Permanent Residency Obligations?

[AndrewInUK]

Hi,
I'm Canadian, my wife is British. We're both living in the UK, and want to emigrate to Canada.
We've finally got our PR, so we'd like to just do it - move on over to Canada.
But we've had our house up for sale since last August and have only had 3 viewers.
What happens if we don't sell the house?
I know we have to 'land' in Canada before the medical expires, in order to validate the PR visa. But if we haven't sold the house by then, can we just land, and then get on the next flight back? How long can we be away from Canada (after landing) before the visa expires?

I've looked on these forums and the CIC website but I cannot find any info on this.

Let's say it takes another year before we actually move over.  Do we have to spend a certain amount of time in Canada to keep everything valid? Or do we have to start over?

I guess it boils down to a simple question:
Once landed, what are our obligations to keep the PR valid? How long can we stay out of the country, yet still maintain my wife's permanent resident status? And, if we intend to return to the UK after landing, do we have to inform immigration of our plans?

Any links to the appropriate web pages would be very welcome.

Thanks all,
Andrew

[Baloo]

Hi,
I'm Canadian, my wife is British. We're both living in the UK, and want to emigrate to Canada.
We've finally got our PR, so we'd like to just do it - move on over to Canada.
But we've had our house up for sale since last August and have only had 3 viewers.
What happens if we don't sell the house?
I know we have to 'land' in Canada before the medical expires, in order to validate the PR visa. But if we haven't sold the house by then, can we just land, and then get on the next flight back? How long can we be away from Canada (after landing) before the visa expires?

I've looked on these forums and the CIC website but I cannot find any info on this.

Let's say it takes another year before we actually move over.  Do we have to spend a certain amount of time in Canada to keep everything valid? Or do we have to start over?

I guess it boils down to a simple question:
Once landed, what are our obligations to keep the PR valid? How long can we stay out of the country, yet still maintain my wife's permanent resident status? And, if we intend to return to the UK after landing, do we have to inform immigration of our plans?

Any links to the appropriate web pages would be very welcome.

Thanks all,
Andrew

You can leave after you have landed.
To keep your status as a permanent resident, you must live in Canada for at least two years within a five-year period.

Obligations and other info':
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/newcomers/about-pr.asp

[AndrewInUK]

Thanks Baloo,
That's exactly the information I was looking for.

One further question - will immigration be OK if we have a return ticket, and only intend to stay a short time after landing?

Oh - and what about the B4 and the B4A - personal effects and goods to follow? Do we need these to land?

Thanks,
Andrew

[CharlieD10]

Yes, they will be fine.  They don't become concerned until it becomes apparent you may not be able to fulfill your residency obligation.  Yes, you need the B4 and B4A, they will enable your wife to bring in any personal good tax free on first landing or later as the case might be.

[AndrewInUK]

Thanks to you both for your help.

One last question - do I need to travel with my wife when she lands? Do our children? (My children are Canadian by descent and are not 'accompanying').

Thanks!
Andrew

[Kazakhstan]

One last question - do I need to travel with my wife when she lands?

No

Do our children? (My children are Canadian by descent and are not 'accompanying').

No

[AllisonVSC]

I don't know if you are a citizen but I am going to assume you are since you mentioned the kiddos were by descent. The 2 in 5 rule has an exemption if a PR spouse is accompanying (read "residing with") a CAN citizen spouse outside of Canada. So your wife can maintain her PR status while living with you in the UK even if she exceeds the 3 years allowed by the obligation rule.

[Kazakhstan]

A quote from http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/5445ETOC.asp

***

Time spent outside of Canada

You may also count the days spent outside of Canada in the following circumstances as days for which you satisfy the residency obligation:

OPTION 1. Accompanying a Canadian citizen outside Canada

You may count each day that you accompanied a Canadian citizen outside Canada provided that the person you accompanied is your

spouse or common-law partner or
parent, if you are less than 22 years of age
Evidence that you are accompanying a Canadian citizen
You must provide supporting documents to prove that:

The person you are accompanying is a Canadian citizen; and
You are the spouse, common-law partner or child of that person.
Supporting documents may include:

marriage licence
child's birth certificate, baptismal document, and/or adoption or guardianship document
school and/or employment records
association or club memberships
passports or other travel documents
documents indicating the status of the person you are accompanying

***

So, your only worry after your wife lands in Canada and thus obtains her PR status (and a PR card) is to keep some documents you will have to use to prove your co-habitation, which are rather trivial... When the time will come to renew the PR card, you'll need those.