OpenVisaIMM 1344: mailing address vs residential address, and what if they differ?
Two address fields, two different questions.
On the Application to Sponsor, Sponsorship Agreement and Undertaking (IMM 1344), residential means where the sponsor lives now and mailing means where mail reliably reaches them. The two can be different addresses.
1. Which address is which?
- Residential address: where the sponsor actually lives now. For a student, that's the rental near school, not the family home, even if the driver's licence still shows the family home.
- Mailing address: where IRCC should send paper. The mailing address is wherever mail reliably reaches you, and it can differ from where you live.
We'll send time-sensitive and official correspondence using the most up-to-date contact information we have.
If the applicant lives outside Canada and gives the sponsor's Canadian address as their mailing address on IMM 0008, Guide 5289 says the applicant must also complete a Use of Representative form (IMM 5476) naming the sponsor.
2. Does the licence address matter?
Not for the form; it asks where you live, not what your licence says. If the two differ, a short letter of explanation can say why ("I live in Victoria for school; my licence shows my family's address in Penticton, where I visit on breaks"). Both addresses being in the same province means nothing changes for the sponsorship; if one is in Quebec, see the Quebec page.
3. How are addresses written?
Addresses should be written out in full without using any abbreviations. Use the apartment or unit number, if applicable.
4. What if we move after submitting?
Update the address through the IRCC web form, with the application number (how). A move within Canada doesn't affect eligibility unless it's into or out of Quebec. A permanent-resident sponsor moving abroad affects it, and so does a move that means you no longer live together during an inland application.
5. On the form
IMM 1344 has separate fields for the two addresses. The sponsor doesn't complete Schedule A. IMM 5532 asks the sponsor about their own background in its sponsor section. Answer what it asks, with dates that agree with IMM 1344. In OpenVisa the guide beside each address question explains the difference, and the address you enter once is used on every form that asks for it.
OpenVisa is software, not a lawyer or RCIC. This page explains what the rules and forms say; it is not advice about your case. You submit your application yourself.