IRCC quietly settled lawsuits against the Parents and Grandparents Program

30 May 2019

According to a report by the CBC, the federal government of Canada allowed 70 potential sponsors to apply to its Parents and Grandparents Program in exchange for them to drop two lawsuits in relation to the program’s controversial expression of interest intake in January.

The settlement was confidential and involved a non-disclosure agreement, adds the CBC.

The lawsuits are due to a January 28 opening for expressions of interest in the program.

IRCC had a quota of 27,000 Interest to Sponsor forms, and 100,000 attempted to submit one.

The opening lasted less 10 minutes, and resulted in widespread criticism and frustration from individuals who were unable to access the form or complete it on time.

IRCC used a “first in, first-served”, in response to a previous system of randomized selection, which received criticism for handling family reunification as a lottery.

The lawsuits reported by the CPC claim that this year’s Interest to Sponsor process was “arbitrary, capricious, procedurally unfair and unjust.”

In a statement, Canada’s Minister of Immigration said “We are continually monitoring all of our programs to find ways to improve them. It is too early to speculate on potential changes to next year’s application process.”