Fulfilling Permanent Resident obligations while being a student

[miyesven]

Hi All,
I've applied for canadian universities for this year september session. However, the admission offers will only come around mid of may 2015, but if I go in may, my PR Card expires next year june, so in total, along with previous stays in canada, I would only have stayed in canada for 1 year 3 months, which is less than the required.

If I bring my valid admission offer letter to a canadian university, will the officers let me in Canada and to stay as a permanent resident student? It's just that I must stay in Canada straight for 2 years plus before applying for PR Renewal right?

This is quite important as I do have thoughts of living in Canada after graduating from a Canadian university, but if I do not stay as a PR student, then the fees will be too expensive and I may be forced to return to my home country to study.

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated thanks!

 

[dpenabill]

Hi All,
I've applied for canadian universities for this year september session. However, the admission offers will only come around mid of may 2015, but if I go in may, my PR Card expires next year june, so in total, along with previous stays in canada, I would only have stayed in canada for 1 year 3 months, which is less than the required.

If I bring my valid admission offer letter to a canadian university, will the officers let me in Canada and to stay as a permanent resident student? It's just that I must stay in Canada straight for 2 years plus before applying for PR Renewal right?

This is quite important as I do have thoughts of living in Canada after graduating from a Canadian university, but if I do not stay as a PR student, then the fees will be too expensive and I may be forced to return to my home country to study.

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated thanks!

The school aspect of this is largely only relevant to what your plans are and why.

If you do not return to Canada before the expiration date of your PR card, and you have been outside Canada for more than 1095 days in the preceding five years when you apply for a PR Travel Document or otherwise attempt to enter Canada at a POE (if for example you travel to Canada using a visa-exempt passport), odds are quite high you will face the loss of PR status (denied PR Travel Document, or issued Removal Order at the POE). Reason: inadmissibility due to failure to comply with the PR Residency Obligation.

If you return to Canada while your PR card is still valid, and are in breach of the PR Residency Obligation by well over 200 days at the time you arrive at the POE, I cannot say, no one here can say, whether or not you will be, for sure, examined regarding residency, subject to a 44(1) report being written and a Removal Order issued. There is at least a significant, if not large risk of that happening. There is a chance that presenting the valid PR card could result in a waive through the POE. In between those extremes, you might be examined, and if your reasons for not returning to Canada sooner are persuasive and the officer conducting the interview is friendly, perhaps you will be allowed to enter with no 44(1) report being written.

It is very, very difficult to predict your actual chances. For one thing, they vary greatly depending on numerous factors. One factor is how long it has been since you were last in Canada. But there are numerous others.

Bottom-line, though, it appears you have breached the PR Residency Obligation, and unless you have sufficient H&C reasons to justify retaining PR status, you are indeed at risk for losing PR status.

Since an officer considering whether or not to issue a 44(1) report must consider any and all reasons or excuses or explanations offered by the PR, of course the officer must consider your future plans to complete your university education in Canada and stay in Canada . . . but I doubt that will carry much weight.

In contrast, if you have good reasons for not being able to come to Canada to live in Canada sooner, those reasons have a much better chance of influencing things in a positive direction.

 

[miyesven]

Thank you so much for your reply! I really appreciate it and it was really helpful!

I had no idea about the 1095 days criteria and thanks for clarifying my doubts about the amount of importance different reasons will take when it comes to deciding wether or not i can retain my PR status.

If you dont mind, may I ask if in the slim chance that I can retain my Canadian PR, do you know anything about the chances of me being able to renew the PR after I stay in Canada for 2 years straight? If I go this year june 2015 and stay until after june 2017, but actually my PR card expires next year july and prior to my this stay, I only stayed 3 months in Canada over 3 years. So until my PR card expired, I would have stayed 1year and 4 months out of the 2years required. If I stay on for maybe another year or so so that I will have been in canada for 2 years straight, then, I apply for renewal of PR card, will that work?

 

[dpenabill]

Thank you so much for your reply! I really appreciate it and it was really helpful!

I had no idea about the 1095 days criteria and thanks for clarifying my doubts about the amount of importance different reasons will take when it comes to deciding wether or not i can retain my PR status.

If you dont mind, may I ask if in the slim chance that I can retain my Canadian PR, do you know anything about the chances of me being able to renew the PR after I stay in Canada for 2 years straight? If I go this year june 2015 and stay until after june 2017, but actually my PR card expires next year july and prior to my this stay, I only stayed 3 months in Canada over 3 years. So until my PR card expired, I would have stayed 1year and 4 months out of the 2years required. If I stay on for maybe another year or so so that I will have been in canada for 2 years straight, then, I apply for renewal of PR card, will that work?

If you return to Canada and are not reported, not issued a Removal Order for failing to comply with the PR Residency Obligation, your PR status remains valid. A PR does not need to have a valid PR card in possession, so you can continue to stay and work or go to school or whatever in Canada even though you do not have a valid PR card. Then, after two years in Canada, you will be eligible for a new PR card.

If you travel outside Canada in the meantime, especially once your PR card is no longer valid, there would be a high risk for being denied a PR Travel Document or being issued a Removal Order upon arriving in Canada again, resulting in the loss of PR.

But if you get into Canada without a problem, you can stay, and when you have stayed two years it is almost as if you never were in breach of the PR RO.