Important information about Medical Inadmissibility – Parents and Grandparents

• February 6, 2018 - 11:41 am
• Canadian Immigration Blog, Sponsor Your Parents and Grandparents
• By Guidy Mamann

Important information about Medical Inadmissibility

Many Canadian citizens and permanent residents who are considering sponsoring their parents or grandparents to Canada believe that their relatives will be rejected if they suffer from a medical condition. While that may be true in most cases, there are circumstances where sponsors of parents or grandparents can avoid or overcome a refusal even though the sponsored relative is suffering from a medical condition.

Naturally, parents and grandparents tend to be advanced in age and are more likely to suffer from a variety of medical conditions. Accordingly, many people might feel discouraged to fill out the online form to show their interest in sponsoring their parent or grandparents because of their medical condition(s).  However, such a condition does not automatically make them inadmissible to Canada. Rather, several factors are taken into consideration, such as whether or not the inadmissibility will be a burden on the health and social services normally provided in Canada or whether it would pose a danger to the Canadian public. A five-year prognosis is conducted by immigration medical officers in each case prior to a decision being made on the application.

Notwithstanding most medical conditions, it would still be a good idea to file a Notice of Intent to sponsor. If you do receive an Invitation to Apply to sponsor your parents/grandparents, you may proceed with the submission of your sponsorship and their permanent residence application. Further down the road in the application process, there will be a request for medical examinations for your parents/grandparents, at which time, if there is a finding of medical inadmissibility, you may request a discretionary assessment under humanitarian and/or compassionate grounds. Secondly, if the application is refused you can or appeal the decision to the Appeal Division of the Immigration and Refugee Board which has the power to overturn the refusal in spite of the medical condition.

At Mamann, Sandaluk & Kingwell LLP, we have lawyers who specialize in appealing medical refusal cases.

Please contact us if you believe that your parent or grandparent may be inadmissible to Canada or if you have any questions regarding any stage of the parent/grandparent sponsorship process.