February 14, 2018

Updates to Spousal Reunification in time for Valentine’s Day

Today, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, spoke on the subject of family reunification in Canada. In doing so, he highlighted efforts taken by his office to shorten backlogs and reduce processing times.

The Minister noted that the backlog in spousal sponsorship applications had been reduced by over 80% between December 2016 and December 2017, making reference to past changes to the sponsorship package made in December 2016 and June 2017.

As of today, IRCC has introduced more changes to the sponsorship application kit. Namely, spousal applicants will now be asked to submit their Schedule A – Background/Declaration (IMM 5669) form and police certificates as part of their initial application package, instead of later on in the application process as was the previous requirement.

Minister Hussen has indicated that IRCC will continue to accept and incorporate feedback from clients going through the application process.