A Group of Five (G5) is five or more Canadian citizens or permanent residents who have arranged to sponsor a refugee living abroad to come to Canada.
G5s may only sponsor applicants who are recognized as refugees by either the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) or a foreign state. The principal applicant MUST already have refugee status. Having refugee status means that an authorized body has found that an individual meets its refugee definition. This authorized body can either be the UNHCR or the government of the country (i.e. foreign state) where the refugee is now living. You must include the document proving recognized refugee status with the refugee sponsorship application you submit.
Program eligibility
To be eligible, each member of the group must:
Note: You must be referred. You cannot apply directly to Canada to come to the country as a refugee.