Resources for Sponsorship Groups

Refugees are referred to Canada for resettlement by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) or another referral organization. Individuals cannot apply directly. The government is responsible for financial and settlement support for their first year in Canada.

2. Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program

If you know a refugee who is overseas you can sponsor them through either the “Group of 5” sponsorship stream or you can work with a Sponsorship Agreement Holder (SAH) to resettle a refugee in Canada. Many church denominations in Canada are SAH's.

3. Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) Program

Matches refugees identified by the UNHCR with private sponsors in Canada. The financial costs of sponsorship are shared between the Canadian government and the sponsorship group. The sponsors are responsible for all the settlement support.

The following information is intended for Private Sponsors who are interested in sponsoring and resettling refugees from outside of Canada.

Who Can Sponsor a Refugee?

You must be part of a group to sponsor a refugee. You can't sponsor a refugee on your own. You must be part of one of the following groups in Canada.

Sponsorship Agreement Holder A Sponsorship agreement holder (SAH) signs agreements to sponsor and support refugees when they come to Canada. As a SAH, you can also work with other groups in the community to sponsor refugees under your agreement. These groups are called “Constituent Groups.”
Group of Five A Group of Five (G5) is a group of 5 or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents who come together to sponsor a refugee(s) and help them settle in their communities. The sponsorship group will have to prove to the government that they have the necessary resources and a detailed plan for how to support the newcomer when they arrive Groups of Five can only sponsor people who have already been formally and officially recognized as a refugee in their country of asylum and who are able to provide proof of this status.
Community Sponsors Community Sponsors are organizations, associations or corporations that sponsor refugees to come to Canada.

1. Government-Assisted Refugee (GAR) Program

Under the Government-Assisted Refugee (GAR) Program, refugees are referred to Canada for resettlement by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) or another referral organization. Individuals cannot apply directly.

You must register for refugee status with the UNHCR or state authorities to be considered by a referral organization.

A GAR's initial resettlement in Canada is entirely supported and funded by the Government of Canada (or in the case of Quebec, the province of Quebec.) This support is delivered by non-governmental agencies called service provider organizations funded by IRCC (Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada.)

GARs receive support for up to one year from the date they arrive in Canada, or until they are able to support themselves, whichever happens first.

To learn more about GAR, click here

2. Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR)

Canadians can privately sponsor refugees from outside of Canada. Groups that can sponsor a refugee(s) are:

(A) Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAHs): Incorporated organizations that have signed a formal sponsorship agreement with IRCC. Most current SAHs are religious organizations, ethnocultural groups, or humanitarian organizations. SAHs, which may be local, regional or national, assume overall responsibility for the management of sponsorships under their agreement. Organizations entering into a sponsorship agreement with IRCC generally submit several refugee sponsorships a year.

(A-1) Constituent Groups (CG): A SAH can authorize CG to sponsor under its agreement and provide support to the refugees. Each SAH sets its own criteria for recognizing CG. CG are based in the sponsored refugee's expected community of settlement and must have their sponsorship application and settlement plan approved and signed by their SAH before the undertaking is submitted to the Resettlement Operations Centre in Ottawa (ROC-O). Most church organizations that do not have a SAH falls under the Constituent Group.

(B) Groups of Five (G5): Five or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents, who are at least 18 years of age, live in the expected community of settlement and have collectively arranged for the sponsorship of a refugee living abroad. These individuals act as guarantors that the necessary support will be provided for the full duration of the sponsorship.

ROC-O (Resettlement Operations Center - Ottawa) assesses individual contributions of group members to the sponsorship. The financial and non-financial aspects are considered collectively, as well as the settlement plan, before the sponsorship is approved. The group's financial commitment must meet the levels established in the Sponsorship Cost Table in Appendix A of the Guide for Groups of Five to privately sponsor refugees (IMM 2200).

(C) Community Sponsors (CSs): Any organization, association or corporation located in the community where the refugees are expected to settle can make an organizational commitment to sponsor. CSs must undergo financial and settlement plan assessments by ROC-O each time they wish to sponsor. Like G5s, CSs must demonstrate that they are willing and able to commit funds toward the sponsorship in line with the levels established in the Sponsorship Cost Table in Appendix A of the Guide for Community Sponsors to privately sponsor refugees (IMM 2201).

3. Blended Visa Office-Referred Program (BVOR)

The Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) program makes it easier for private sponsors to help the most vulnerable refugees. The benefits of the BVOR program are:

reduces the financial burden on private sponsors
connects sponsors with refugees we've already screened and interviewed, making them ready to travel sooner
The BVOR program works with refugee referral organizations, like the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). Referral organizations identify refugees for resettlement. After we screen the refugees, the BVOR program connects them with private sponsors. Screening includes security and medical checks.

To support sponsors, IRCC offers up to 6 months of financial support after refugees arrive in Canada.

Private sponsors on the other hand:

are responsible for associated start-up costs
need to give up to 6 months of financial support
need to give up to 1 year of social and emotional support
don't need to cover the cost of BVOR refugees' health care
BVOR refugees get temporary health care benefits through the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) until they become eligible for provincial or territorial health insurance.

