Canada pauses parent and grandparent sponsorship applications: Key changes to Immigration Policy in 2025  

Canada has paused the acceptance of new applications for parent and grandparent permanent residency sponsorships under the Family Class stream, as outlined in a ministerial directive. 

Published in the Canada Gazette, the directive reaffirms the government’s commitment to family reunification while prioritizing the processing of applications submitted in the previous year. 

Immigration Minister Marc Miller stated that this approach aligns with the government's broader immigration and family reunification objectives. To address the current backlog, other immigration streams have also halted new sponsorships. 

The suspension will remain in place indefinitely until further instructions are provided by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller. 

The Gazette announcement specifies, “These instructions are intended to ensure that, as of January 1, 2025, no new permanent resident visa applications made by parents or grandparents of a sponsor, nor sponsorship applications related to these, will be processed until further Instructions are issued.” 

While new permanent residency applications are on hold, parents and grandparents can still apply for the supervisa, a long-term, multiple-entry visa. 

As part of its immigration levels plan, which aims to reduce overall immigration in the next three years, the government intends to admit over 24,000 individuals through the parent and grandparent program this year. 

For 2024, the directive sets a cap of 15,000 applications to be processed under the family reunification program. In contrast, 35,700 people were randomly selected in 2024 to submit applications, with a target to accept 20,500. 

Minister Miller’s 2024 annual immigration report revealed that over 40,000 parent and grandparent sponsorship applications were still in the system at the close of 2023, with an average processing time of 24 months. 

The government has also announced plans to reduce its permanent residency target for 2025 from 500,000 to 395,000—a cut of 105,000. Further reductions are planned, with the target decreasing to 390,000 in 2026 and 365,000 by 2027. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau supported the change, stating that “now is the time to make adjustments to stabilize the immigration system and get it right for Canadians.” This planned reduction of over 120,000 immigrants over the next three years marks a departure from last year's proposal to increase the permanent residency intake to 500,000 by 2025.