The super visa host income requirement: what the letter of invitation has to prove

The host income test lives in the letter of invitation

The income requirement is documented through the letter of invitation the host writes. IRCC states the letter, “written and signed by your host child or grandchild, must include” — among other things — “proof that they meet or exceed the minimum necessary income.” In other words, the host is the one who has to demonstrate income; the visiting parent or grandparent does not.

The letter also has to describe the household it is being measured against. IRCC requires “the list and number of people included when your child or grandchild calculated their family size to determine the minimum necessary income,” and adds that “The letter must also include the name and date of birth of each person.” Family size matters because the income threshold scales with the number of people the host is responsible for.

Who can co-sign

If the host cannot meet the income threshold alone, one specific person may help. IRCC allows that a spouse or common-law partner may co-sign: a co-signer must be “a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada or registered Indian.” The rule is deliberately narrow on who else can step in — IRCC lists “Other family members of your host, such as siblings” as people who cannot co-sign. So a sibling with a high income cannot be added to the calculation; the co-signer route is limited to a spouse or common-law partner.

Where the actual dollar figure comes from

The forms page tells you the test exists and how to document it, but the specific minimum-necessary-income dollar amounts are published separately by IRCC and change over time — they are tied to family size and to the Low Income Cut-Off tables, which are updated periodically. Because those figures are not on the requirements-and-documents page, this explainer does not quote a number: IRCC directs applicants to “Find out how to prove that your host meets the minimum necessary income requirement.” Always read the current threshold from IRCC’s own income page for the year you are applying in, rather than a figure copied from a blog, which may be a year out of date.

How the two tests fit together

For a complete application, the parent or grandparent needs a compliant insurance policy and the host needs to clear the income threshold. Neither substitutes for the other. If you are comparing what still needs to be gathered, treat them as two independent checklists: the insurer and coverage details on the applicant’s side, and the letter of invitation, family-size list, income proof, and any eligible co-signer on the host’s side. Getting both right before submission is what keeps a super visa application from stalling on a documentation gap.