Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds Applications
Humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) consideration provides the flexibility to grant permanent residence status or a permanent resident visa to certain foreign nationals who would otherwise not qualify in any class, in cases in which there are compelling H&C grounds. Humanitarian and compassionate grounds apply to people with exceptional cases. It can take many years to process an application. There is no guarantee that your application will be approved. If refused, in certain cases asking the Federal Court of Canada to review the decision is advisable.
Factors for H&C consideration
The applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis. Examples of the factors that may be considered include, but are not limited to:
- Establishment in Canada
- An inability to leave Canada that has led to establishment
- Ties to Canada
- Best interests of any children affected by your application
- Health considerations
- Family violence considerations
- consequences of your separation from relative
- Factors in your country of origin (not related to seeking protection)
- Any other relevant factors you wish to have considered that are not related to seeking protection.
Who is Eligible?
Foreign nationals living in Canada with no valid immigration status can submit a claim under humanitarian and compassionate grounds. Examples include people who have:
- Overstayed their visa.
- Been excluded from the family class because their sponsor didn’t declare their existence or have them examined.
- Had a refugee claim denied over a year ago.
Some restrictions exist, however. The following categories of people cannot apply on H&C grounds:
- Persons who have submitted a refugee claim. To apply for an H&C, applicants would have to withdraw their refugee claim before their IRCC hearing.
- Persons who have received a negative decision from IRCC in the last 12 months. (A rejected refugee claim counts as a negative decision.) The one-year bar, however, does not apply to applicants with children younger than 18 who would be adversely affected should the applicant be removed from Canada. It also does not apply to people with proof of a medical condition that threatens their life and cannot be treated in their country of origin.
- Persons who withdrew a refugee claim within the last 12 months.
- Persons recognized as Designated Foreign Nationals or considered “irregular arrivals” into Canada. Such persons cannot apply for H&C grounds for a period of five years.
