(CANADA) — Immigration, refugees and citizenship canada (IRCC) paused the intake of new sponsorship applications for the Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) in 2026, citing an administrative decision to manage its current inventory while the super visa remains open as the primary alternative for family reunification.
What IRCC announced
IRCC published a statement on Canada.ca on January 1, 2026, saying:
“New Ministerial Instructions for the Parents and Grandparents Program come into effect January 1, 2026. These administrative steps allow us to keep processing existing applications into 2026. Details on the next intake will be shared on our website and social media channels as soon as they are available.”
Key points from the announcement:
- IRCC is not accepting any new sponsorship or permanent residence applications for parents and grandparents for the 2026 calendar year until further notice.
- For 2026, IRCC has the authority to process a maximum of 10,000 complete applications, drawn from people invited to apply during the 2025 intake (selected from the 2020 Interest to Sponsor pool).
- The pause is tied to Ministerial Instructions 89 (MI89), which took effect on January 1, 2026.
- IRCC framed the move as a measure to process applications already in the system rather than opening a new intake that would add to the inventory.
The Super Visa as the immediate alternative
IRCC pointed to the Super Visa as the main channel for families seeking to bring parents and grandparents to Canada while the PGP is paused.
- The Super Visa:
- Allows parents and grandparents to stay in Canada for up to 5 years per entry.
- Offers two-year extensions, enabling up to 10 years of multi-entry validity.
- Is not subject to a lottery or intake pause—it remains open.
- Important limitations of the Super Visa:
- It provides long-term visit rights but does not grant permanent residency, the right to work, or automatic access to provincial healthcare.
- It requires private medical insurance.
Practical effect: families that did not receive an invitation in 2025 cannot file a new pgp sponsorship application in 2026 and must instead rely on temporary pathways such as the Super Visa if they want parents and grandparents in Canada.
Why the pause: inventory and levels plan
IRCC linked the intake pause to the government’s Immigration Levels Plan (2026–2028), which:
- Aims to stabilize permanent resident admissions at 380,000 annually from 2026 to 2028.
- Describes that level as a reduction intended to align immigration with infrastructure capacity.
Backlog context:
- Canada reported a backlog of over 40,000 PGP applications at the end of 2023.
- IRCC said the 2026 pause is designed to clear this inventory before adding new entries to the system.
How the 2026 PGP processing authority works
- The 10,000 complete application processing cap for 2026 applies only to applicants already invited in the 2025 intake (which itself drew from the 2020 Interest to Sponsor pool).
- IRCC did not provide a date for a next intake, stating only that details would be posted on its website and social channels when available.
Official PGP information is posted here: Sponsor your parents and grandparents.
Details on the Immigration Levels Plan are here: Notice – Supplementary Information for the 2026-2028 Immigration Levels Plan.
Comparison with recent U.S. changes
The PGP pause comes while family reunification pathways are also changing in the United States. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. citizenship and immigration services announced the end of several family reunification parole programs.
- DHS/USCIS statement (dated December 12, 2025) said:
“The Department of Homeland Security is terminating all categorical family reunification parole (FRP) programs for aliens from Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras. Ending the FRP programs is a necessary return to common-sense policies and a return to America First. The desire to reunite families does not overcome the government’s responsibility to prevent fraud and abuse and to uphold national security.”
- The DHS announcement specified that any parole issued under those programs that has not expired by January 14, 2026, will terminate on that date unless the individual has a pending Form I-485 postmarked by December 15, 2025.
The U.S. release is available from USCIS: DHS Ends the Abuse of the Humanitarian Parole Process.
Taken together, the Canadian and U.S. measures reflect policy choices to narrow or pause certain family-based pathways while keeping other channels open, though the two countries use different legal tools and produce different immigration outcomes.
Practical implications for families
- The PGP remains a permanent residence pathway that can significantly affect long-term settlement options for parents and grandparents, but it is constrained by limited intakes and selection from prior pools of prospective sponsors.
- The Super Visa provides an immediate, temporary alternative for extended stays but:
- Does not confer permanent resident status.
- Does not provide work authorization.
- Does not guarantee access to provincial healthcare.
- Requires private medical insurance.
Because of the intake pause and the 10,000-application processing cap for 2026, the number of parents and grandparents who can move forward through the PGP in the short term is restricted to those already in line from earlier invitation rounds.
Administrative framing and next steps
IRCC described MI89 as an administrative measure intended to manage inventory and continue processing into 2026, rather than opening the door to new applications this year.
For prospective sponsors hoping for a new PGP intake in 2026, the immediate option is the Super Visa, which remains available and is not tied to capped invitation rounds.
IRCC is not accepting new PGP sponsorships for 2026; only up to 10,000 complete applications from the 2025 intake will be processed. Monitor IRCC announcements for when a next intake is announced.
IRCC’s statement on January 1, 2026 directed people to future updates on IRCC’s website and social media channels, without indicating when the next PGP intake might occur.
Canada has suspended new Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) applications for 2026 to address significant backlogs. IRCC will focus on processing 10,000 applications from previous invitation rounds while maintaining a cap on total admissions. Families are encouraged to utilize the Super Visa, which provides long-term visiting rights but lacks residency and work benefits, as the primary alternative during this administrative pause.
