Sponsoring refugees: Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program—After applying

Application processing

In most cases, sponsorship applications are processed within 30 working days of being received by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). You will receive a letter telling you whether your application has been accepted or refused.

If your application has not been processed within 30 days, CIC will send you a letter to tell you the estimated processing time.

Approved applications

If your application is approved, you will receive a letter that includes a CIC file number, contact name and fax number.

Sponsor-referred cases

If you want to sponsor a person overseas whom you believe is a refugee, that person must complete an application to come to Canada. There are several options for how the refugee can apply. The options are outlined in the guide for your sponsoring group.

You will receive a letter to confirm that your sponsorship application was accepted or refused within 30 working days of CIC receiving it. If your application has not been finalized in that time, you will be sent a letter with the estimated processing time.

If the sponsorship application has been approved, your group will receive by mail:

• a CIC file number, contact name and fax number, and
• information about the approximate time it will take to process the refugee application.

Processing times vary depending on which visa office is processing the application, and the complexity of the case. You will be told when the refugee application has either been approved or refused by the visa office. If it is approved, your group will get a Notice of Arrival saying when the refugee will arrive in Canada.

Visa office-referred cases

The CIC Centre will forward the completed copy of your request for a refugee profile to the Matching Centre at CIC headquarters. The Matching Centre has an inventory of refugees who have already been selected, but who need to be sponsored to become permanent residents. Sponsoring groups may request profiles of refugee cases from CIC. This is explained in detail in the guide.

Refugee(s) usually arrive in Canada between four and twelve months after a sponsorship request is approved. In some cases, refugees are ready to travel sooner. You will be notified about 10 days before the refugee(s) is scheduled to arrive in Canada.

Change of address

If your address or telephone number changes after you submit your application, you must notify your local CIC Centre.

Refugee Sponsorship Training Program

CIC’s Refugee Sponsorship Training Program is designed to help you learn more about what to expect when refugee(s) arrive in Canada. You can find more information about the program in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.

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Related Links

• Guide: Refugee sponsorship application for group of five [IMM 5414]
• Guide: Refugee sponsorship application for sponsorship agreement holders and constituent groups [IMM 5413]
• Guide: Refugee sponsorship application for community sponsors [IMM 5513]
• Guide to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program
• Refugee Sponsorship Training Program