April 25, 2019 – Canada’s immigration department has begun issuing invitations to apply through the Parents and Grandparents Program.

The first invitations were sent on Wednesday April 24, with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada says it will take a few days to send out all of the invitations.

Officials are using the same email address included on the interest to sponsor form, with potential sponsors advised to check their junk folders.

An IRCC statement said: “On April 24, 2019, we started inviting potential sponsors to submit a complete application. It will take a few days to send all potential sponsors their invitations.”

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Those receiving invitations have until Friday June 28 to submit their completed applications.

The status of invitations can be checked via the federal government website, using the confirmation number received when the interest to sponsor form was submitted.

Anyone who has lost their confirmation number will be able to check their status using an online for from Thursday April 25 at noon EST.

IRCC received 27,000 interest to sponsor forms when the form was opened on January 28, 2019.

The form opened and closed in minutes, with thousands of potential sponsors failing to complete the form in time, and many saying they never had access.

Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen said more than 100,000 people tried to access and complete the form.

Officials moved to change the system in response to complaints about the method used for the last two years.

Under the previous method, interest to sponsor forms were submitted during a month-long window in January, with candidates drawn at random to complete full applications.

Parents and Grandparents Program Process

Step 1: Potential sponsors indicate their interest

Eligible potential sponsors complete an ‘Interest to Sponsor’ form to let IRCC know they wish to sponsor their parents and grandparents. The form requires potential sponsors to upload a copy of a status in Canada document.

The form will remain available until a set number has been received.

Step 2: Invitations to sponsor are sent

Once the interest to sponsor period ends, IRCC will review the submissions and remove duplicates.

IRCC officials will then invite interested potential sponsors to submit a complete application to sponsor their parents and grandparents, in the order interest to sponsor forms were received. This process will continue until the cap of 20,000 completed applications is reached.

Step 3: Applications are submitted

Those who are invited to apply have 60 calendar days for IRCC to receive their complete application. Those who submit an interest to sponsor form and receive a confirmation number, but do not receive an invitation to apply in 2019, will have their form retained by IRCC for consideration in 2020.