Permanent residency for a minor

[cokolinka17]

Hi there, I have a situation that I am hoping someone has a solution.

I have a minor (16 years old) living and in care of his uncle and aunt. Court order declaring the uncle and aunt are sole custodians of the child. child has been living in Canada with them for the past 5 years as a student. What route would the child be able to get his PR? Family sponsorship "other relative" under 22 years old and not their dependent child?

Please help if you have any other info! Thanks

 

[keesio]

Hi there, I have a situation that I am hoping someone has a solution.

I have a minor (16 years old) living and in care of his uncle and aunt. Court order declaring the uncle and aunt are sole custodians of the child. child has been living in Canada with them for the past 5 years as a student. What route would the child be able to get his PR? Family sponsorship "other relative" under 22 years old and not their dependent child?

Please help if you have any other info! Thanks

I do not believe it will be possible. The first barrier is that they could not sponsor the child unless both parents are deceased.

 

[Buletruck]

They wouldn't be able to sponsor the child as they only have custody (adoption). Adoption wouldn't be an option unless both parents were deceased as already noted by keesio. The only option would be for the child to obtain a SV to continue studies in University or college, apply for a PGWP and then hopefully their PR.

 

[cokolinka17]

They wouldn't be able to sponsor the child as they only have custody (adoption). Adoption wouldn't be an option unless both parents were deceased as already noted by keesio. The only option would be for the child to obtain a SV to continue studies in University or college, apply for a PGWP and then hopefully their PR.

what is a SV?
Also, both parents are not in canada or Us, both in Pakistan. child has been living in Canada for the past 5 years with the uncle and aunt. On a study permit for now. can they not sponsor him as a "other relative"?

From the CIC Website:

To be sponsored using this application, you must be:

• the sponsor’s:
• child adopted outside Canada
• child who will be adopted in Canada or
• brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild who is
  • orphaned
  • under 18 years old and
  • not married or in a common-law relationship

OR

• related to the sponsor if the sponsor does not have any other relatives that
  • can be sponsored (such as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, uncle or aunt, niece or nephew)
    • are Canadian citizens
    • are permanents residents
    • are registered Indian

 

[cokolinka17]

what is a SV?
Also, both parents are not in canada or Us, both in Pakistan. child has been living in Canada for the past 5 years with the uncle and aunt. On a study permit for now. can they not sponsor him as a "other relative"?

From the CIC Website:

To be sponsored using this application, you must be:

• the sponsor’s:
• child adopted outside Canada
• child who will be adopted in Canada or
• brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild who is
  • orphaned
  • under 18 years old and
  • not married or in a common-law relationship

OR

• related to the sponsor if the sponsor does not have any other relatives that
  • can be sponsored (such as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, uncle or aunt, niece or nephew)
    • are Canadian citizens
    • are permanents residents
    • are registered Indian

got it, Study Visa!

 

[zardoz]

what is a SV?
Also, both parents are not in canada or Us, both in Pakistan. child has been living in Canada for the past 5 years with the uncle and aunt. On a study permit for now. can they not sponsor him as a "other relative"?

From the CIC Website:

To be sponsored using this application, you must be:

• the sponsor’s:
• child adopted outside Canada
• child who will be adopted in Canada or
• brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild who is
  • orphaned
  • under 18 years old and
  • not married or in a common-law relationship

OR

• related to the sponsor if the sponsor does not have any other relatives that
  • can be sponsored (such as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, uncle or aunt, niece or nephew)
    • are Canadian citizens
    • are permanents residents
    • are registered Indian

And this is where it breaks down. You mentioned "in care of his uncle and aunt"...

https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/family-sponsorship/other-relatives/who-you-can-sponsor.html

Option 2: other relative
You may sponsor one relative, related by blood or adoption, of any age if you meet all of the conditions, including:

• you don't have a living relative you could sponsor instead, such as a:
  • spouse
  • common-law partner
  • conjugal partner
  • son or daughter
  • parent
  • grandparent
  • brother or sister
  • uncle or aunt
  • nephew or niece
• you don’t have any of the above-named relatives who is:
  • a Canadian citizen
  • a permanent resident
  • registered Indian under the Indian Act

 

[scylla]

Hi there, I have a situation that I am hoping someone has a solution.

I have a minor (16 years old) living and in care of his uncle and aunt. Court order declaring the uncle and aunt are sole custodians of the child. child has been living in Canada with them for the past 5 years as a student. What route would the child be able to get his PR? Family sponsorship "other relative" under 22 years old and not their dependent child?

Please help if you have any other info! Thanks

Sponsorship is not possible unfortunately.

Custodianship/adoption from Pakistan is not recognized by IRCC. So not possible to adopt the minor as a dependent. As others have explained, also not possible under the other relatives categories since the criteria for sponsoring isn't met (the sponsoring relative would have to be alone in Canada and have no immediate family member to sponsor - however the sponsoring relative is obviously married so it's a no-go).

