontinued or Withdrawn Undertaking’ i.e. section 12 of IP 2
- For instance, the authorities do not bar Quebec sponsors in default of a previous undertaking given to Quebec from sponsoring again in Quebec under federal regulations
The Guidelines for Applications from Sponsors in Quebec – The Family Class (FC) Redesign (Spouse, Common-Law Partner, Conjugal Partner and Dependent Children)
The sponsor will typically need to submit the sponsorship and application for permanent residence together to the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M).
Thereafter, the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M) will need to:
- Perform the completeness checks on both the applications
- Assess the sponsor’s eligibility against the prescribed federal criteria
- Notify the ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) of the sponsorship received by a resident of Quebec for initiating the process for the review of provincial eligibility for determining if the authorities in Quebec will issue the engagement and the Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ), in case the application meets all the prescribed federal criteria and,
- Send the application for permanent residence to the visa office for processing
The ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles (MICC) will need to:
- Issue and send the engagement and the Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) to the visa office
Chapters
- What This Chapter is About
- The Program Objectives
- The Instruments and Delegations
- The Departmental Policy
- The Definitions
- The Roles and Responsibilities
- The Overview of the Case Processing Centre (CPC) Activities Pertaining to Sponsorship Applications
- The Procedures for Reviewing Sponsorship and Permanent Residence Applications for Spouses, Common-Law Partners, Conjugal Partners and Dependent Children
- The Guidelines for Reviewing Sponsorship Applications for Other Members of the Family Class
- The Procedures for Processing Sponsorship Applications by the Case Processing Centre in Vegreville (CPC-V) for Spouses or Common-Law Partners in Canada
- The Procedures for Handling a Discontinued or Withdrawn Undertaking
- The Guidelines for Assessing a Sponsor’s Eligibility
- The Guidelines for Assessing Bars to Sponsorship
- The Guidelines Pertaining to Undertakings
- The Guidelines Concerning the Sponsorship Agreement
- The Guidelines for Applying the Financial Test
- The Procedures for Processing Sponsorships Involving Adoptions
- The Guidelines for Referring Sponsorship Applications for Investigation to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC)
- The Procedures in Case the Applicant is Not a Member of the Family Class
- The Guidelines for Assessing Additional Family Members
- The Procedures for Dealing with Changes in Circumstances
- The Guidelines for the Suspension of Processing
- The Guidelines for Applications from Sponsors in Quebec
- Appendix A – The Eligibility Check for the Sponsor and the Co-Signer
- Appendix B – The Sample Letter to the Provincial / Territorial Adoption Authority to Request for the Issuance of the No Objection / No Involvement Letter or Notification of Agreement
- Appendix C – The Sample of Sponsorship Approval Letter for Adoption Cases from the Case Processing Centre in Mississauga (CPC-M) to the Sponsor
- Appendix D – The List of Offences Under the Criminal Code that Could Equate to Offences of a Sexual Nature and Offences Concerning Violence Against a Family Member
- Appendix E – The Low Income Cut Offs (LICO) and the Quebec Income Scale – 2011