The Right of Gradually Permanent Residence Fee: The One Express Entry Fee You Can Legally Delay

Did you know that one specific Express Entry fee can legally be paid after your application is already under way, refunded if things don’t work out, and even covered by a government loan in some cases? None of the other fees on IRCC’s list behave that way. The right of permanent residence fee Express Entry highlights below cover exactly why this one charge is structured so differently from everything else you’ll pay.

What it is

• Officially called the Right of Permanent Residence Fee, usually shortened to RPRF.
• Set at $600.00 per adult applicant, at rates published as at 2 August 2026.
• Charged separately from the $990.00 processing fee — together they make up the $1,590.00 figure quoted for a principal applicant or spouse under Express Entry.

When it’s actually due

• Technically payable when your application is approved, before you become a permanent resident — not when you first submit your application.
• Can be paid upfront, bundled with the processing fee at the time you apply, specifically to avoid a delay later in the process. Most applicants choose this option, which is why the two amounts are usually quoted together as a single $1,590.00 figure.
• Paying it early is a choice, not a requirement — it’s the one fee on the entire IRCC schedule genuinely designed to be settled either now or later, at the applicant’s discretion. That answers can you pay the RPRF later than the application fee: yes, and doing so is built into how the fee is structured, not a workaround or a loophole.

Why it’s refundable when almost nothing else is

• IRCC describes the RPRF as the only fee it can refund after processing has already started on your application.
• If you withdraw your application, or it’s refused, the RPRF portion comes back to you — the processing fee itself does not.

Who doesn’t have to pay it at all

• Dependent children of a principal applicant or sponsor are exempt from the RPRF entirely — only the $270.00 per-child processing fee applies to them.
• Sponsorship of adopted children, and sponsorship of an orphaned brother, sister, niece, nephew or grandchild, are both exempt.
• Protected persons are exempt too, including applicants eligible on humanitarian and compassionate grounds and Convention refugees.

The loan option

• An RPRF loan is available for applicants who qualify, separate from the refund mechanism above.
• This is a distinct government facility, not the same thing as simply delaying payment until approval.

Why this matters for your own budgeting

Because the RPRF can legally be deferred, refunded, or loaned, it behaves less like a fixed sunk cost and more like a conditional one — worth factoring into your cash-flow planning differently from the non-refundable processing fee sitting alongside it. Whether deferring or borrowing against it makes sense for your own household’s finances is a question for a financial adviser familiar with your situation, and any question about your specific exemption status is one for a licensed RCIC or immigration lawyer.

Cape2Canada’s fee guides break down each IRCC charge individually, so you can see which ones behave like the RPRF and which don’t.