Canada visa lottery: 17,860 PR invites for family
Canada has officially launched the 2025 intake for its Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP), issuing 17,860 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to eligible sponsors. The initiative aims to reunite Canadian citizens and permanent residents with their parents and grandparents by granting them permanent residency.
According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), this year’s invitations are being sent between July 28 and August 12, exclusively to individuals who submitted an interest to sponsor form in 2020 but were not selected in previous years. The government targets to approve up to 10,000 complete sponsorship applications through this round.
Invited sponsors must submit their applications online via the Permanent Residence Portal or through an authorized representative. The deadline for submission is October 9, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.
To qualify, sponsors must be:
- Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or registered Indians under Canadian law,
- At least 18 years old and residing in Canada,
- Able to demonstrate financial capability through the Minimum Necessary Income (MNI) over the past three tax years,
- Willing to sign a legal undertaking to support the sponsored individual for up to 20 years.
Applicants will be required to complete both the sponsorship and permanent residence applications, including supporting documents, identity verification, and financial declarations.
For those not selected, the government encourages applying for the Super Visa, a long-term, multi-entry visitor visa allowing parents and grandparents to stay in Canada for up to five years per visit.
This round of PGP selection reinforces Canada's commitment to family reunification as a central pillar of its immigration policy.