The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops says Indigenous leaders will visit the Vatican between December 17th and 20th.
The bishops say Pope Francis extended the invitation and is deeply committed to hearing directly from Indigenous people.
Manitoba Metis Federation President David Chartrand says he will ask the pope to come to Canada to express his apologies and his sorrow for what took place in residential schools and to begin the healing process.
Chartrand says there will be separate one-hour sessions with Pope Francis for each of the First Nations, Metis and Inuit delegations.
He says despite being too late, the long-awaited apology is still important.
Calls for an apology from the Catholic Church have grown louder since the recent discoveries of hundreds of unmarked graves at former residential school sites in B-C and Saskatchewan.