Spousal Sponsorship Processing Times Increase Drastically for Quebec

The IRCC webpage showing Canadian immigration application processing times now has a new feature – spousal sponsorship application processing times are now broken down further into applications immigrating to Quebec or to a different province.

In-Canada Class Spousal Sponsorship Application Processing Time

The processing time is the lowest for applicants using the Spouse in Canada or Common-Law partner in Canada class sponsorship application. However, if the sponsor lives in the province of Quebec, the processing time is more than double:

• Inland Spousal Sponsorship (outside Quebec): 11 months
• Inland Spousal Sponsorship (inside Quebec): 26 months

IRCC has now taken into account the requirement for the person being sponsored to also be given permission to immigrate to the province of Quebec (Certificat de Selection du Quebec – CSQ) by Quebec immigration (MIFI). This requirement has always been in place, but the processing time for the applicant to be issued a CSQ was not taken into account by IRCC. The processing time now includes how long it takes

• for you to give your biometrics
• for the assessment of the sponsor and the person being sponsored
• for IRCC to make sure you meet eligibility requirements
• the time you need to submit your application to the Ministère de l’Immigration de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI) and receive a decision

Processing Time for Outland Sponsorship Applications

For applicants who are not already inside Canada and are using the outland spousal sponsorship process (also known as overseas or family class spousal sponsorship), the processing time has also increased drastically for applicants destined to Quebec.

• Overseas (Family Class) Sponsorship (outside Quebec): 14 months
• Overseas (Family Class) Class Sponsorship (inside Quebec): 24 months

Spousal Sponsorship and Common-Law Sponsorship Applications Complete in 3 – 6 Months

Our office has continued to receive approvals on sponsorship applications for couples with sponsors living outside Quebec in far less time than is posted on the IRCC website. Throughout 2023, we have received dozens of spousal sponsorship approvals in a very short time for applications submitted this year:

• Inland Sponsorship: 3 – 6 months
• Outland Sponsorship: 5 – 8 months

The spousal sponsorship application processing time has lingered around 12 months on the IRCC website for approximately one year. However, our office has been receiving extremely quick decisions on nearly all spousal and common-law sponsorship applications since late 2022.

What is a CSQ?

CSQ stands for Certificat de sélection du Québec. This is a document that gives someone permission from the Quebec government to immigrate to Quebec.

A CSQ is required for any person becoming a permanent resident of Canada who will live in the province of Quebec. Anyone who immigrates to Quebec must have approval from the federal government of Canada through IRCC, as well as the government of Quebec through MIFI – they do things a bit differently there!

Contact Us if you have questions about your spousal sponsorship application or CSQ application.