Immigration Department probing cancellation of refugee sponsor policy: Diab

Immigration Minister Lena Diab says her department is looking into whether the decision not to extend a policy that gave permanent residency sponsorship exemptions to some refugees led to negative effects.

The policy, which allowed some refugees to sponsor some undeclared family members for permanent residency, expired earlier this month after it was introduced in 2019.

Advocates and academics say the policy was used primarily to sponsor children and LGBTQ+ partners and a previous department review said some refugees have legitimate reasons for not declaring a family member.

All permanent residency applicants are required to list all family members and are permanently barred from later sponsoring any undeclared family. 

The Immigration Department previously said the policy was dropped because of “potential integrity concerns” but refused to explain what those were, or to state whether some applicants had misused the policy. 

Diab says she “respects the department’s findings that there are integrity concerns” and will look into whether the policy’s end will have adverse effects on “people that we should be helping.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2026.

By David Baxter | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.