If you’re a church, community group or individual in Canada wondering about how private sponsorship of refugees works, find out how you can get involved.
Why sponsorship matters?
CLWR has supported refugees since 1946 and has been a sponsorship agreement holder with the federal government since 1979 when the program first began. Today, through refugee sponsorship, churches and community groups continue that legacy, offering safety, stability and hope.
Refugee sponsorship has always been at the heart of CLWR’s history. Built on a foundation of compassion, community support and protection for those fleeing persecution, CLWR continues to stand with refugees seeking safety and a chance to rebuild their lives.
“With growing conflict and human rights violations around the world, forced displacement continues to rise. As a country with a history of reaching out to those who are persecuted and seeking safety, we must continue to build on that tradition and uphold our commitment to resettlement,” says Senait B, director of refugee resettlement.
Refugee resettlement impact in 2025:
Sponsor responsibilities:
If you are interested in sponsoring a refugee and helping them resettle in Canada, you are committing to:
- Provide financial support for 12 months
- Assist with housing, schooling, health care, language learning and more
- Offer emotional and practical support to help refugees adjust
- Assist with community orientation and involvement, and more.
Download the resettlement plan
Who can sponsor a refugee?
Congregations, community groups and even families or individuals can sponsor through CLWR.
To be eligible to sponsor with CLWR, a person must:
- Be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and reside in the intended community of resettlement
- Be at least 18 years old
- Demonstrate financial capacity to support the refugee(s) for one year, and
- Have commitment, compassion and a team to help
Download the sponsor checklist
There are two ways to sponsor a refugee:
Sponsor-Referred (Named/Family-Linked)
- Sponsor-referred is when the sponsorship group already knows the person they want to sponsor. In some cases, the refugee is a relative or friend of someone in the local community (family-linked sponsorship).
- Financial support: Settlement expenses are covered by the sponsorship group or by a relative of the refugee living in Canada.
- Settlement support: The sponsorship group coordinates and supports settlement.
- Timeline: Refugees must undergo a refugee status determination process at a Canadian visa office abroad. Since they have not yet been cleared for resettlement to Canada, processing times can take longer.
Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR):
- This is a cost-sharing program with the Canadian government. The sponsorship group does not know the refugee or family to be sponsored ahead of time.
- Financial support: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) provides six months of financial support, and the sponsorship group provides the remaining six months.
- Settlement support: The sponsorship group provides settlement support for the full year.
- Processing timeline: Refugees are typically ready to travel to Canada within two to four months, pending a match with a Canadian sponsor.
Who qualifies as a refugee?
A refugee is someone who has fled their home due to war, violence, or persecution and is unable to return safely. Refugees are not economic immigrants who choose to leave their countries for better opportunities.
Read the full UN definition of a refugee:
According to the UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a refugee is: “A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it.”
Ready to take the first step?
Whether you’re just exploring or are ready to sponsor, we’re here to support you. Let’s do this together.
