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Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds

Welcome   →  Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds

Humanitarian and Compassionate Grounds

If you cannot apply for permanent residence in any other way because you are not eligible, you can apply under humanitarian and compassionate grounds. The purpose of this is to allow people who would face hardships if they were not allowed to stay in Canada, with permanent resident status, an option to explain their situation and justify being allowed to stay.

The minister or the delegated officer has the discretion to grant status to foreign nationals where there are strong humanitarian and compassionate grounds for doing so. Officers are entrusted with discretionary powers to waiver requirements of the law and consider hardships that may be experienced if a request for H&C is not granted.

This may apply both to those who wish to come to Canada or to those who wish to remain here, but who are inadmissible for technical, medical, or criminal reasons.

H_C Class_Photo

The legal test:

The legal test sets out that the applicant must clearly demonstrate that they would experience unusual and undeserved or disproportionate hardship if they are required to leave Canada.

  • There are no statutory definitions for “humanitarian” and “compassionate”.
  • The onus is on the applicant to prove that hardship would be faced if required to leave. The officer does not have to elicit information on H&C factors and is not required to satisfy applicants that such grounds do not exist.
  • Generally, the hardship must be beyond the applicant control and Undeserved.
  • Beyond the applicant control and Undeserved.
  • The situation is causing significant distress because of individual circumstances.
  • "taking into account the best interest of a child directly affected. “The relationship between an applicant and any child directly affected need not necessarily be that of a parent and child but could be another relationship that is affected by the decision. For example, a grandparent could be the primary caregiver who is affected by the decision that would in turn affect the child.

Factors that are looked at include:

  • Balance between discretion and consistency.
  • Inadmissibility.
  • How settled the person in Canada, general family ties and consequence of your separation on relatives.
  • The hardship that a person would face if required to leave and most importantly taking into account the best interest of child directly affected.
  • Health considerations and family violence considerations.
  • Factors in country of origin (not related to persecution).

Who is Ineligible?

You are ineligible if you have already submitted a humanitarian and compassionate grounds claim and have not received a decision, or if you have an outstanding refugee claim that you are awaiting a decision on. You are also ineligible if you have been rejected by the Immigration Review Board (IRB) within the past 12 months.

If you are a temporary resident permit holder, you are also unable to submit a humanitarian and compassionate application.

If you are seeking protection, you need to apply under the Refugee Protection Act, using the Protected Person and Convention Refugee immigration process, not under humanitarian and compassionate grounds.