Entering Canada with expired PR card

[Emjourdan]

I’m an American living in Canada as a permanent resident. My card is expired and have applied for a new one, but it probably won’t come for another month. I am hoping to drive to the states for a friends birthday next week and I’m wondering if I will be able to get back into Canada with an expired PR card? Will the just treat me like any other American who can be turned away if there’s a reason? Or is it a red flag?

I’ve read I can get a permanent resident travel document once I’m outside Canada but it’s not clear to me if I have to do this in person at the consulate. I don’t mind paying the $50 but I don’t want to have drive to NY or something.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Bs65]

I’m an American living in Canada as a permanent resident. My card is expired and have applied for a new one, but it probably won’t come for another month. I am hoping to drive to the states for a friends birthday next week and I’m wondering if I will be able to get back into Canada with an expired PR card? Will the just treat me like any other American who can be turned away if there’s a reason? Or is it a red flag?

I’ve read I can get a permanent resident travel document once I’m outside Canada but it’s not clear to me if I have to do this in person at the consulate. I don’t mind paying the $50 but I don’t want to have drive to NY or something.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

You only really need a valid PR card or PRTD if you were planning to fly back into Canada, driving back should be no problem at all. Although CBSA might groan a bit when you show them your expired card and that you have not applied to renew your card, as a PR you are entitled to enter the country whether your card has expired or not.

 

[Emjourdan]

Thanks, that’s kind of what I figured but I wanted to hear it from someone with some experience. I’ve already applied for a new one so at least I can tell them that when they give me trouble, lol.

 

[Rob_TO]

I’m an American living in Canada as a permanent resident. My card is expired and have applied for a new one, but it probably won’t come for another month. I am hoping to drive to the states for a friends birthday next week and I’m wondering if I will be able to get back into Canada with an expired PR card? Will the just treat me like any other American who can be turned away if there’s a reason? Or is it a red flag?

I’ve read I can get a permanent resident travel document once I’m outside Canada but it’s not clear to me if I have to do this in person at the consulate. I don’t mind paying the $50 but I don’t want to have drive to NY or something.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

As a US passport holder, you can easily drive or fly back to Canada with just your US passport. You don't need a valid PR card.

Once you get to the border (at land or airport), simply show your expired PR card and that you've applied for renewal, and you will be let in with no problems.

 

[californiakiwi]

Thanks, that’s kind of what I figured but I wanted to hear it from someone with some experience. I’ve already applied for a new one so at least I can tell them that when they give me trouble, lol.

Hi Emjourdan, were you able to go on your trip and come back without any issues? I'm currently in the same boat, sent in my application to renew the PR card back in January and still haven't gotten it yet... my road trip to the states is in 11 days and I don't think I will get the card in time. Just wondering if it's actually possible to get back in with the expired card and proof the application is being processed. I'm kind of scared to leave the country not knowing if I'll be allowed back in

 

[Emjourdan]

Yep. No trouble at all. I didn't think to have save any proof that I applied, all I had was an email confirmation that said I had paid the fees. At the border (driving through up state New York), the officer said something like "your PR card is expired, what's up with that?" I explained it briefly and he sent me through.

Have you gotten a confirmation that your application was received? I sent mine in in February and got an email saying it was received about a two weeks ago. I kind of thought that that meant I would get my card soon, but if you haven't gotten yours yet I may have some waiting to do...

 

[californiakiwi]

Yep. No trouble at all. I didn't think to have save any proof that I applied, all I had was an email confirmation that said I had paid the fees. At the border (driving through up state New York), the officer said something like "your PR card is expired, what's up with that?" I explained it briefly and he sent me through.

Have you gotten a confirmation that your application was received? I sent mine in in February and got an email saying it was received about a two weeks ago. I kind of thought that that meant I would get my card soon, but if you haven't gotten yours yet I may have some waiting to do...

Thank you so much for your reply, you have no idea how helpful that is for me! I've been stressing about it for weeks, I haven't seen my family in a few years and everyone (myself included) has really been looking forward to this trip and I'd hate to have to cancel.

I got a notice in the mail saying that my application had been received on January 26th and had begun processing on April 12th. I checked the status of my application on the website and it says "decision made" but it doesn't say when that status was updated so I'm not really sure what's going on. I even emailed them to ask for clarification but all they could tell me was that it was currently being processed and could take up to 99 days to be finalized (not sure if it's 99 days from the date the application was received, or from the date they started processing...). I did NOT think it was going to take this long!

I hope yours comes in soon, but I'm also glad you didn't have any issues getting back into Canada!