When IRCC refuses a family class sponsorship application, the sponsor — a Canadian citizen or permanent resident — may appeal the refusal to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) under IRPA s 63(1). The sponsorship appeal is one of the principal appellate pathways before the IAD and allows the sponsor to challenge both the legal correctness of the refusal and, in appropriate cases, to ask the IAD to exercise humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) discretion to allow the sponsorship despite the refusal ground.

A sponsorship appeal differs from a removal order appeal — it concerns the refusal of a visa application for a family member abroad, not the removal of a person who is already in Canada.

• IRPA s 63(1) — a person who has filed a sponsorship application in respect of a person whose application for a permanent resident visa was refused may appeal the refusal to the IAD
• IRPA s 65 — in an appeal, the IAD shall consider only humanitarian and compassionate considerations in deciding whether to allow the appeal if the foreign national is not a member of the family class or is not a Convention refugee or in need of protection
• IRPA ss 67–68 — the IAD's general appellate jurisdiction, including the power to allow an appeal, substitute a decision, or dismiss the appeal
• IAD Rules (SOR/2002-230) — the procedural rules governing IAD proceedings

Who can appeal?

The sponsor — the person who filed the sponsorship application — may appeal. The sponsor must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who made a complete sponsorship application and whose family member's permanent resident visa application was refused by IRCC.

The sponsored foreign national does not have a right of appeal — only the sponsor can file the appeal with the IAD.

The 30-day deadline

The appeal must be filed within 30 days of receiving the IRCC decision refusing the permanent resident visa application. This is a strict deadline. If the appeal is filed late, the IAD may decline to proceed. The Notice of Appeal must be received by the IAD within this 30-day window.

Current appeal forms and instructions are available on the IAD sponsorship appeals page.

Grounds of appeal

The IAD may allow a sponsorship appeal on any of the following grounds (IRPA s 67(1)):

• Error of law: The visa officer applied the wrong legal test or misinterpreted the applicable provision
• Error of fact: The visa officer made a factual finding that is unsupported by the evidence — for example, found that a relationship was not genuine when the evidence clearly supported genuineness
• Mixed error of law and fact: Both elements present in the impugned decision
• Humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds: Even if the refusal was legally correct, the IAD may allow the appeal if it is satisfied that sufficient H&C considerations warrant relief in the circumstances. Common H&C considerations in sponsorship appeals include: the nature and duration of the relationship, the best interests of any affected children, the degree of hardship that separation causes to the sponsor and Canadian family members, and the sponsor's circumstances.

Cases where appeal right is restricted

The right to appeal is restricted in some circumstances. Where the foreign national was found inadmissible on grounds of serious criminality (an offence punishable by a sentence of at least six months in Canada, or an offence outside Canada that would carry a maximum sentence of ten years or more in Canada), the appeal may be refused — however, the appeal right is generally preserved where the sponsored person is a spouse, common-law partner, or dependent child. Practitioners should review the specific inadmissibility ground and visa category to confirm whether the appeal right is available.

What happens on a successful appeal?

If the IAD allows the appeal, it may:

• Quash the refusal and substitute its own decision — for example, find that the relationship is genuine and direct the visa be issued
• Refer the matter back to IRCC for reconsideration with directions
• Allow the appeal on H&C grounds, making findings about the applicable humanitarian considerations

An IAD decision allowing an appeal does not automatically result in a permanent resident visa being issued — there may be additional processing steps at the visa office. A decision dismissing the appeal may be reviewed by the Federal Court with leave.

The most common sponsorship appeal in practice involves spousal or partner sponsorships where the visa officer found that the relationship was not genuine or was entered into primarily for immigration purposes. The genuineness assessment is a fact-intensive exercise, and the IAD conducts a de novo hearing — meaning it considers all evidence fresh, not just whether the officer made an error.

The IAD sponsorship appeal can be a lengthy process. Sponsors should begin assembling evidence of the genuineness of the relationship — communications, photographs, financial ties, correspondence — as early as possible. Expert evidence on cultural practices relevant to the relationship may also be relevant in some cases.

Legal representation before the IAD is strongly recommended given the complexity of the process, the evidentiary requirements, and the importance of the outcome to the family.