The ​Inland Spousal/Common-Law Partner Sponsorship: Open Work Permit Pilot Program allows spouses and common-law partners of Canadians or Permanent Residents to be issued an open work permit while their inland sponsorship application for Permanent Residence to Canada is being processed. 

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The Spousal Sponsorship program is a subsection of the Family Class immigration category, which allows a Canadian or permanent resident (the sponsor) to sponsor his or her spouse or common-law partner (the sponsored person) for Canadian permanent residence. Inland sponsorship is a type of spousal sponsorship available to couples that are already living together in Canada and the spouse/common-law partner has temporary status in Canada, either as a worker, student, or visitor. 

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Inland spousal sponsorship gives applicants the ability to continue living in Canada while their application for permanent residence is processed. If the applicant’s temporary status document is not valid for the duration of the sponsorship processing period, they will need to apply for an extension, or a new status document, to maintain their legal status in Canada while their sponsorship application is being processed. Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) aim is to process applications submitted through the Spousal Sponsorship program within 12 months.

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This pilot program was first introduced for a period of 12 months in December 2014 and was set to expire on July 31. Instead of setting another expiry date, Canada is now extending the program until the regulatory changes have been completed to implement the pilot as permanent policy. The updated webpage from Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) said that family reunification is a “core immigration priority for the Government of Canada.”