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Prysus

Newbie
Jul 9, 2025
3
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My situation is somewhat complex but any advice on the matter is welcome. I would like your opinion on which option to choose from (which is most likely to be successful or get a positive decision) between appealing a denied Pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) in federal court or applying for permanent residence under humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds.

I arrived in Manitoba Canada in August of 2019 and entered legally for studies at a designated learning institution. Since then I have been on a study permit until June 20, 2024 when I lost my status as an international student due to my study permit expiring. This only happened because my passport expired on the same date and it is not possible for a study permit to be renewed or be valid beyond the expiry date of the passport. You may be thinking that it was my fault for not renewing my passport earlier and then my study permit but I had started the passport renewal process in July of 2023 but thanks to passport renewal delays from my country’s embassy I still do not have the passport even until now as I type this.

Without a valid passport to renew my study permit and continue with school, I was out of status and summoned by the IRCC for an interview where I was served an exclusion order. The agent that served the exclusion order was sympathetic to my case because I did everything that I was supposed to and yet, I ended up unlucky. He advised me to apply for the pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) and did inform me that the chances of a positive decision were low for the PRRA (about 5% chance he said). As a bisexual individual from a country where same-sex relationships are illegal federally and punishable by prison time and even the death penalty, I believed this meant that I was at risk if removed from Canada and would receive a positive decision on my PRRA but I was wrong. I do not even have a bank account in my country and the only parent that I may be able to rely on in the case that I am removed from Canada is hardcore religious and homophobic but still in the dark on my sexuality. Should that change, I believe my life would be in danger.

I received a negative PRRA decision last week and now I am in the process of starting the appeal on that decision in federal court. Should my appeal be approved by the court, my PRRA would be reviewed by a different agent but given how the first one I did returned with a negative decision, I am afraid that this appeal will be refused by the court. Even if it was approved, it would mean restarting the PRRA process and given the slim chance of success it feels futile to have to go through with a PRRA again especially since the stay on my removal has been cancelled and the IRCC is now proactively trying to help me get my passport in order to proceed with my removal from the country.

In conclusion, I would appreciate any advice on whether or not I should proceed with appealing the PRRA in federal court or try for permanent residence through the humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds application since the criteria for approval on that goes beyond just assessing the potential risk. I am also hoping that someone previously in a similar situation who successfully regained their status can tell me how they went about it as well.
 
My situation is somewhat complex but any advice on the matter is welcome. I would like your opinion on which option to choose from (which is most likely to be successful or get a positive decision) between appealing a denied Pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) in federal court or applying for permanent residence under humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds.

I arrived in Manitoba Canada in August of 2019 and entered legally for studies at a designated learning institution. Since then I have been on a study permit until June 20, 2024 when I lost my status as an international student due to my study permit expiring. This only happened because my passport expired on the same date and it is not possible for a study permit to be renewed or be valid beyond the expiry date of the passport. You may be thinking that it was my fault for not renewing my passport earlier and then my study permit but I had started the passport renewal process in July of 2023 but thanks to passport renewal delays from my country’s embassy I still do not have the passport even until now as I type this.

Without a valid passport to renew my study permit and continue with school, I was out of status and summoned by the IRCC for an interview where I was served an exclusion order. The agent that served the exclusion order was sympathetic to my case because I did everything that I was supposed to and yet, I ended up unlucky. He advised me to apply for the pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) and did inform me that the chances of a positive decision were low for the PRRA (about 5% chance he said). As a bisexual individual from a country where same-sex relationships are illegal federally and punishable by prison time and even the death penalty, I believed this meant that I was at risk if removed from Canada and would receive a positive decision on my PRRA but I was wrong. I do not even have a bank account in my country and the only parent that I may be able to rely on in the case that I am removed from Canada is hardcore religious and homophobic but still in the dark on my sexuality. Should that change, I believe my life would be in danger.

I received a negative PRRA decision last week and now I am in the process of starting the appeal on that decision in federal court. Should my appeal be approved by the court, my PRRA would be reviewed by a different agent but given how the first one I did returned with a negative decision, I am afraid that this appeal will be refused by the court. Even if it was approved, it would mean restarting the PRRA process and given the slim chance of success it feels futile to have to go through with a PRRA again especially since the stay on my removal has been cancelled and the IRCC is now proactively trying to help me get my passport in order to proceed with my removal from the country.

In conclusion, I would appreciate any advice on whether or not I should proceed with appealing the PRRA in federal court or try for permanent residence through the humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds application since the criteria for approval on that goes beyond just assessing the potential risk. I am also hoping that someone previously in a similar situation who successfully regained their status can tell me how they went about it as well.

