How can I enter Canada as a PR who cannot meet residency requirement?

[bjlee]

Recently, I went to Vancouver on a commercial plane with a valid PR card. I was able to enter without talking to an immigration officer because I used the machine to enter. Then, I traveled to U.S, but when I came back through the airport in Montreal, the immigration officer noticed that I won't be able to meet residency requirement. Fortunately, as I explained that I was not able to live in Canada because of college education in U.S and mandatory service in the army, the IO decided not to report me, but told me that the next time I try to enter with a PR card, the IO will know about this incident.

So, my questions are:

1. As I am from Republic of Korea and visa exempt, can I enter Canada for travelling purposes just using my ROK passport (not my PR card) and without telling the IO that I am a PR?

2. If the above is possible and I choose not to leave Canada for two years, won't the immigration try to find me as my visa is only valid for 6 months?

3. What are my options to enter Canada without getting reported for not meeting residency requirement?

4. What kind of problems can arise if I stay in Canada as a student with expired PR card and choose to pursue college education?

 

[Leon]

So if you were told in Montreal that the next time you would try to enter, the IO would know about this, why did you leave Canada again? I assume you left Canada again because otherwise you would not be asking how to return again, right?

In my opinion, you should stop thinking about ways to leave and come back when you don't meet the residency requirements. You should be thinking about staying for 2 years so you can meet them again. That is if you want to keep your PR.

I would assume that they have your passport on file so I do not think it would work for you to go in claiming you are a tourist and not a PR.

You can try self serve airports like Vancouver or Toronto and hope they don't trigger a bell in the IO office to come and talk to you.

If you are able to enter again without getting reported, stay for 2 years this time without leaving if you want to keep your PR.

I have heard that it is a hassle for students not to have a valid PR card but there are ways around it. I have heard this from someone but don't recall the details if it is about registration or financial aid but in any case he said they ask him every semester if he has a valid PR card and it is a hassle.

 

[bjlee]

Leon, thank you for your quick response. The reason I am going back and forth is that I am serving in the army right now and the military provides me with the airfare to visit Canada because I am a PR. Therefore, I plan to visit Canada twice more before I am discharged from the army. And, I do plan to go to Canada after I am discharged and stay there for two years to keep my PR card. When I had this incident with the IO in Montreal, she told me to prepare documents proving that I am currently in mandatory service in the army and that I attended college in U.S and tried to transfer to Canadian university but failed.

So, I have few more questions,

1. Is it because of this incident that the IO will know that I am a PR using my passport on file? Or does it automatically appear in the system that a person is a PR by scanning the passport?

2. After the discharge, if i try to enter Canada, is it better to use ground transportation (train, bus or rental car) from U.S. than commercial airline? I will have a valid PR card by then, but I guess I will still encounter the same problem with the IO as will be in the airport?

3. If I get reported when I try to enter Canada, can I still enter Canada after they file for discontinuation of my PR? Or do i get deported back to my country?

4. Will studying in U.S. college and mandatory service in the army be accepted as H&C reasons when I fight for appeal? I got my PR while I was in college and I tried to transfer but got rejected.

Thank you very much for your time.

 

[Leon]

1. I am not an IO but I think it's very likely that if they have your passport on file, they will see on their computer right away that you are a PR.

2. Some say that entering at the land border is easier but sometimes it just depends on your luck.

3. If you get reported, you have to appeal for your PR stating your grounds for not being able to meet the residency requirements. If you lose the appeal, you lose your PR and will be asked to leave. I think they give you a month. If you do not leave, they will deport you.

4. Studying is usually not seen as a H&C reason as you could have studied in Canada. So you say transfer was refused. How far along were you in your program when you got your PR and how many colleges in Canad did you apply for? Immigration will probably look at that. If you were far along in your studies and you applied for many colleges in Canada and were refused, they may approve of your reasons while if you had just started your education and you applied for few colleges in Canada, they would be less likely to. Mandatory military services may be more likely to get accepted as grounds why you could not live in Canada.