Bringing family members to Québec who are still abroad

The Government of Canada's one-year window of opportunity provisions allow you to bring family members of the person you sponsor to Québec, who were unable to accompany you due to circumstances beyond your control.

As guarantor, you may inform the person you sponsor about these procedures and help them with the administrative procedures.

Through this program, the sponsored refugee already in Québec can bring the following people:

• their spouse
• their common-law partner
• their dependent child or children

To submit an application, the refugee you sponsor must:

• have been in Canada for less than a year
• have been admitted to Canada as a refugee while abroad
• have already indicated the name of the person you wish to bring in the Application for permanent residence in Canada (form IMM 0008).

You were also required, as a guarantor, to have initially included the names of these individuals in your sponsorship application, which was accepted by the ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration, MIFI).

The form Demande pour faire venir au Québec les membres de la famille restés à l’étranger dans le cadre du délai prescrit d’un an (A-1520-FF) must be submitted by the refugee in the year following their arrival. The prescribed one-year period to submit an application begins on the date of the arrival of the sponsored refugee in Canada as a permanent resident.

1. Complete the form

The refugee already in Québec must complete and sign the following form: 

Demande pour faire venir au Québec les membres de la famille restés à l’étranger (PDF 225 Kb) (French only - Application to bring family members who are still abroad to Québec).

2. Attach proof of permanent residence

The refugee already in Québec must fill and sign the following documents: 

• a two-sided photocopy of the permanent residence card or a one-sided photocopy of the confirmation of permanent residence;
• a proof of address in Québec (electric bill, bank document with your address, notice of assessment, etc.).

3. Send the application and the required documents by mail

The application, accompanied by all the required documents, must be sent by mail to the following address:

Once you have submitted your application, the MIFI will evaluate the application and make a decision about your selection. If the application is accepted, the MIFI will send the sponsored refugee who is already in Québec a letter of acceptance of the application for selection through the one-year window of opportunity provision and a notice of the issue of the Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ). The CSQs will be provided to the recipients upon their arrival at the airport.

The sponsored refugee residing in Québec must then submit an application for permanent residence to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for their family members. You will need to include the letter of acceptance of your request for selection and the notice of issue of the CSQ. Applications for permanent residence through the one-year window of opportunity provision must be submitted online through the IRCC permanent residence portal.

For instructions, you can consult the Guide to Reunite Family Members Abroad under the One-Year Window of Opportunity Provision (IMM 5578).

To speed up the procedures, you can prepare your application for permanent residence before having received the letter of acceptance of your request for selection. Be sure that you have included the notice of the MIFI’s decision regarding your selection before submitting your application.