Figures on this page come from CIC News reporting on Parents and Grandparents Program (PGP) application mistakes and medical inadmissibility, cross-checked against IRCC's current published guidance on medical inadmissibility, current as of September 2026. PGP intake is currently paused, but the mistakes and inadmissibility rules below apply to files already in IRCC's queue and to any future intake. Always verify current figures with IRCC before relying on a deadline or dollar amount.
- Three grounds of medical inadmissibility: danger to public health, danger to public safety, or excessive demand on health or social services
- 2026 excessive demand cost threshold: $28,878 per year, or $144,390 over five years
- Sponsored parents and grandparents are not exempt from the excessive demand assessment; sponsored spouses, common-law partners and dependent children are
- Procedural fairness letter response window: 90 days
- Return letter for an incomplete application: 30 days to respond
- IRCC has not held a new PGP interest-to-sponsor intake since 2020
What mistakes cause PGP applications to be refused or returned?
A completed Parents and Grandparents Program application is not the end of the risk. Reporting on the program's processing patterns points to a handful of avoidable errors that repeatedly cost sponsors time, and sometimes the application itself: submitting an incomplete package, missing an IRCC deadline because a reply went to the wrong address, letting the interest-to-sponsor form drift out of step with the eventual application, mishandling an electronic signature, and leaving gaps in a parent's or grandparent's employment history unexplained. None of these involve eligibility in the ordinary sense. Each is a process error, and each is preventable with attention to IRCC's specific procedural requirements.
Why do incomplete applications get returned, and what is the 30-day deadline?
IRCC does not process an incomplete PGP application. Instead, it returns the package and sends the sponsor a letter identifying what is missing, whether that is a form, a supporting document, or a fee payment. The sponsor then has 30 days from the date of that letter to respond with the outstanding material. IRCC publishes a document checklist for the program, and working through it line by line before submission is the most direct way to avoid triggering a return in the first place.
A related and easy-to-miss error is replying to the wrong email address. IRCC's automated notifications are frequently sent from a "do not reply" address, and a sponsor who responds to that email, rather than using IRCC's official web form to submit updates, risks having the response go unread. The practical effect is the same as not responding at all: documents are not received, and an application already on the clock can be returned or refused for a delay the sponsor believed they had already resolved.
Why must your interest-to-sponsor form match your application?
IRCC has not run a new PGP interest-to-sponsor intake since 2020, so most sponsors currently applying are working from a form submitted several years before their application. That gap matters. If the details in the application do not align with what was originally declared on the interest-to-sponsor form, IRCC can conclude that the invitation to apply was issued on the basis of information that no longer holds, and refuse the application on that basis. Sponsors should review their original interest-to-sponsor submission against their current application and be prepared to explain, with documentation, any material change in circumstances since 2020.
Two further procedural details apply to the forms themselves. Digital IRCC forms generally need to be signed using the form's built-in electronic signature feature rather than a scanned or inserted signature image, and certain forms must be validated in a way that generates a 2D barcode, which requires a current version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. A form that is signed or saved incorrectly can be rejected on a technicality that has nothing to do with the underlying application.
What is medical inadmissibility, and could it affect a parent or grandparent?
Every PGP applicant, including the sponsored parent or grandparent, must pass an immigration medical exam. IRCC can find someone medically inadmissible on three grounds: being a danger to public health, being a danger to public safety, or causing excessive demand on Canada's health or social services. The excessive demand ground is the one most likely to affect an otherwise straightforward PGP application involving an older applicant, because it is assessed against a specific dollar threshold rather than against safety.
For 2026, IRCC sets that threshold at $28,878 per year, or $144,390 over five years. If an officer projects that an applicant's anticipated health or social services costs will exceed this amount, the applicant can be found inadmissible on excessive demand grounds unless they qualify for an exemption. It matters who is exempt: sponsored spouses, common-law partners and dependent children are excluded from the excessive demand assessment, as are refugees and protected persons and their dependants. Parents and grandparents sponsored through the PGP are not on that exemption list, which is why a pre-existing or chronic condition in an aging parent deserves attention well before an application is filed, not after a concern is raised.
What happens if IRCC sends a procedural fairness letter?
If an immigration medical officer has concerns about excessive demand, IRCC does not refuse the application outright. It first sends a procedural fairness letter explaining the concern and gives the applicant 90 days from the date of that letter to respond with additional information. That response can include an updated diagnosis, a current treatment plan, evidence about the actual and anticipated cost of care, or a medical opinion addressing the specific concern IRCC raised. An extension can be requested using the contact information provided in the letter. Because the response window is fixed and the evidence often takes time to gather, from specialists' letters to cost estimates, treating the 90 days as a firm deadline rather than a cushion is the safer approach.
What can Saskatchewan families do to protect a pending or future PGP application?
With new PGP intake currently paused, as we covered in our earlier post on the 2026 PGP pause and the super visa alternative, getting the details right now protects the files already in IRCC's queue and prepares families for if intake reopens. Three things are worth doing regardless of where a file sits: confirm every item on IRCC's current document checklist before anything is submitted, keep a copy of the original interest-to-sponsor form and flag any change in circumstances since it was filed, and raise a parent's or grandparent's health history early, rather than waiting for a procedural fairness letter to force the issue. If a PGP or super visa application has already been refused, our appeals and refusals page outlines what recourse may be available, and our family sponsorship page covers the related spousal and partner process. A second set of eyes on a procedural fairness letter or a return letter, before the deadline runs out, is usually the difference between a delay and a refusal.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if IRCC returns an incomplete PGP application?
IRCC returns an incomplete Parents and Grandparents Program application rather than processing it, and sends a letter identifying what is missing. The sponsor has 30 days from that letter to respond with the missing information, using IRCC's official web form rather than replying to the notification email directly.
What is the excessive demand cost threshold for medical inadmissibility in 2026?
For 2026, IRCC sets the excessive demand cost threshold at $28,878 per year, or $144,390 over five years. An applicant whose anticipated health or social services costs exceed this threshold can be found medically inadmissible on excessive demand grounds, unless they fall into an exempt category. Sponsored parents and grandparents are not exempt from this assessment; only sponsored spouses, common-law partners, dependent children, and refugees and protected persons are.
How long do I have to respond to a procedural fairness letter about medical inadmissibility?
IRCC gives applicants 90 days from the date of a procedural fairness letter to submit additional information or evidence, such as updated diagnoses, current treatment plans and costs, or medical opinions addressing the concern raised. An extension can be requested using the contact details in the letter itself.
Sources: Common PGP application mistakes reported by CIC News (July 2025), medical inadmissibility risk reported by CIC News (August 2025), verified against IRCC's medical inadmissibility guidance. This article provides general information, not legal advice.