Refugee Sponsorship Facilitation Public Policy for Cancelled SAH Agreements

Validated finding · five-country-2010-20260922-v118-evidence-presentation-fix

CountryCanada

Operative dateMay 7, 2026

CategoryFamily

Policy toolDocumentation

Affected groupExisting holders

Policy effect

To support refugee applicants affected by the cancellation of a Sponsorship Agreement Holder (SAH), a temporary policy waives the requirement for UNHCR or host state Refugee Status Determination (RSD) documentation for replacement sponsorship applications submitted by Groups of Five or Community Sponsors.

Conditions and exceptions

Validated condition or limit: To support refugee applicants affected by the cancellation of a Sponsorship Agreement Holder (SAH), a temporary policy waives the requirement for UNHCR or host state Refugee Status Determination (RSD) documentation for replacement sponsorship applications submitted by Groups of Five or Community Sponsors.

Official source excerpt

Quoted verbatim from the official source below. Ellipses indicate omitted text.

… sponsorship as a result of a Sponsorship Agreement cancelation find a new sponsor. A valid sponsorship is required in order for IRCC to continue processing their resettlement application. This temporary public policy recognizes that many of the impacted refugee applicants will have family and community ties to Canada, and will have already been waiting many months or years for their application to be processed. This public policy aims to increase applicants’ chances of finding a replacement sponsor by waiving the requirement to include an RSD document as part of their sponsorship application, thus facilitating the sponsorship of these applicants by G5 and CS groups. I hereby establish that, in light of the foregoing, there are sufficient public policy considerations to justify granting exemptions, pursuant to section 25.2 of the *Immigration and Refugee Protection Act* (the Act) and to the requirements of the provisions of the *Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations* (the Regulations) listed below, for foreign nationals and their accompanying family members who apply for the Private Sponsorship of Refugees program and meet the conditions (eligibility requirements) set out below … Fairness Letter must have been issued after the date the public policy comes into effect and before the date the public policy expires. ## Provision of the Regulations for which an exemption may be granted: Paragraph 140.2(1)(a) of the Regulations - that the permanent residence application be accompanied by a sponsorship application referred to in paragraph 153(1)(b) by which the foreign national is being sponsored, specifically the requirement in paragraph 153(1)(b) that the sponsor must make a sponsorship application that includes the document issued by the UNHCR or a foreign state certifying the status of the foreign national as a refugee. ## Other eligibility and admissibility criteria Foreign nationals eligible under this public policy and all family members included in the application for protection are subject to all other applicable regulatory and legislative eligibility and admissibility requirements not otherwise exempted by this temporary public policy. ## Coming into effect and expiration This temporary public policy takes effect on May 7, 2026 and may be revoked at any time. This temporary public policy expires twenty-four (24) months after coming into effect. The Honourable …

Government of Canadacanada.ca. Refugee Sponsorship Facilitation Public Policy for Cancelled SAH Agreements. Effective 2026-05-07.Open official source

Retrieved from https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/mandate/policies-operational-instructions-agreements/public-policies/sah-refugees-april-23-extension.html

Review method

Two separate automated exact-claim source reviews

Automated source validation is not independent human legal review. The finding should not be treated as legal advice. Record fcp-946a366cbf4412593c0a. Something wrong? Flag this record.

Refugee Sponsorship Facilitation Public Policy for Cancelled SAH Agreements

Policy effect

Conditions and exceptions

Official source excerpt

Review method

Other Canada changes operative in 2026