Super Visa | Toronto Lawyer

This service is for parents and grandparents seeking extended visits with their children or grandchildren in Canada.

It may be suitable for:

• parents or grandparents of Canadian citizens or permanent residents;
• parents or grandparents of persons registered under the Indian Act;
• step-parents or step-grandparents applying as the spouse or common-law partner of a qualifying parent or grandparent;
• parents or grandparents who want to remain in Canada for longer than six months at a time;
• visa-exempt parents or grandparents seeking authorization for extended stays;
• families awaiting a decision on a parent or grandparent sponsorship application;
• hosts relying on one of the current Super Visa income options; and
• families seeking legal strategy before purchasing insurance or submitting an application.

This service may also assist families who need to determine whether a Super Visa, ordinary visitor visa or parent and grandparent sponsorship application is the more suitable immigration strategy.

Legal representation for a Super Visa application may include eligibility review, income analysis, evidence planning, application preparation and legal submissions.

Eligibility and Strategy

• review of the relationship between the applicant and host;
• confirmation that the host meets the status, age and residence requirements;
• assessment of the proposed visit and temporary purpose;
• review of the applicant’s family, financial and economic ties outside Canada;
• calculation of the applicable family size and income requirement;
• assessment of host, co-signer and applicant income where applicable;
• review of previous immigration applications, refusals or admissibility concerns; and
• comparison with an ordinary visitor visa or parent and grandparent sponsorship strategy.

Evidence and Documentation

• proof of the applicant’s relationship to the host;
• proof of the host’s Canadian status, age and residence;
• review of Notices of Assessment and other qualifying income evidence;
• review of applicant income and foreign currency conversion where applicable;
• preparation or review of the invitation letter and promise of financial support;
• review of health insurance, medical examination and temporary residence evidence; and
• organization of the supporting evidence into a coherent application package.

Application Preparation

• preparation or review of the required immigration forms;
• preparation of the family-size and income calculation;
• drafting or review of the invitation letter;
• drafting of legal submissions addressing eligibility and temporary intent;
• review of consistency across the forms, submissions and supporting documents; and
• monitoring of IRCC correspondence through to a decision.

Complex Situations

Legal representation may be especially useful where the host’s income is close to the required threshold, the family-size calculation is unclear, applicant income is being relied upon, the host is self-employed, a sponsorship undertaking remains active, the applicant has limited ties outside Canada, or a previous Super Visa application was refused.

Legal assistance is recommended where the Super Visa application requires a structured explanation of income, family size, temporary intent or admissibility.

This may include situations where:

• the host did not meet the income requirement in the most recent taxation year;
• the host wants to rely on the better of the two preceding taxation years;
• the host wants to rely on income earned during the preceding 12 months;
• the host meets at least 75% of the requirement and wants to rely on applicant income;
• the host, co-signer or applicant is self-employed or relies on foreign income;
• the correct family-size calculation is uncertain;
• the host or co-signer has an active sponsorship undertaking or previous Super Visa invitee;
• the host has a separated spouse or dependent children from another relationship;
• the applicant is purchasing insurance from a foreign insurer;
• the proposed visit is lengthy or the applicant has limited ties outside Canada;
• the applicant has previous Canadian or foreign visa refusals; or
• the applicant has a criminal, medical or immigration history concern.

Super Visa refusals commonly involve concerns about income, family size, insurance, temporary intent, home-country ties, inconsistent documents, the purpose of travel or admissibility.

A refusal should be reviewed before reapplying. Depending on the circumstances, the next step may involve obtaining the officer’s notes, preparing a stronger application, submitting a reconsideration request where appropriate or seeking judicial review at the Federal Court where the decision contains a reviewable error.