closed citizenship application

[gowra]

Hi,
I completed my undergraduate studies in Canada,and doing my medical degree outside Canada.I had applied for the citizenship before I left.Unfortunately,early this year,they closed my application,stating they did not receive the documents they had requested.But,I did not receive any query by mail.I explained the situation to them and sent to CIC to reopen my file,in May.Till date,my status shows PR active,and they have not opened the citizenship application.My PR is coming for renewal,end of this year.I still have another year of medical school.How can I reopen my citizenship application,before my PR renewal comes up?
If I do not renew the PR,how can I enter the country?[My country of oigin is not visa-exempt country]
Kind Regards

 

[scylla]

Assuming you still meet the PR residency obligation (living in Canada for 2 out of every 5 rolling years) then you can apply for a travel document once you are ready to return to Canada.

It's up to CIC whether they re-open your citizenship application or not. If you no longer meet the PR residency requirement then your citizenship application is dead in the water anyway.

 

[screech339]

Sorry to hear that it didn't turn out the way you expected. I was under the assumption that CIC encourages you to remain in Canada while you are awaiting for citizenship process. While a PR can leave after submitting the application, they run the risk of missing CiC requests and/or deadlines. The longer they stay out of Canada the higher the risk. The risk is even higher if CiC mailed the requests instead of emailing the requests. I may think that is why CIC mail the request instead of through email. This is one of the tools they use to ensure that you are in Canada.

As for the PR renewal, you can apply for a PR Travel Document if your PR card expires while you are still outside Canada attending medical school, so long as you meet the PR RO. Once you are back in Canada, you can then apply for a new PR card.

My advice is to reapply for Canadian citizenship once you settle back in Canada after you finished your medical school.

Once the citizenship application is closed, it is very difficult to get it reopened especially if you are still currently outside Canada. CIC could argue to say that if you had stayed in Canada, you would have gotten the request.

To argue that you haven't gotten the request because you left Canada for medical school is not a good enough reason for them to reopen it especially when CIC probably tried to contact you by mail twice before officially closing the file. The "second chance" allows applicant to respond in case they missed the 1st request while they were away on vacation for 2-3 weeks.

Screech339