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Humanitarian & Compassionate Grounds

You may be qualified

Humanitarian & Compassionate Grounds

 
People who would not normally be eligible to become permanent residents of Canada may be able to apply on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.

Credit: IRCC Youtube Channel.

Humanitarian and compassionate grounds apply to people with exceptional cases. We assess these applications on a case-by-case basis. Factors we look at include:

  • how settled the person is in Canada

  • general family ties to Canada

  • the best interests of any children involved, and

  • what could happen to you if we do not grant the request?

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Other rules that apply to humanitarian and compassionate grounds:

  • You may only ask for humanitarian and compassionate grounds if you are applying for permanent resident status in Canada, or for a permanent resident visa abroad. We will not look at H&C requests from temporary resident applicants.

  • You cannot have more than one humanitarian and compassionate grounds application at the same time.

  • We will not assess risk factors such as persecution, a risk to life, cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

  • You cannot apply for humanitarian and compassionate grounds if you have a pending refugee claim. If you want to apply, you must withdraw your refugee claim before your Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB) hearing.

  • You could not apply for humanitarian and compassionate grounds if you had a negative decision from the IRB within the last 12 months. This is called the “one year bar.” (If the IRB decides your refugee claim is abandoned or withdrawn, that counts as a negative decision.) The bar does not apply if:

    • you have children under 18 who would be adversely affected if you were removed from Canada, or

    • you have proof that you or one of your dependants suffers from a life-threatening medical condition that cannot be treated in your home country.

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