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Temporary public policy to facilitate issuance of permanent resident visas to certain Colombian, Haitian, and Venezuelan nationals with family in Canada

This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.

On this page

Context

These instructions provide guidance on assessing applications under the “Temporary public policy to facilitate Issuance of permanent resident visas to certain Colombian, Haitian, and Venezuelan nationals with family in Canada.”

Under this temporary public policy, IRCC has committed to welcome up to 11,000 foreign nationals from the Americas.

Intake process

Applications under this temporary public policy must be submitted online using the Permanent Residence Portal. Those who are unable to apply online can ask for the application in another format (paper, braille or large print). Applications must be submitted using the applicable forms provided by the department.

Start and end date

The public policy will take effect on November 17, 2023, and will end one year after coming into effect or once the total number of applications accepted into processing by IRCC reaches 3,500 (principal applicants). The cap of 3,500 will be closely monitored through reporting by the Operations Planning and Performance Branch (OPPB) and will be adjusted if necessary to meet the commitment of 11K individuals. Only applications identified as complete will be counted toward the application cap.

Note: As applications are processed on a first-in-first-out basis, the intake office cannot choose an application that fits the number of spots remaining.

The intake office is to stop the intake of applications once the cap is reached and return all excess applications to applicants.

Date of the application

The application is considered to be made on the day that it is submitted in the portal, as long as it meets the requirements of section 10 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR). The lock-in date is the date the application was received.

Multiple applications

If an applicant already has an active application in GCMS under another permanent residence category, such as the family class, the application received under the public policy should be processed while coordinating finalization with the office processing the other permanent residence application.

Procedures for handling family class applications once application under this public policy has been approved

If the family class application has not already been withdrawn or finalized, it will need to be withdrawn once the application under this public policy has been approved.

The responsible office of the FC application may ask the sponsor to submit a signed letter requesting the withdrawal of their sponsorship application.

Once the sponsor or principal applicant submits a signed request to withdraw their sponsorship application or application for permanent residence, the applicable fees may be refunded.

Fees to be refunded:

Application completeness

The minimum requirements for intake and promotion in GCMS are as follow:

  1. the Generic Application Form for Canada [IMM 0008E (PDF)] fully completed and signed by the principal applicant
  2. the Schedule A – Background / Declaration form [IMM 5669 (PDF)] fully completed by the principal applicant for themselves and all family members over 18 years of age, whether accompanying or not
  3. the Additional Family Information form [IMM 5406 (PDF)] fully completed by the principal applicant and all family members over 18 years of age, whether accompanying or not
  4. the Schedule 1 form [IMM 5989 (PDF)] fully completed and signed by the principal applicant (this form is specific to this public policy)
  5. a completed and signed statutory declaration [IMM 5990 (PDF)] from the anchor (this form is specific to this public policy)
  6. photocopies of the principal applicant’s passport, travel document, identity documents or statutory declaration (as per paragraph R178(1)), as well as those of all accompanying family members
  7. proof of relationship between the PA and the anchor (birth certificates, marriage certificate)
  8. proof of Canadian citizenship or PR status for the anchor
  9. proof of residence in Canada, outside the province of Quebec for the anchor (government-issued ID with address)
  10. police certificate(s) for the PA and family members(PDF)
    • A letter of explanation can be provided if the applicant is unable to provide the police certificate at the time of application.
  11. one photo for the PA and each family member (JPG or JPEG)

Incomplete applications

If the minimum requirements for completeness above are not met, the application is to be returned to the principal applicant or the representative as incomplete as per section R12.

Fees

Applicants are exempt from paying the following fees:

Eligibility of the principal applicant

Who can apply

The principal applicant

  1. is a national of Colombia, Haiti or Venezuela
  2. is in Central America or South America, the Caribbean or Mexico at time of application
  3. is a
    1. spouse or common-law partner of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who meets the requirements to act as an anchor and who was not granted permanent residence under this public policy or
    2. child (regardless of age), grandchild, parent, grandparent, or sibling of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who meets the requirements to act as an anchor and who was not granted permanent residence under this public policy
  4. has provided a statutory declaration from the person referred to in 3 (anchor) that attests
    1. that they intend to provide the support set out in Annex B of the public policy for the principal applicant and their accompanying family members (as defined in section 1(3) of the Regulations) for one year
    2. they have not accepted and understand they are not to accept any financial compensation from the foreign national or their family members
  5. has submitted an application for permanent residence by the electronic means made available on the website of the department (online) or with an alternate application format provided by the department if the foreign national or their representative indicated they are unable to apply online
  6. intends to reside in a province or territory other than the province of Quebec
  7. holds a document enumerated at subsection 50(1) of the Regulations or, if they are unable to obtain a document enumerated at subsection 50(1), provides a document described in subsection 178(1) and 178(2) of the Regulations