Agreed study permit is the only option at this time. Once the minor is a working adult, he/she will have to work on qualifying for PR on their own through an economic immigration stream like Express Entry.

 

[cokolinka17]

Thanks guys but just another quick confirmation.

So the uncle and aunt are Canadians. Kid has been with them for the past 5 years. The order for sole custody is from the Ontario Court of Justice not Pakistan. And still there is no way this kid can get a PR?

 

[cokolinka17]

Do you think they can try something for this kid? Or should they maybe go straight for Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds?

 

[scylla]

Thanks guys but just another quick confirmation.

So the uncle and aunt are Canadians. Kid has been with them for the past 5 years. The order for sole custody is from the Ontario Court of Justice not Pakistan. And still there is no way this kid can get a PR?

Correct - there is no normal / regular immigration stream that fits this situation. Sole custody doesn't allow you to sponsor and does not make the minor a dependent for immigration purposes.

You can try H&C - but it's quite risky. Once H&C is refused, it typically becomes very difficult to renew or obtain a new visitor visa or study permit - and leaving Canada may be the only option.

 

[Buletruck]

Agreed. Unless you have REALLY exceptional circumstances for H&C, it will probably be viewed as an effort to circumvent the programs (and the restrictions) in place. It really would be better to continue to proceed with the SV approach and the PR from there. They stand a significantly higher chance of success without any of the risks a H&C application would present.

 

[cokolinka17]

Correct - there is no normal / regular immigration stream that fits this situation. Sole custody doesn't allow you to sponsor and does not make the minor a dependent for immigration purposes.

You can try H&C - but it's quite risky. Once H&C is refused, it typically becomes very difficult to renew or obtain a new visitor visa or study permit - and leaving Canada may be the only option.

Wow and wow. Kid has literally no other relatives that can support him. Parents are long out of the pic and that's why he is with the aunt and uncle. Tricky and complicated I see. He is in high school and he will continue being in High School in Canada, but it is getting super expensive as he is being treated as an international student :/

 

[scylla]

Wow and wow. Kid has literally no other relatives that can support him. Parents are long out of the pic and that's why he is with the aunt and uncle. Tricky and complicated I see. He is in high school and he will continue being in High School in Canada, but it is getting super expensive as he is being treated as an international student :/

The main problem faced is that Pakistan does not allow international adoptions (and hasn't for some time now). A child has to be adopted to be viewed as a dependent and for sponsorship to be possible. IRCC's hands are pretty much tied in this regard.

Yes - you should expect that he will continue to be treated as an International Student and that he will have to continue to pay international student fees. All of that is expected. He's not a PR or citizen - and doesn't meet any of the other requirements to be treated as a domestic student. Note that he should have been treated as an international student while in primary school as well and should have been paying around $14K / year in tuition. If his aunt & uncle somehow got around that - they should count themselves lucky.

H&C is possible - but very far from guaranteed. I don't know how IRCC will look at this case given he's a minor. H&C processing times are also quite long - so likely two years before the outcome of the case is known (during which time he will continue to be treated as an international student). If they are considering H&C, they should speak to an excellent immigration lawyer to discuss the chances of approval. This isn't something they should undertake on their own due to the complexities of the case. Possible the lawyer may advise to wait until he's no longer a minor to try this route.

 

[cokolinka17]

The main problem faced is that Pakistan does not allow international adoptions (and hasn't for some time now). A child has to be adopted to be viewed as a dependent and for sponsorship to be possible. IRCC's hands are pretty much tied in this regard.

Yes - you should expect that he will continue to be treated as an International Student and that he will have to continue to pay international student fees. All of that is expected. He's not a PR or citizen - and doesn't meet any of the other requirements to be treated as a domestic student. Note that he should have been treated as an international student while in primary school as well and should have been paying around $14K / year in tuition. If his aunt & uncle somehow got around that - they should count themselves lucky.

H&C is possible - but very far from guaranteed. I don't know how IRCC will look at this case given he's a minor. H&C processing times are also quite long - so likely two years before the outcome of the case is known (during which time he will continue to be treated as an international student). If they are considering H&C, they should speak to an excellent immigration lawyer to discuss the chances of approval. This isn't something they should undertake on their own due to the complexities of the case. Possible the lawyer may advise to wait until he's no longer a minor to try this route.

Would it make any difference if a child is a US citizen? Is that worth anything? He would not be Pakistani adopted child, but an American adopted child. Both parents are Pakistani, but the child is not!

 

[scylla]

Would it make any difference if a child is a US citizen? Is that worth anything? He would not be Pakistani adopted child, but an American adopted child. Both parents are Pakistani, but the child is not!

Wow - they need to be speaking with a lawyer. This is a complicated case.

I think that would likely make things more complicated rather than less. They need professional advice at this point.