What refugees need to know about Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program

If you are a Privately Sponsored Refugee (PSR) you can expect that your sponsorship group will:

help you find a place to live
provide you with initial financial support
provide social and emotional support
assist you to find food and clothing
assist you in finding employment
help you register your school aged children in a local school
support you in your transition to life in Canada

As a PSR, the sponsorship group must support you financially for 1 year after you arrive or until you can support yourself, whichever comes first.

There are no processing fees for these applications and you don't need to pay your sponsor for the cost of helping you settle. Sponsors are not allowed to ask you for money to help you be resettled.

Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAH)

Many organizations have signed sponsorship agreements with the Government of Canada to help support refugees when they resettle in Canada. These organizations are called Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAH). Click here for the IRCC approved list of SAHs.
Because only SAHs have signed agreements, Groups of Five and Community Sponsors, which are also groups of volunteers that sponsor refugees, do not appear on the list.

Groups of Five (G5)

A Group of Five (G5) is five or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents who have arranged to sponsor a refugee living abroad to come to Canada.
G5s may only sponsor applicants who have been formally recognized as refugees by either the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) or a foreign state. The principal applicant MUST already have refugee status. Having refugee status means that an authorized body has found that an individual meets its refugee definition. This authorized body can either be the UNHCR or the government of the country (i.e., foreign state) where the refugee is now living.
You must include the document proving recognized refugee status with the refugee sponsorship application you submit.
For more information, see the Guide to the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program.

Community Sponsors (CS)

Some community organizations can sponsor refugees to come to Canada.
The organization must agree to give emotional and income support to the refugees for the full sponsorship period. This is usually one year.
Community Sponsors may only sponsor applicants who are recognized as refugees by either the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) or a foreign state.
The principal applicant MUST already have refugee status. Having refugee status means that an authorized body has found that a person meets its refugee definition. This authorized body can either be the UNHCR or the government of the country (i.e., foreign state) where the refugee is now living.
You must include the document proving recognized refugee status with the refugee sponsorship application you submit.

How to form a Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Group

Sponsorship Agreement Holders (SAH)

Interested organizations can request an application to become a SAH by writing to IRCC.INPSR-PPPRRI.IRCC@cic.gc.ca.

SAHs must be incorporated organizations and must be located in Canada. Generally, new SAH applicants have sponsorship experience and expect to sponsor multiple refugee cases each year. Applicant organizations must have personnel and finances available to ensure the settlement needs of the sponsored refugees are in place before their arrival, and must be able to provide financial statements for the most recent 2 year period.

Constituent Groups (CG)

Each SAH sets its own criteria for recognizing CGs. Interested parties should contact a SAH directly to inquire about sponsoring under its auspices. Click here to find IRCC approved list of SAHs.

Groups of Five (G5)

At least 5 individuals must be eligible to sponsor and willing to contribute to the requirements of sponsorship. At least 3 group members must contribute funds towards the sponsorship, and each group member contributing funds must complete a personal Financial Profile form (IMM 5373B).

The sponsoring group must collectively complete a Sponsorship Undertaking and Settlement Plan - Groups of Five (G5) (IMM 5670).

Community Sponsor (CS)

An organization that decides to participate in refugee sponsorship and provides statements demonstrating the ability to meet the required financial obligations. Individual co-sponsors formally partnering with a CS who are contributing personal income towards the sponsorship must complete a personal Financial Profile form (IMM 5373B). The sponsoring group must collectively complete a Sponsorship Undertaking and Settlement Plan - Community Sponsor (CS) (IMM 5663).

Co-sponsor

Interested individuals or organizations should contact a SAH, a CG or a CS in their area to inquire about partnering in the private sponsorship of a refugee. Each SAH, CG or CS has its own procedures for screening and approving a co-sponsor as well as for establishing the division of responsibilities in the settlement plan. The decision to accept an individual or organization as a co-sponsor is the choice of the SAH or CS that submits the undertaking.

Sponsoring Specific Refugee or Refugee referred Visa Office

Decide if you want to sponsor a specific refugee or a refugee referred by a visa office

In some cases, a Community Sponsor may want to sponsor a specific refugee or refugee family abroad, such as a:

friend
member of a family in the community
a refugee identified by an overseas contact

This is known as “sponsor-referred refugee.”

Sponsor-referred refugees must qualify under Canada's refugee and humanitarian resettlement program. Both you and the refugee must fill out an application. After you apply, an officer abroad will assess the application to decide whether the person you want to sponsor qualifies.

In other cases, you may ask for a “visa office-referred refugee.”These refugees have already been determined to be eligible and have already been chosen by an officer abroad. They just need a private sponsor before they can come to Canada.

You can sponsor a visa office-referred refugee through either the Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) program, or the Visa Office-Referred (VOR) program.

Country of asylum class

You may be in this class if you:

are outside your home country, or the country where you normally live, and
have been seriously affected by civil war or armed conflict, or
have been denied basic human rights on an ongoing basis.

Country of asylum class refugees can be privately sponsored. You can also be in this class if you have the funds you need to support yourself and your family after you arrive in Canada. You will still need the UNHCR, a referral organization, or a private sponsorship group to refer you.

To learn more about private sponsorship of refugees

Refugee Sponsorship Training Program
About Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program

FAQ (for Privately Sponsored Refugees)

IRCC maintains a website HELP CENTER to help sponsors and refugee claimants with FAQ. Click here to find the questions that you may have