Requirement to be in Central America or South America, the Caribbean or Mexico

The principal applicant must be physically present in Central America, South America, the Caribbean or Mexico at the time the application is made.

This requirement applies to the principal applicant only.

Relationship to Canadian citizen or permanent resident (anchor)

The principal applicant must provide a statutory declaration (PDF) from the anchor that attests to their relationship and confirms the anchor’s intention to provide support.

The principal applicant must be in one of the following relationships with the Canadian citizen or permanent resident who is 18 years or older, who resides in Canada, and who was not granted permanent residence under this public policy:

Principal applicants must also provide documentary evidence that confirms their relationship to the Anchor.

Conditions for family members

The principal applicant must list all family members living inside and outside Canada on their application for permanent residence, whether accompanying or not. They may, however, choose which family members they want to include in their application as accompanying.

Accompanying family members must meet the following eligibility requirements:

  1. have been included as an accompanying family member in an application for a permanent resident visa by the principal applicant under this public policy who meets all conditions (eligibility requirements) to be issued a permanent resident visa pursuant to this public policy
  2. meet the legal definition of a family member as per subsection R1(3)
  3. intend to reside in a province or territory other than the province of Quebec
  4. hold a document enumerated at subsection 50(1) of the Regulations or if they are unable to obtain a document enumerated at subsection 50(1), provide a document described in subsection 178(1) and 178(2) of the Regulations
  5. must not be inadmissible pursuant to the IRPA and IRPR, other than under section A39 – being inadmissible for financial reasons

Exemptions

Under this public policy, the foreign national who meets the eligibility requirements may be exempted from the following regulations and eligibility requirements.

Principal applicant

Eligible family members

Note: Foreign nationals and their family members eligible under this public policy are subject to all other applicable statutory eligibility and admissibility requirements not otherwise exempted.

Assessing requirements for the anchor

To be eligible, an anchor must meet the following conditions:

  1. be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
  2. be 18 years of age or older
  3. reside in Canada, outside of the province of Quebec
  4. not be subject to a removal order
  5. not be detained in any penitentiary, jail, reformatory or prison
  6. not be convicted in Canada of the offence of murder or an offence set out in Schedule I or II of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, regardless of whether it was prosecuted by indictment, if a period of five years has not elapsed since the completion of the person’s sentence
  7. not be convicted outside Canada of an offence that, if committed in Canada, would constitute an offence referred to in condition 5, if a period of five years has not elapsed since the completion of the person's sentence imposed under a foreign law
  8. not be in default of any sponsorship undertaking or any support payment obligations ordered by or registered with a court
  9. not be in default in respect of the repayment of any debt referred to in subsection 145(1) of the Act payable to His Majesty in right of Canada
  10. not be an undischarged bankrupt under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act
  11. not be in receipt of social assistance for a reason other than disability
  12. not have accepted and understand they are not to accept any financial compensation from the foreign national and their accompanying family members.

Exception

Condition 6: An application may not be refused on the basis of a conviction in respect of which a pardon (record suspension) has been granted and has not ceased to have effect or been revoked under the Criminal Records Act, or in respect of which there has been a final determination of an acquittal.

Requirements for the Canadian citizen or permanent resident (anchor)

To be eligible, the anchor must provide proof that they are 18 years of age or older, and either a permanent resident of Canada or Canadian citizen.

Acceptable proof of permanent residence is a photocopy of a permanent resident card (PR card), a confirmation of permanent residence or a record of landing [IMM 1000].

Acceptable proof of Canadian citizenship is a photocopy of one of the following:

Residency of the anchor

The principal applicant must provide a statutory declaration (PDF) from the anchor that attests residency in Canada, outside the province of Quebec.

If the anchor resides in Quebec, the officer must refuse the application as eligibility is not met.

