IEC + Partner sponship/OWP -> Implied status: to work or not to work?

[volkov]

2013 ???

the spousal OWP program wasn't even available back then, that is ancient history


anyone that has contacted CIC recently that I have heard about have been told differently

I talked to CIC and even received an email back with the agent's name and employee number

we are on implied status now, having applied for PR and new OWP before our non-extendable work permit expired, which it has expired now, and we are now working on implied status, as advised by CIC agent directly and with no misunderstanding or lack of clarity

people can listen to forum hearsay and theorizing, or they can contact CIC themselves, as we and others have, and listen to CIC directly (or choose to follow the forum sheep that insist that the CIC doesn't know their own rules and should be ignored in favor of listening to anonymous people on unofficial forums..... I know what makes sense to me and what we chose)

 

[screech339]

2013 ???

the spousal OWP program wasn't even available back then, that is ancient history


anyone that has contacted CIC recently that I have heard about have been told differently

I talked to CIC and even received an email back with the agent's name and employee number

we are on implied status now, having applied for PR and new OWP before our non-extendable work permit expired, which it has expired now, and we are now working on implied status, as advised by CIC agent directly and with no misunderstanding or lack of clarity

people can listen to forum hearsay and theorizing, or they can contact CIC themselves, as we and others have, and listen to CIC directly (or choose to follow the forum sheep that insist that the CIC doesn't know their own rules and should be ignored in favor of listening to anonymous people on unofficial forums..... I know what makes sense to me and what we chose)

Ancient history? OWP has been going on since way before then. Now we have pilot OWP. But the rules regarding IEC has not changed. They don't get the benefits of "implied status" even under the new pilot OWP. If you have gotten the pilot OWP before your IEC expires, then it is a non-issue.

In other words, if your IEC expires before getting your pilot OWP or regular OWP and you continued to work, you were working illegally. Plain and simple.

 

[volkov]

Ancient history? OWP has been going on since way before then. Now we have pilot OWP. But the rules regarding IEC has not changed. They don't get the benefits of "implied status" even under the new pilot OWP. If you have gotten the pilot OWP before your IEC expires, then it is a non-issue.

In other words, if your IEC expires before getting your pilot OWP or regular OWP and you continued to work, you were working illegally. Plain and simple.

I am not going to argue with you, I get my information directly from CIC and I suggest people to do the same, don't listen to unofficial posts on forums

there is a ton of misinformation being parroted on this forum, which is irresponsible because it has such a big effect on people's lives, and it is said with such matter of fact type of wording like "plain and simple"

I will never make statements like that without the caveat that one should always check with CIC or official statements from CIC before making decisions, DO NOT rely on information from posters on unofficial internet forums

 

[PMM]

Hi

I am not going to argue with you, I get my information directly from CIC and I suggest people to do the same, don't listen to unofficial posts on forums

there is a ton of misinformation being parroted on this forum, which is irresponsible because it has such a big effect on people's lives, and it is said with such matter of fact type of wording like "plain and simple"

I will never make statements like that without the caveat that one should always check with CIC or official statements from CIC before making decisions, DO NOT rely on information from posters on unofficial internet forums

Here is another letter from CIC which contradicts the previous posted letter

Sir, Madam,

Thank you for contacting Citizenship and Immigration Canada. I am pleased to follow up on your request:

Implied Status - Temporary Residents

As a temporary resident (TR), if you send your application for an extension of your authorization to remain in Canada at the latest on the expiry date of your status, you will be considered in status as a TR until a decision is made on the application. This is known as an Implied Status*.

If you hold a work permit or a study permit, you can continue working or studying under the conditions of your previous permit if you have applied to extend your stay in Canada under the same category. However, if you have applied to extend your stay under another category, you must stop working or studying.

If you leave Canada while under implied status, you may be authorized to:

Re-enter Canada as a TR, if the Case Processing Centre (CPC) has not yet made a decision on your application to extend your work permit. Please note that you will not be permitted to work/study until you receive your new permit. You must satisfy the officer at the port of entry (POE) that you have sufficient means of support. This applies if you:
are temporary resident visa (TRV) exempt;
held a valid multiple-entry visa before leaving Canada; or
travelled only to the United States** and/or St.Pierre and Miquelon by the end of the period initially authorized for their stay or any extension to it;
Re-enter Canada as a worker/student, if the officer at the POE determines that your application to extend your work/study permit was approved by the CPC while you were outside Canada;
or
Apply for a new work/study permit at the POE provided you have the right to do so under the Regulations.
For more information on implied status, please consult the Operational Manual - Overseas Processing (OP 11) - Section 24.

* Participants in international youth exchange programs (e.g., Student Work Abroad Program (SWAP), International Experience Canada (IEC) or Working Holiday Program (WHP)) do not benefit from implied status, unless extending a work permit not initially issued for the time limit authorized by the program.

**Including its Territories and Possessions.

 

[Aquakitty]

Hi


Here is another letter from CIC which contradicts the previous posted letter

Sir, Madam,

Thank you for contacting Citizenship and Immigration Canada. I am pleased to follow up on your request:

Implied Status - Temporary Residents

As a temporary resident (TR), if you send your application for an extension of your authorization to remain in Canada at the latest on the expiry date of your status, you will be considered in status as a TR until a decision is made on the application. This is known as an Implied Status*.

