From a first visitor visa to full Canadian citizenship, get matched with a licensed immigration lawyer for every step of the journey.
Immigration files are won on details: the right category, complete documents, and a clear story an officer can approve. A licensed immigration lawyer helps you choose the right pathway, builds the application properly the first time, and responds when something goes wrong.
Olanur matches you with verified Canadian immigration lawyers based on your specific situation, whether that is a study permit, a spousal sponsorship, Express Entry, or a refused application that needs a rescue plan.
Olanur is a legal matching platform, not a law firm. The services described on this page are performed by independent licensed lawyers and legal professionals you can be matched with, and each sets their own fees.
Immigration is mainly federal law, set by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and its regulations, so these rules apply across Canada. Québec runs its own selection and sponsorship steps, and Ontario's part is its nominee program. Each rule below was checked against the current law and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada's own pages. If you have already been refused, our guide to refused and delayed applications explains the options.
For federal applications, only a lawyer or paralegal licensed by a Canadian law society, a Québec notary, or a member of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants may charge to advise or represent you. For Québec's own immigration steps, the list of who may be paid is narrower: a Québec lawyer, a Québec notary or a Québec-registered consultant. Paid representation by anyone else is an offence, and IRCC may return or refuse an application that used an unauthorized representative.
IRCC says you do not need a representative, that it treats everyone equally whether they use one or not, and that all forms are free on its website. Hiring one does not draw special attention to a file or guarantee approval.
IRCC now includes the officer's decision notes with most refused temporary resident applications, since 29 July 2025, and most refused permanent resident applications, since 26 May 2026. Electronic travel authorizations, temporary resident permits and humanitarian applications are not included, and parts of a note may be removed.
Refused temporary residence applications have no appeal. The route is to ask the Federal Court for leave for judicial review: within 15 days for a decision made in Canada, or 60 days for one made outside Canada. A refused citizenship application has 30 days.
If you apply to extend your status before it expires, you can stay in Canada until IRCC decides, and a worker who stays and keeps to the old permit's conditions can keep working. An online application must be in before midnight UTC on the expiry day. Temporary resident permit holders do not get this protection.
The sponsor must be at least 18, a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or registered Indian, and living in Canada. A citizen living abroad can sponsor if they will live in Canada once the partner becomes a permanent resident, but a permanent resident abroad cannot. They promise to repay any social assistance the partner receives for three years after the partner becomes a permanent resident. In most cases there is no income requirement.
IRCC has paused the Parent and Grandparent Program, closed its home caregiver pilots to new permanent residence applications, closed the Start-up Visa Program to new applications (the last ones, limited to holders of a 2025 commitment certificate, were due by 30 June 2026), and stopped taking Self-Employed Persons applications on 30 April 2024. Files already in process are still being decided.
The Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program now runs a single Ontario Workforce Priority stream, after its earlier streams closed under amendments in force on 25 June 2026. Ontario nominates; the federal government makes the final permanent residence decision.
Sources, checked 3 October 2026
Looking for help with one of the services below? Our pre-qualified lawyers can help. Not sure where your problem fits? Tell us what happened and Olanur's AI will figure it out and match you with the right lawyer.
Help with a Canadian visitor visa application, from preparing documents to showing the officer you will leave Canada at the end of your visit.
Support for business visitors and short-term workers who may qualify to enter Canada without a standard work permit.
Assistance with a Canadian study permit application for international students, including proof of funds and the explanation that shows the officer you meet the requirements.
Help applying for a PGWP after completing an eligible Canadian study program, including a review of your status and timing.
Support for Canadian employers who need an LMIA to hire a foreign worker, including the recruitment evidence officers expect to see.
Help for eligible employers using the Global Talent Stream to hire specialized or in-demand foreign talent, including the Labour Market Benefits Plan the stream requires.
Assistance with a CUSMA professional work permit for US and Mexican citizens in a listed profession who have pre-arranged work with a Canadian employer or client.
Preparation of a BOWP application so an eligible worker can keep working in Canada while an economic permanent residence application, such as Express Entry or a provincial nomination, is processed.
Help with a super visa application so parents or grandparents of Canadian citizens, permanent residents or registered Indians can visit for up to five years at a time.
Preparation of your Express Entry profile and permanent residence application under the Federal Skilled Worker Program, Canadian Experience Class or Federal Skilled Trades Program.
Help with a provincial nomination, including Ontario's new Ontario Workforce Priority stream, and the federal permanent residence application that follows.
Help for Start-up Visa applicants with files already in process, including work permit extensions. The program is closed to new applications.
Help with a pending federal self-employed permanent residence application. IRCC stopped accepting new applications on 30 April 2024.
Preparation of a Québec Investor Program application, which requires a net worth of at least $2,000,000, two years of management experience and spoken French, with the investment made through an approved financial intermediary. If you pay someone to help with the Québec selection step, they must be a Québec lawyer, a Québec notary or a Québec-registered immigration consultant.
