A young kababayan in his mid-twenties called me if he can sponsor his parents for permanent residence in Canada thru Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds being an only child. His parents are in Canada on a Supervisa.
Anyone who is inside Canada can submit an application for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, the question is do you have strong compelling reasons, and what would be your strong arguments? Do you have a realistic chance to be accepted and what are the underlying facts of the situation? Being the only child is not enough to submit a PR application under H & C grounds. To submit an application for H & C inside Canada let us examine s.20 (1) (a) of IRPA:
20 (1) Every foreign national, other than a foreign national referred to in section 19, who seeks to enter or remain in Canada must establish,
(a) to become a permanent resident, that they hold the visa or other document required under the regulations and have come to Canada in order to establish permanent residence;
Before you submit an application for PR thru humanitarian and compassionate grounds, make sure that you are not affected by one of the bars set out in s.25 of IRPA:
25 (1) Subject to subsection (1.2), the Minister must, on request of a foreign national in Canada who applies for permanent resident status and who is inadmissible — other than under section 34, 35 or 37 — or who does not meet the requirements of this Act, and may, on request of a foreign national outside Canada — other than a foreign national who is inadmissible under section 34, 35 or 37 — who applies for a permanent resident visa, examine the circumstances concerning the foreign national and may grant the foreign national permanent resident status or an exemption from any applicable criteria or obligations of this Act if the Minister is of the opinion that it is justified by humanitarian and compassionate considerations relating to the foreign national, taking into account the best interests of a child directly affected.
I raised the following points below to the child in Canada:
– His parents are still young in their mid-50’s and they are most unlikely will qualify as economic immigrants.
– The child in Canada whether he meets the Minimum Necessary Income requirements to sponsor his parents if he were to sponsor them thru the regular Parents and Grandparents Program.
– Are there strong compelling reasons or factors in this case? Strong grounds to request for an exemption.
-Normally to apply under the H&C grounds do you have circumstances that will relieve the misfortunes of another- are there any misfortunes in this situation?
-What are the circumstances of this family such as level of establishment of the parents from their home country, investments, savings, do they want to return home, house, family connection and properties?
– How about the parent’s level of establishment in Canada? How did they become integrated to the community? Any family connection in Canada?
– What is the situation of the parents in their home country, economic and security condition of the home country.
– You might want to explore the psychological or emotional condition of the parents or the child in Canada. Separation of the family might cause a traumatic impact to the parents or to the son?
-Explore if there is any possible alternative for family reunification. Do the parents qualify under any other immigration category?
And most of all are there any other factors that will evoke a feeling of sympathy or compassion? The above list is not exhaustive but it will help you assess if you have a strong case to submit an application under H&C grounds. Humanitarian and compassionate grounds are meant to those with exceptional cases. This type of application is assessed on a case-by-case basis by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada or IRCC. If the application is refused, there is no right to appeal. In some cases, you can ask the Federal Court of Canada to review the decision.
If you have questions regarding the above article, you may contact Marjorie at [email protected]
Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
A word of caution: You should not act or rely on the information provided in this column. It is not a legal advice. To ensure your interests are protected, retain or formally seek advice from a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) in good standing of ICCRC. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of RCIC’s.