Am I allowed to stay here while waiting for an answer from the goverment?

[cakeantidote]

I got married last December. My wife is Canadian. And we applied for spouse sponsorship (permanent residency, open work permit). We got the response from Quebec goverment that the sponsorship is accepted recently, we are still waiting to hear from Canadian goverment.

I entered Canada last November, and it's been more than 6 months since I entered. Am I allowed to stay here in Canada since it's passed 6 months and since I am waiting for an answer from the goverment? Or should I apply for an extension (even though it has passed 6 months)? We talked to a lawyers office before we applied for sponsorship and they said it is ok to stay since I am waiting for an answer from the goverment. But today I talked to them again over the phone and they didn't give a clear answer about my situation. So I am not sure if I am allowed to stay or not. I don't want to stay, if it is illegal, I want to do the right thing. Also we applied to sponsorship saying I am in Canada. So I am guessing I am allowed to wait here in Canada? I am lost...

Also we want to visit my home country for couple of weeks in October with my wife. But I am not sure if I am allowed to leave the country while waiting for an answer from the goverment. And I am not sure if I will be allowed to enter when I am back since I've already passed 6 months stay after my last entry.

If anyone can share their experiences, I'd be so happy! Thank you so much!

 

[scylla]

I got married last December. My wife is Canadian. And we applied for spouse sponsorship (permanent residency, open work permit). We got the response from Quebec goverment that the sponsorship is accepted recently, we are still waiting to hear from Canadian goverment.

I entered Canada last November, and it's been more than 6 months since I entered. Am I allowed to stay here in Canada since it's passed 6 months and since I am waiting for an answer from the goverment? Or should I apply for an extension (even though it has passed 6 months)? We talked to a lawyers office before we applied for sponsorship and they said it is ok to stay since I am waiting for an answer from the goverment. But today I talked to them again over the phone and they didn't give a clear answer about my situation. So I am not sure if I am allowed to stay or not. I don't want to stay, if it is illegal, I want to do the right thing. Also we applied to sponsorship saying I am in Canada. So I am guessing I am allowed to wait here in Canada? I am lost...

Also we want to visit my home country for couple of weeks in October with my wife. But I am not sure if I am allowed to leave the country while waiting for an answer from the goverment. And I am not sure if I will be allowed to enter when I am back since I've already passed 6 months stay after my last entry.

If anyone can share their experiences, I'd be so happy! Thank you so much!

Assuming you submitted your PR application and open work permit before you had been in Canada for six months, you have implied status and can remain in Canada legally until a decision is made in your application.

There's always some risk in leaving Canada during an inland application. There's never a guarantee you will be allowed back in. Ideally it would be a good idea to hold off making the trip outside of Canada until after you have PR.