Parent Sponsorship Income Requirement 2019

[amusingfirefly]

Hey guys, I'm looking for feedback from anyone who has gone through this before. I applied for sponsoring my parents this year, and fortunately got in and got invited.

My question is around satisfying the minimum income criteria. At the time of application in January 2019, I checked and made sure I qualified for the tax years 2016, 2017, and 2018. My income was over $100k in all three years, which is far above and beyond what is required, so I didn't feel any worry.

HOWEVER, now that I got invited and checked the guide in the application package, it says that I need to CONTINUE to have an income above the minimum DURING the WHOLE application process. What happened is that my company was closed end of last year and the company paid me severance which is worth 5 months' wages. So I decided to take a break and work on some self-projects for a bit. This means that as of today, my income this year is $0. Sooo, my application is wrecked if I don't make at least $50414 for this year (LICO 2019 + 30%). And this is going to be hard as only 8 months are left this year!

Has anyone gone through anything like this? Do I have any options or things I can do as there is still time in this year to make money somehow? I don't want to be hunting for jobs under pressure like this, so wondering if someone has gone through this before. Plus, if I don't meet the income criteria for 2019, I can't apply until 2023.

Thanks for reading my post, and please don't tell me why did I apply when I knew I didn't qualify. If you read my post, you will realize that I do qualify at the moment. I just don't have income this year and I may not qualify next year.

 

[scylla]

Hey guys, I'm looking for feedback from anyone who has gone through this before. I applied for sponsoring my parents this year, and fortunately got in and got invited.

My question is around satisfying the minimum income criteria. At the time of application in January 2019, I checked and made sure I qualified for the tax years 2016, 2017, and 2018. My income was over $100k in all three years, which is far above and beyond what is required, so I didn't feel any worry.

HOWEVER, now that I got invited and checked the guide in the application package, it says that I need to CONTINUE to have an income above the minimum DURING the WHOLE application process. What happened is that my company was closed end of last year and the company paid me severance which is worth 5 months' wages. So I decided to take a break and work on some self-projects for a bit. This means that as of today, my income this year is $0. Sooo, my application is wrecked if I don't make at least $50414 for this year (LICO 2019 + 30%). And this is going to be hard as only 8 months are left this year!

Has anyone gone through anything like this? Do I have any options or things I can do as there is still time in this year to make money somehow? I don't want to be hunting for jobs under pressure like this, so wondering if someone has gone through this before. Plus, if I don't meet the income criteria for 2019, I can't apply until 2023.

Thanks for reading my post, and please don't tell me why did I apply when I knew I didn't qualify. If you read my post, you will realize that I do qualify at the moment. I just don't have income this year and I may not qualify next year.

There is a requirement that you continue to meet the minimum income requirements until the application is approved. If IRCC checks your income during the process you can expect to be refused. We have seen this happen here occasionally and this is a real possibility in your case since you’ll no longer meet the requirements to sponsor. I’m not sure what advice any of us can give you. The only way to fix this situation is to get a job and ensure you meet the minimum income requirements this year.

 

[amusingfirefly]

There is a requirement that you continue to meet the minimum income requirements until the application is approved. If IRCC checks your income during the process you can expect to be refused. We have seen this happen here occasionally and this is a real possibility in your case since you’ll no longer meet the requirements to sponsor. I’m not sure what advice any of us can give you. The only way to fix this situation is to get a job and ensure you meet the minimum income requirements this year.

Thanks for commenting. I understand that, but there are things like withdrawing money from RRSP, etc, which count as income. I do have saved money in RRSP that I can withdraw. I'm posting here to see if there are other similar solutions so that I don't have to withdraw from RRSP which is probably my last alternative apart from obviously looking for jobs. I am hunting for jobs now.

 

[crown.parth]

amusingfirefly.631213:

I read the guide and found out this same issue. I hope someone who had dealt with similar salutation can shed some light..

 

[scylla]

Thanks for commenting. I understand that, but there are things like withdrawing money from RRSP, etc, which count as income. I do have saved money in RRSP that I can withdraw. I'm posting here to see if there are other similar solutions so that I don't have to withdraw from RRSP which is probably my last alternative apart from obviously looking for jobs. I am hunting for jobs now.

The only alternative is to have a spouse who can co-sign the application so that you meet LICO jointly. Otherwise there really aren’t any solutions. You either meet LICO or you don’t. Any chance you have a working spouse or common law partner?

 

[amusingfirefly]

The only alternative is to have a spouse who can co-sign the application so that you meet LICO jointly. Otherwise there really aren’t any solutions. You either meet LICO or you don’t. Any chance you have a working spouse or common law partner?

No unfortunately, I'm single and have no co-signer.
Would you happen to know if an income from capital gains (for example, selling stocks and money made using that) counts in the income? I have some shares in a company I can sell which might add to my income this year. However, I'm not sure if that will contribute to line 150 in my NOA.

 

[steaky]

Can you sell some asset such that there will be capital gain of at least $50,414? Or if you have addition non salaried income? That will count as income in line 150.

 

[scylla]

No unfortunately, I'm single and have no co-signer.
Would you happen to know if an income from capital gains (for example, selling stocks and money made using that) counts in the income? I have some shares in a company I can sell which might add to my income this year. However, I'm not sure if that will contribute to line 150 in my NOA.

Yes - cap gains will count.

 

[gifty123]

Hello everyone!!

I am separated from my husband from last three years i dont even know where he is. We dont have any children and doenst have anything in joint like bank account etc. And i am filling tax as separated status from last 3 years.I need to know do i have to count my husband while calculating family size? I dont have any court separation agreement. I will be applying for divorce this week. I am thinking to put petition from lawyer that i have filed my divorce which will show separation date on it. Do i still have to include my husband in family size calculation. Please let me know if anyone has same situation or any experience.

Thanks