What counts as a dependent child
Two situations qualify, and the second is often missed by families who assume an adult child is out of reach. The age limit is also less brittle than it looks, because it is fixed on the day you apply.
- Under 22 and not a spouse or common law partner. That is the ordinary case. The limit moved from under 19 to under 22 for applications received on or after 24 October 2017.
- Or 22 and over, dependent since before 22, because of a condition. They must have depended substantially on your financial support since before turning 22, and be unable to be financially self supporting because of a physical or mental condition. Both limbs are required.
- The age is locked when the complete application is received. A child who was under 22 at that point does not stop being a dependent child by having a birthday during processing. The Regulations fix it to the date the application is made and IRCC's own guidance for this route puts it at the date the complete application reaches them, so a child close to 22 should not be filed close to the line.
- Everything except the age must continue to be true. So marrying during processing changes the answer, where ageing does not.
- No income requirement. For your own dependent child who has no children of their own, and for a child you are adopting or bringing to Canada to adopt.
- A biological child adopted by someone else is no longer your dependent child. Unless the adopting person is your spouse or common law partner.
The two adoption routes
| Adopt abroad, then sponsor | Bring the child to adopt in Canada | |
|---|---|---|
| Child's age | Any age, though a separate and narrower test applies where the adoption took place at 18 or older | Under 18 |
| Core test | The adoption was in the best interests of the child within the meaning of the Hague Convention, and was not entered into primarily to acquire status | The adoption is not being entered into primarily to acquire status |
| What best interests requires | Seven conditions. A home study conducted or approved by a competent authority. Free and informed consent from the birth parents. A genuine parent and child relationship created. Compliance with the law of the place of adoption. Compliance with the law of your own place of residence, and where you resided in Canada at the time, a written statement of no objection from the province of destination. For international adoptions, that the country is a Hague party, that the Convention applies to that province, and that the competent authorities of both the country and the province have stated in writing that they approve the adoption as conforming to the Convention. And where the country is not a Hague party or the Convention does not apply to that province, that there is no evidence the adoption is for the purpose of child trafficking or undue gain | Not applicable in the same form |
| Where the Hague Convention applies | Built into the test above | Written approval from both the child's country and the province, confirming the adoption conforms to the Convention |
| Where it does not apply | Handled through the provincial statement | The child must be legally available for adoption there with no evidence of trafficking or undue gain, and the province must state in writing that it does not object |
| Medical condition statement | Required. You must show you obtained information about the child's medical condition | Required on the same basis |
A written provincial statement is conclusive evidence that the requirements it addresses are met, except where the adoption was entered into primarily to acquire status. Where an officer later receives contrary evidence, processing is suspended until the province confirms or revises its statement.
An adoption at 18 or over is governed by a separate and narrower provision, and its middle condition is the one that decides most of these files. Three things are required. The adoption complied with the law of the place where it took place and, where you resided in Canada, with the provincial law applying to the adoption of a child of 18 or over. A genuine parent and child relationship existed at the time of the adoption and existed before the child turned 18. And the adoption was not entered into primarily to acquire a status or privilege. An adult adoption of someone you first became close to after they were 18 does not satisfy the second condition, however genuine the relationship is now.
- The general bad faith rule does not apply to these adoptions, and it does not need to. The Regulations expressly disapply their general bad faith provision to an adoption abroad, an adoption at 18 or over, and a child being brought to Canada to be adopted, because the equivalent tests are already built into the adoption provisions themselves. Those require that the adoption was not entered into primarily to acquire status and that it created a genuine parent and child relationship, so the substance holds either way.
- The medical condition statement is a real requirement. A permanent resident visa cannot be issued to an adopted dependent child, to an orphaned brother, sister, nephew, niece or grandchild, or to a child being brought to Canada to be adopted, unless the adoptive parents or sponsor show they obtained information about the child's medical condition.
Requirements checker
A structured way to see where you stand against the published criteria. It returns an indication only, not an eligibility decision, not legal advice, and not a prediction that you will be invited.
Your situation
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