Help for caregivers with a permanent residence application already in process, and advice on temporary work as a home care worker. IRCC's caregiver pilots are currently closed to new applications.
Preparation of an outside-Canada sponsorship application so your spouse or common-law partner can become a permanent resident.
Preparation of an in-Canada spousal or common-law sponsorship application, plus the optional open work permit the sponsored partner can apply for once IRCC confirms the file is complete.
Help with a Parent and Grandparent Program sponsorship already in process, or a super visa as the alternative while IRCC has the program paused.
Preparation of a family-class sponsorship application for a dependent child or another eligible relative.
Representation before the Immigration Appeal Division when a family-class permanent resident visa is refused. The appeal must usually be filed within 30 days of receiving the decision.
Preparation of the forms and documents needed to add a spouse or common-law partner to a pending permanent residence application.
Preparation of the forms and documents needed to add a dependent child as an accompanying family member on a PR application.
Preparation of a Permanent Resident card renewal, including the residency obligation evidence that renewals are checked against.
Preparation of a citizenship application for permanent residents who meet the 1,095-day physical presence rule, have filed any required taxes and, if aged 18 to 54, meet the language and knowledge requirements.
Help responding to an IRCC Residence Questionnaire when your physical presence or travel history needs more proof.
Preparation of an application for a citizenship certificate, the usual proof of Canadian citizenship for people born outside Canada, including those affected by the 2025 citizenship-by-descent changes.
Preparation of a TRP application for people who are inadmissible to Canada or do not meet its entry requirements but have a compelling reason to enter or stay.
Representation for refugee claims, humanitarian and compassionate applications, and Pre-Removal Risk Assessments where hardship or risk is at stake.
A lawyer reads your refusal letter, whether it was a visitor visa, study permit, work permit, sponsorship or PR application, and tells you what went wrong and whether to reapply or challenge the decision.
Review of your officer decision note or your full GCMS notes from an access request, to find out what the officer actually thought: credibility doubts, missing evidence, or the real reason behind a refusal or delay.
An assessment of whether a refusal or other immigration decision can be challenged in Federal Court, with straight answers on deadlines, odds and cost, including the 15-day deadline for decisions made in Canada.
Your application has been stuck for far too long. A lawyer reviews the delay and tells you whether a demand letter or a Federal Court mandamus application is worth pursuing.
A legal opinion on criminal, medical, misrepresentation or financial inadmissibility concerns before you apply or travel to Canada, so a fixable problem does not become a refusal on your record.
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You can apply yourself. IRCC says you do not need a representative and treats everyone equally, and all its forms are free. If you do pay someone for a federal application, they must be a lawyer or paralegal licensed by a Canadian law society, a Québec notary, or a member of the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. A lawyer adds the most value when your case has a weak spot, such as a past refusal, an inadmissibility concern or a hard choice between pathways. Olanur lets you talk to a matched immigration lawyer before deciding.
Government fees on IRCC's list, updated 21 September 2026, include $1,260 to sponsor a spouse or partner (including the right of permanent residence fee), $1,590 for an economic permanent residence application such as Express Entry, $155 for a work permit, $150 for a study permit, $100 for a visitor visa and $653 for adult citizenship, plus $85 per person for biometrics where required. Each lawyer on Olanur sets their own fees, and you see consultation pricing on their profile before you book.
You must be at least 18, a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or registered Indian, and living in Canada (a citizen abroad can sponsor if they will live in Canada once the partner becomes a permanent resident), and you sign an undertaking to support your partner for three years after they become a permanent resident. In most cases there is no income test. The fee is $1,260. A partner applying from inside Canada can apply for an open work permit once IRCC confirms the file is complete. If you live in Québec, you also sign an undertaking with the Québec government.
Yes, if you applied before your permit expired and you stay in Canada and keep to the old permit's conditions. If you apply online, IRCC must receive it before midnight UTC on the day your permit expires, and IRCC suggests applying at least 30 days before. Processing times change constantly, so check IRCC's own processing times page rather than relying on a published figure.
Read the officer's decision note that now comes with most refusals. You can usually apply again at any time, but IRCC says to do so only if you can add information you did not include before. There is no appeal for temporary residence refusals; the legal route is an application for leave and judicial review in the Federal Court, within 15 days for a decision made in Canada or 60 days for one made outside. A misrepresentation finding carries a five-year bar.
It lets parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens, permanent residents or registered Indians visit for up to five years at a time, with multiple entries over up to 10 years. The applicant needs private health insurance valid for at least a year from entry, and the child or grandchild must meet a minimum income. The government fee is $100 per person, plus $85 for biometrics where required.
Yes. Describing your situation and getting matched with verified immigration lawyers is completely free. You only pay if you choose to book a consultation or retain a lawyer, at the rates they publish.
Written by our editorial team and grounded in Canadian law, so you can walk into any conversation prepared.
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Immigration Law