Submitting an H&C application doesn't stop removal. I think either way you would want to appeal the PRRA refusal. But it would really be best to speak with a good immigration lawyer at this point.
 
Submitting an H&C application doesn't stop removal. I think either way you would want to appeal the PRRA refusal. But it would really be best to speak with a good immigration lawyer at this point.
Thanks for the input. Sadly I cannot afford a lawyer since I have been unable to work for the nearly a year now.
 
My situation is somewhat complex but any advice on the matter is welcome. I would like your opinion on which option to choose from (which is most likely to be successful or get a positive decision) between appealing a denied Pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) in federal court or applying for permanent residence under humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds.

I arrived in Manitoba Canada in August of 2019 and entered legally for studies at a designated learning institution. Since then I have been on a study permit until June 20, 2024 when I lost my status as an international student due to my study permit expiring. This only happened because my passport expired on the same date and it is not possible for a study permit to be renewed or be valid beyond the expiry date of the passport. You may be thinking that it was my fault for not renewing my passport earlier and then my study permit but I had started the passport renewal process in July of 2023 but thanks to passport renewal delays from my country’s embassy I still do not have the passport even until now as I type this.

Without a valid passport to renew my study permit and continue with school, I was out of status and summoned by the IRCC for an interview where I was served an exclusion order. The agent that served the exclusion order was sympathetic to my case because I did everything that I was supposed to and yet, I ended up unlucky. He advised me to apply for the pre-removal risk assessment (PRRA) and did inform me that the chances of a positive decision were low for the PRRA (about 5% chance he said). As a bisexual individual from a country where same-sex relationships are illegal federally and punishable by prison time and even the death penalty, I believed this meant that I was at risk if removed from Canada and would receive a positive decision on my PRRA but I was wrong. I do not even have a bank account in my country and the only parent that I may be able to rely on in the case that I am removed from Canada is hardcore religious and homophobic but still in the dark on my sexuality. Should that change, I believe my life would be in danger.

I received a negative PRRA decision last week and now I am in the process of starting the appeal on that decision in federal court. Should my appeal be approved by the court, my PRRA would be reviewed by a different agent but given how the first one I did returned with a negative decision, I am afraid that this appeal will be refused by the court. Even if it was approved, it would mean restarting the PRRA process and given the slim chance of success it feels futile to have to go through with a PRRA again especially since the stay on my removal has been cancelled and the IRCC is now proactively trying to help me get my passport in order to proceed with my removal from the country.

In conclusion, I would appreciate any advice on whether or not I should proceed with appealing the PRRA in federal court or try for permanent residence through the humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) grounds application since the criteria for approval on that goes beyond just assessing the potential risk. I am also hoping that someone previously in a similar situation who successfully regained their status can tell me how they went about it as well.
I am not sure why you wait until last minute to face this situation. Since you would face persecution in your country, why you did not file refugee claim before expiry of your study permit. PRRA is not at all equivalent to refugee process and chances of successful PRRA are quite low. Now you have removal order, you are no longer eligible to submit refugee claim. H and C will not assess risk related to persecution and my understanding is you do not have family and children here, so odds of approval are already low. I suggest you to consult lawyer as soon as possible.
 
I am not sure why you wait until last minute to face this situation. Since you would face persecution in your country, why you did not file refugee claim before expiry of your study permit. PRRA is not at all equivalent to refugee process and chances of successful PRRA are quite low. Now you have removal order, you are no longer eligible to submit refugee claim. H and C will not assess risk related to persecution and my understanding is you do not have family and children here, so odds of approval are already low. I suggest you to consult lawyer as soon as possible.
I was in school back then. The plan was to graduate first since a degree would create more options but the situation with the passport ruined everything. It was not supposed to take more than two months to renew yet I still do not have it. Thanks for weighing in. Do you know of any pro bono lawyers, consultants or advocates that can help?
 
I was in school back then. The plan was to graduate first since a degree would create more options but the situation with the passport ruined everything. It was not supposed to take more than two months to renew yet I still do not have it. Thanks for weighing in. Do you know of any pro bono lawyers, consultants or advocates that can help?
You can look for legal aid in your neighborhood and see if they are able to assist.
 
I am not sure why you wait until last minute to face this situation. Since you would face persecution in your country, why you did not file refugee claim before expiry of your study permit. PRRA is not at all equivalent to refugee process and chances of successful PRRA are quite low. Now you have removal order, you are no longer eligible to submit refugee claim. H and C will not assess risk related to persecution and my understanding is you do not have family and children here, so odds of approval are already low. I suggest you to consult lawyer as soon as possible.

How long do you actually study full-time? It appears as though you had 4-5 years of being on a study permit. Did you graduate? Were you compliant with the terms of your study permit the whole time?