People budget for the government fee and are surprised by everything around it. The government fee is often not the largest line.
Exact amounts change, so this guide gives you the shape of the spend rather than a total that would be wrong within months. Get current figures from IRCC and from each provider before you plan around them.
What you will actually pay for
Language test. IELTS or CELPIP for English, TEF or TCF for French. A few hundred dollars, and results expire — commonly after two years. If your process runs long, you may sit it again.
Educational credential assessment. Required when your qualifications are from outside Canada. A few hundred dollars, plus courier costs for documents, plus fees your original institution may charge to send transcripts. It takes weeks to months, so start it early.
Provincial application. Some programs charge to apply, some do not. Check the province's own page.
Federal application fees. The principal applicant fee, plus a fee per accompanying family member, plus the Right of Permanent Residence Fee. This is where the sum gets meaningful for a family.
Biometrics. Per person, with a cap for families.
Medical examination. Only through an IRCC-approved panel physician, paid directly to them, per person. Not covered by provincial health insurance.
Police certificates. From every country you have lived in for six months or more since eighteen. Each has its own fee, process and speed — and some are slow enough to hold up everything else.
Translations. Certified translation of any document not in English or French, priced per page.
The costs nobody lists
Second attempts. Language scores that miss a band, documents rejected on a technicality. Budget as though one thing will need doing twice, because for most people something does.
Expiry. A language test or police certificate that lapses mid-process must be redone at full price. This is the most common repeat cost and it is entirely a function of how long the process takes.
Professional help. An RCIC or immigration lawyer is optional and can be worth it for a complicated case. If you use one, it is frequently the single largest line item. Verify any consultant is licensed with the CICC — the college publishes a public register.
Time off work for biometrics, medicals and appointments, which is a real cost if you are paid hourly.
Assume the whole sequence takes longer than advertised and costs more than the sum of the published fees. Both are true far more often than not.
How to hold the money
Save for it separately from your emergency fund. Raiding your buffer to pay an application fee leaves you exposed at the exact moment your status is in motion — see the emergency fund guide.
Hold it in Canadian dollars if the fees are Canadian. Currency movement between now and payment is a risk you gain nothing by taking.
Start early, in small amounts. The fees arrive in a sequence over a year or more, not all at once, which is genuinely helpful — it means a modest monthly amount can cover the whole process if you begin before the process does.