In June 2008, the Alberta government introduced a new category under its Alberta Immigration Nominee Program (“AINP”), the Family Stream.

The Family Stream allows Alberta residents to sponsor family members for immigration. This program is not open to just anyone – one must still meet the set minimum requirements.

Who can apply? In order to be eligible for the Family Stream, one must have a close relative residing in Alberta. The applicant and their spouse must be between the ages of 21 and 45 and both must minimum of 4.0 on the IELTS (or 3.0 on the TEF) or must be able to demonstrate that English (or French) is your primary language. The applicant or the spouse must have completed a minimum one year program and have received a degree, diploma or certificate. In addition, they must have at least 3 years of work experience, or 3 years of full time post-secondary studies, or a combination of 3 years of work experience and studies in the last 4 years. The applicant or their spouse must demonstrate that they have at $10,000 for the applicant, and $2,000 for each dependant.

Who can be a sponsor? To be eligible to be a sponsor, one must be a mother/father, son/daughter, sister/brother, aunt/uncle or a niece/nephew of the applicant. The sponsor must also be at least 21 years of age and be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident for at least 2 years. The sponsor must also have resided in Alberta for the past 2 years. The sponsor must be able to demonstrate employment or a regular source of income for the past 12 months, or a minimum of $15,000 in available assets. The sponsor must also sign a Sponsorship Affidavit of Support. This commitment remains in effect for a period of 2 years.

It should also be noted that there can only be one sponsorship commitment per household at a time. Therefore a second sponsorship could only be done once the first sponsorship commitment has been completed – therefore after a period of 2 years.