Hi everyone,
I received the CIT 0520 form today, almost 3 months after the citizenship test. There are some residency requirements itemd with a box before each sentence. However, only the last box is ticked in black ink for me ( the box saying “other” which is a request to submit a police certificate). I am a bot confused. Should I send them all those items or just the checked box?(the police certificate).
Another quick question: the address they asked to forward the docs to is “Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada ST” Is this address exact?
The CIT 0520 form (sometimes called RQ-lite) requests only those items which are checked. If the box for the "
Other" section is checked, provide anything listed below that. Follow the instructions in the form, including as to the address.
If the only item listed in the Other section is a request for a police certificate, that's what you need to submit, and that is probably good news, suggesting that there are no questions or concerns with your physical presence calculation.
One might be curious why they used the RQ-lite form to make this single, particular document request for something not related to assessing residency/presence, but it's a bureaucracy and bureaucracy is what bureaucracy does, meaning they follow their internal procedures even if that sometimes means putting round pegs in square holes. Or, as it appears here, use the "
other" section of a form to ask for documents other than what the form is specifically for.
For forum information, please identify the date of the form itself. This is part of the form identification in the lower left corner of the document, where it should show "CIT 0520 (mm-yyyy) E" . . . just so the forum is aware of what version of the CIT 0520 is currently in use.
Police Certificates For Citizenship Applicants:
There is no particular criteria identifying which applicants are required to provide a police certificate EXCEPT as part of the requirements for what constitutes a complete application. The underlying material information is whether the applicant has any criminal history constituting a prohibition.
Currently, and this has been for a long while now, the only applicants required to submit a police certificate with the application have been those who checked the box indicating they had been present in another country 183 or more days in a row during the previous four years, as of the date of the application. That item (which has been Question 10.b in the application since at least October 2017) is NOT about the "
eligibility period" but, again, the previous four years.
Otherwise, anytime during the processing of a citizenship application IRCC can request a police certificate from any applicant for any country. This is seen in cases where --
-- the applicant should have included a police certificate with the application, such as
-- -- an applicant who checked "no" in response to Question 10.b) when they should have checked "yes," or
-- -- an applicant who checked "yes" but then stated they were not including a police certificate based on an exception that IRCC determines they were not entitled to
-- applicants spending extended periods of time in another country; typically
-- -- applicants who were not actually physically present in another country 183 days "in a row" but who were residing in another country for more than six consecutive months, or
-- -- applicants who otherwise spent significant periods of time abroad, typically close but not quite meeting the threshold for when a certificate is required to make a complete application
-- IRCC otherwise has reason to question whether the applicant has criminal history in another country potentially constituting a prohibition . . . noting that of course IRCC can also be screening to be sure there have been no criminal charges after the application was made
All that said,
what matters is mostly whether the applicant has any criminal history in another country which constitutes a prohibition, and if not, no problem . . . although I suppose, for some, if there is an impression the applicant was misleading about how much time they were in another country, that could affect the assessment of the applicant's credibility and if negative trigger further scrutiny.
In other words, if there is no criminal history to worry about, this is just a minor bump in the road slowing progress but should not be a problem. Submit certificate as instructed.
Did you spend 183 days in a country other than Canada during the eligibility period? If yes, then you're always required to send a police certificate (other than the confusing 'country of origin' exception).
For clarification, the relevant time period is the four years previous to the date the citizenship application is made, NOT the "
eligibility period."
In particular, for purposes of the requirement to submit a police certificate with the citizenship application, Question 10.b) asks the applicant whether "
In the past four (4) years, were you in a country other than Canada for 183 days or more in a row . . . ?" With some exceptions (not just the country of origin exception), most applicants who check yes need to include a police certificate with their application in order for it to be a complete application.
The four years is based on the period of time for which there are certain prohibitions related to criminal offences. Again, not related to the eligibility period.
Otherwise IRCC can request a police certificate without regard to how long a person was in another country, since the underlying material information is whether the applicant has any criminal history constituting a prohibition.