If you hold a work permit or a study permit, you can continue working or studying under the conditions of your previous permit if you have applied to extend your stay in Canada under the same category. However, if you have applied to extend your stay under another category, you must stop working or studying.

If you leave Canada while under implied status, you may be authorized to:

Re-enter Canada as a TR, if the Case Processing Centre (CPC) has not yet made a decision on your application to extend your work permit. Please note that you will not be permitted to work/study until you receive your new permit. You must satisfy the officer at the port of entry (POE) that you have sufficient means of support. This applies if you:
are temporary resident visa (TRV) exempt;
held a valid multiple-entry visa before leaving Canada; or
travelled only to the United States** and/or St.Pierre and Miquelon by the end of the period initially authorized for their stay or any extension to it;
Re-enter Canada as a worker/student, if the officer at the POE determines that your application to extend your work/study permit was approved by the CPC while you were outside Canada;
or
Apply for a new work/study permit at the POE provided you have the right to do so under the Regulations.
For more information on implied status, please consult the Operational Manual - Overseas Processing (OP 11) - Section 24.

* Participants in international youth exchange programs (e.g., Student Work Abroad Program (SWAP), International Experience Canada (IEC) or Working Holiday Program (WHP)) do not benefit from implied status, unless extending a work permit not initially issued for the time limit authorized by the program.

**Including its Territories and Possessions.

And that's basically what's on the CIC website. I agree there's lots of misinformation on these forums....

Seriously though, there's misinformation from the CIC call centre, there's misinformation from CBSA Officers, and even CIC Officers are wrong a lot or there'd be no need for an appeals process.

At least here on the forums you have many knowledgeable people with nothing better to do than correct the misinformation. Honestly I trust obsessive forum types over so called "experts" sometimes, they spend time learning this stuff because they like it not because they are paid to parrot some lines.

 

[andrew12345]

Bumping this in August 2017.

I just got off the phone to CIC. The gentleman who answered the phone was adamant that IEC visa holders are, in fact eligible for Implied Status when they have applied for an OWP. I brought up that IEC visas are non-extendable except for very limited circumstances, there are examples of people getting in trouble for it down the line and made a few arguments against it Implied Status for IEC. He put me on hold to speak to someone else about it. When he came back he was still convinced that IEC can get Implied Status when you are applying for an OWP inland and sent an email that is very sparse on detail. I also asked a separate question about getting an LMIA exempt Work Permit issued immediately at a POE based on having a PNP sponsorship approved, for the purposes of having time to complete and submit a PR application (something I've seen a few employees do in the past, when they have a supporting letter from BC PNP). He didn't know anything about this, which cast a lot of doubt in my mind about how much he knew about immigration law and processes!

Apologies if this is just adding to confusion and contributing no useful information. But I still think it's important to be aware that there is conflicting information coming from different sources. On the weight of evidence, I still don't think IEC benefits from Implied Status, despite this phone call and would err on the side of caution and do everything possible to get a valid work permit as early as possible and avoid the whole Implied Status scenario.

My two cents: It seems insane that IEC visa holders don't benefit from Implied Status as a huge number of PR applicants will be coming off the IEC visa and not having implied status and the ability to work is massively disruptive to peoples lives and careers, not to mention extremely stressful for those in the midst of these applications. I wonder if its worth petitioning CIC on the matter to change their approach and make it a crystal clear YES that IEC visa holders can benefit from Implied Status? As a HR Manager, its incredibly frustrating to me to see my employees go through this stress and also have the difficulty trying to plan my workforce around it. I have at least four fantastic employees who are going to be directly impacted by the question of Implied Status while going for PR and having IEC visas expiring in the next few months. /Endrant

"
Date: 2017-08-15

Good day,

Thank you for contacting Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. As discussed, you will find below complementary information to our conversation:

Implied status - Temporary resident

• If you apply to extend your stay at the latest on the expiry date of your status:
  • you will be considered in status as a temporary resident until a decision is made on your application.
• If you apply for renewal of your work or study permit at the latest on the expiry date of your status, and your permit expires before a decision is made:
  • you can continue working or studying under the same conditions as your previous permit, as long as you remain in Canada.

Leaving and re-entering Canada while under implied status:

You may be authorized to re-enter Canada:

• As a temporary resident, if your application to extend your stay has not yet been approved (if applicable, it will be important to wait until you receive your new permit before you start to work/study):
  • this applies to you if, among other things:
    • you are temporary resident visa (TRV) exempt,
    • you hold a valid multiple-entry visa, or
    • you have travelled only to the United States (including its Territories and Possessions) and/or St.Pierre and Miquelon,
      
• As a worker or student:
  • if the officer determines that your application to extend your permit was approved while you were outside Canada, or
  • if you are eligible to apply for a new work or study permit at your arrival in Canada.

An officer will ask you questions to see if you meet all of the requirements before allowing you to come back to Canada.

Proof of implied status:

It is recommended that you provide these documents to prove that you have implied status:

• Your expired immigration document,
• A copy of the application to extend your stay sent to the Case Processing Centre before the expiration date of your status,
• (If the application was submitted online) A copy of the Confirmation of Online Application Transmission message in your online account,
• A copy of the fee payment receipt included with the application, and
• (If applicable) A delivery confirmation from the postal service provider used to send the application.

More information on implied status is also available on our website.
"