Applicants must provide documentary evidence to confirm that the anchor is residing in Canada and outside of Quebec. Acceptable proof of residence can be one of the following:

Eligibility of the anchor

Subject to a removal order

Includes stayed orders, departure orders, exclusion orders and deportation orders

Exception: Persons whose removal order became void when they became a permanent resident [A51]

Detained in any penitentiary, jail, reformatory or prison

Exception: Persons on parole, on probation or serving a suspended sentence

Convicted of offences in Canada

Officers may request that the anchor submit a copy of court records.

Convicted of offences outside Canada

Officers may request a police certificate from the anchor to verify criminal history and dispositions of charges. Consult the Criminal Code to determine equivalency in Canada.

If there has not been a final determination of acquittal or if a period of five years or more has not passed since the completion of the sentence imposed and the anchor has not demonstrated that they have been rehabilitated, the anchor is ineligible.

Default of any sponsorship undertaking or any support payment obligations

If the officer has concerns that the anchor may be ineligible, they may request additional documentation.

Default in respect of the repayment of any debt to His Majesty in right of Canada

An immigration debt includes

Anchors must demonstrate that they are in good standing related to any loans with IRCC in order to be eligible to act as an anchor.

Undischarged bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act

Officer must consider the following before refusing the application:

A discharge on conditions or a suspended or delayed discharge is not an absolute discharge under paragraph R133(1)(i). Courts may also apply a combination of delay and conditions.

At this time, a bankruptcy discharge will also discharge a previous sponsorship debt.

Receiving social assistance for reasons other than disability

Given that receipt of social assistance demonstrates an inability to provide for one’s own basic requirements, the recipient would be unable to support other family members, including spouses, common-law, siblings, parents , grandparents or dependent children.

Not accepting financial compensation from the foreign national

This requirement will be assessed based on the anchor’s declaration on the Statutory Declaration (IMM 5990).

If anchor does not meet the conditions

In all instances where it is determined that an anchor does not meet the conditions of the temporary public policy, the officer enters a negative eligibility decision and reasons in GCMS and sends a letter to the principal applicant.

Admissibility of the applicants

If eligibility is passed, admissibility assessments must be conducted for all applicants and their family members, 18 years of age or older, whether accompanying or not, to determine that they are not inadmissible to Canada.

Under this public policy, section A40 for misrepresentation does apply to the applicant.

If it is determined that an applicant may be inadmissible, the officer must send a procedural fairness letter outlining their concerns prior to refusing an application.

Criminality assessments

Principal applicants and their family members, 18 years of age or over, must provide police certificates, clearances or records of non-conviction for any country of residence other than Canada, in which the applicant and the family member over the age of 18 have resided for 6 consecutive months or more.

If they were under the age of 18 when they lived in these countries, this information is not required.

An officer may still request additional police certificates for any additional countries in which the applicant may have resided.

When applicant cannot provide police certificates

If the applicant fails to comply with a request for police certificates, an officer may perform any of the following actions:

As a best practice, “all available information” includes, but is not limited to

Biometrics

Principal applicants and their accompanying family members between the ages of 14 and 79 are required to provide their biometrics in support of their permanent residence application.

Biometrics must be collected to

In the absence of service delivery channels, officers should schedule appointments for biometric collection at the migration office.

Medical examination

Foreign nationals who are applying for permanent residence must undergo a medical examination as per subparagraph R30(1)(a)(i). All accompanying family members of a foreign national who are applying for permanent residence must also undergo a medical examination.

Medical refusals

An applicant may be refused on health grounds if their condition

Applicants will not be exempt from the excessive demand provision. Refer to the medical refusals and inadmissibility instructions for more information.

Note: The principal applicant may have non-accompanying dependents listed in their permanent residence application. For the purposes of this public policy, non­accompanying dependents are not required to be medically examined.

Applicants may be exempt from the requirement to submit to a medical exam (paragraph A16(2)(b)) only as it applies to a foreign national who is a non­accompanying family member.

Financial resources of the applicants

Applicants under this public policy are exempt from being found inadmissible for the financial reasons stated in section A39.

Therefore, if applicants meet the criteria of the public policy, the officer may grant them the exemption under section A39.

Final decision

Approving an application

When all requirements are met, the officer will

Refusing an application

If the officer determines that the applicant has not met all the eligibility or admissibility requirements, the officer should refuse the case.

