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How to apply, processing time, if you're outside of Canada...

Traveling abroad for few days 

wiking1018
wiking1018
Posts: 2


Posted On: 4/19/2017
wiking1018
wiking1018
Posts: 2
Hi,

I stayed out of Canada for 1085 days out of 1095 days.

My PR card expires on June 10th

also I sent a PR card renewal application form and its subject to secondary review.

so can i travel 10 days abroad without any problem before PR card expires?

Please Reply Urgent!

Thanks
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Moderator
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 4075


Posted On: 4/20/2017
Moderator
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 4075
Hello,

Thank you for sharing your situation and question with us.

You mentioned that you have stayed outside Canada for 1085 days out of 1095 days.


If you are concerned about whether or not you have met your residency requirements, according to the Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) (formerly CIC) you must live in Canada for "at least 2 years in a 5 year period" to maintain your status:
When you are a permanent resident, you can live outside of Canada, but must live in Canada for at least two years in a five-year period. If you live outside of Canada for longer, you may lose your permanent resident status.

For more information on how long you have to live in Canada, see Appendix A: Residency obligation of the PR card application package.


You may find our article What are the residency requirements for permanent residents (PRs)? for some additional information. Here is an excerpt:

To meet these residency obligations, you must be physically present in Canada for at least 730 days (2 years) in every 5-year period.

This means that you can spend a total of up to 3 years outside of Canada during a 5-year period.

However, if you leave the country for an extended period of time, it is up to you to prove to Citizenship and Immigration Canada that you will be able to meet your residency requirements.[...]If you know that you will be out of the country for an extended period of time it is very important that you contact Citizenship and Immigration Canada and let them know that you will be returning. Citizenship and Immigration Canada no longer issues Returning Resident Permits.


We have previously received some information from one of our legal researchers related to being in Canada after not meeting the residency requirements.

According to their research, the five-year time frame set out in the Refugee and Immigrant Protection Act is not static. Rather it is a moveable window that is dependent on the time at which a visa officer examines your situation. Therefore, if you cannot fulfill the two-year (730 day) requirement for the five-year time frame starting from when you became a permanent resident, you should remain in Canada until you can satisfy the requirement for another five-year time frame.

The IRCC’s Permanent Residency Status Determination Manual states:

For persons who have been permanent residents of Canada for more than five years, the only five-year period that can be considered in calculating whether an applicant has met the residency obligation is the one immediately before the application is received in the visa office. A28(2)(b)(ii) precludes a visa officer from examining any period other than the most recent five-year period immediately before the date of receipt of the application.


Since the officer cannot choose any five-year time period for consideration, but must always assess the most recent five-year time period (the one immediately preceding examination), you may still have the opportunity to satisfy the two-year “in Canada” requirement.

As you already know, the PR card is required to re-enter Canada. It is important to note that the PR card's expiry date has no correlation between whether or not you have met the residency requirements.

You may want to contact the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) Call Centre for some information specific to your situation.

It is important to note that you do not have to provide personally identifying information in order to ask a question.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let us know if you have further questions and if there is any follow up to your question/situation.

=====
Anna
Settlement.Org Content and Information/Referral Specialist, CIRS
Settlement.Org
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sense61
sense61
Posts: 2


Posted On: 5/4/2017
sense61
sense61
Posts: 2
I have the same question. Could we travel abroad for work before the pr expiration date. While waiting the renewal application (not recieved the renewal yet)
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