All refused applicants must be provided with a formal refusal letter. When a case is refused, the processing office must

Withdrawal of applications under the public policy

In cases where an applicant requests to withdraw their application under the public policy, IRCC will

Transportation loan

Principal applicants and their dependents are eligible to access an Immigration Loans Program (ILP) transportation loan to cover the costs of transportation from overseas to their final destination in Canada. This includes travel booking assistance fees ($300 per person) from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), as well as other related expenses.

Applicants will indicate in Schedule 1 (IMM 5989) if they are seeking a transportation loan for their travel to Canada. Though ILP loan issuance typically requires an assessment of the applicant’s need for and ability to repay the loan, in the context of this public policy, this assessment will be waived as all applicants will be

  1. 18 years of age or older
  2. expected to have employment or transferable skills to secure employment well within 3 or 4 years
  3. expected to have initiative to participate in the labour market
  4. will receive transitional financial assistance after they arrive in Canada

As it will not be possible for the processing officer to counsel the clients on the terms and conditions of the loan (Terms and Conditions of Loan form [IMM 0502] [PDF]), the IOM must be asked to counsel the applicant on IRCC’s behalf. The processing officer may then follow the procedures for remote processing under the transportation loan program delivery instructions, ensuring to

  1. request that the IOM counsel the client on the terms and conditions of the loan prior to collecting their signature (Note: The IOM will be provided with instructions on how to counsel clients on the terms and conditions of the loan.)
  2. clearly indicate to the IOM that the client will be admitted to Canada under this public policy (specify P38 TPP Americas)

The IOM representative will then also add their name and signature under the Witness name and signature fields on the IMM 0502 to confirm they counseled the applicants on the terms and conditions of the loan and/or were present when the client was signing the loan form.

Note: The Terms and Conditions of Loan form [IMM 0502] (PDF) was recently updated to allow digital signatures in the signature block of the form. The processing officer completes the “IRCC Application #” and “Loan applicant name” fields of the form, saves it, and sends it to the IOM. The IOM will then collect the applicant’s signature. The IOM representative will add their own digital or wet signature if they counseled the applicants on the terms and conditions of the loan and/or were present when the client was signing the loan form. The client may then digitally sign the form or add a wet signature. The IOM representative or the client may either scan or take a clear picture of the signed form.

If it is not feasible for the applicant to provide a digital signature, a scanned copy of a signed form or a clear picture of a signed form, the client may type their name in the “Loan applicant name” field, save the document, and send it by email to the originator (IOM or IRCC), with a statement in the body of the email attesting “I am unable to digitally sign this form, or to send a clear picture or a scanned copy of the signed form. However, I confirm my commitment to repay this loan.”

Upon receipt of the signed form, the processing officer adds their own digital signature to the form, and uploads the fully signed IMM 0502 to GCMS, along with the client’s attestation email (if applicable). A fully signed copy of the IMM 0502 must also be sent to the client for their own records.

Self-paid travel to Canada

Applicants under this public policy who choose to book their own travel, and not use IOM’s travel booking assistance, can’t access an ILP transportation loan.

Applicants choosing to use IOM’s travel booking assistance, and are traveling from Colombia, Ecuador or Peru only, have the option to pay for IOM’s travel booking services and their travel costs directly to IOM, rather than having these costs placed in an ILP transportation loan. It is recommended that applicants travelling on an SJTD use the IOM’s travel booking assistance even if they are paying their own travel costs to facilitate exit from their country of current residence.

Refer to Transportation loans for further information on transportation loans.

Pre- and post-arrival supports under the settlement and resettlement assistance programs

Persons selected under the public policy will be eligible to receive pre- and post­arrival settlement services through the Settlement Program, including information sessions about life in Canada, an employment skills assessment and referrals to other services. They may also be eligible for income support in the form of a one-time lump sum payment through the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) to help them cover their immediate and essential needs once in Canada.

Port of entry processing

The P38 cohort is not eligible for in-Canada IFHP coverage and therefore border services officers must not print new IFHP certificates of eligibility for in-Canada coverage for approved applicants and their dependants even though GCMS auto­generates this coverage upon confirmation of permanent residence (COPR). The IFHP team will manually terminate IFHP coverage in Canada in GCMS based on daily reports on landing of this group.

Anchor support

Anchors are required to provide certain in-kind and settlement supports to applicants. These include the following:

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