Maintaining PR status

[Gumper]

My wife arrived in Canada in NOV 2014, thereby receiving her PR card. I may now have a job opportunity to work in Europe. I've checked & know that she can get a visa for the destination country based on our marital status & my potential job contract. The contract would be 3 years renewable. The question I have: At one point would my wife lose her Canadian residency status after being out of the country? I thought I heard something about maintaining either 2 or 3 years of every 5 in Canada to keep the residency 'active', does anyone know what the actual law is on this? Thanks!

 

[Ponga]

If you are a Canadian citizen, her time spent abroad with you, will still count towards her residency Obligation of 730 days (2 years) out of 5. You could, in theory, stay there for 10 years and she would still have maintained her requirement.

If you are only a PR yourself, she would need to return to Canada within the first 730 days, or run the risk of possibly losing her PR for non-compliance.

 

[Gumper]

If you are a Canadian citizen, her time spent abroad with you, will still count towards her residency Obligation of 730 days (2 years) out of 5. You could, in theory, stay there for 10 years and she would still have maintained her requirement.

If you are only a PR yourself, she would need to return to Canada within the first 730 days, or run the risk of possibly losing her PR for non-compliance.

Thanks Ponga. So she doesn't actually have to be physically present in Canada for 2 of the 5 years? As long as we are together that is sufficient? Let's say we move to Europe in November of this year (and she has therefore stayed here in CAN for a year so far), and then stay there for 10 years and then want to return to Canada, but she has only lived in Canada for a year, is that enough to maintain the PR status & return without having to do more paperwork? (And yes I am a CAN citizen.)

 

[Mapleson]

Please note, there are different requirements for maintaining PR status and being eligible for citizenship status.

For maintaining, PR status, "You may count each day that you accompanied a Canadian citizen outside Canada provided that the person you accompanied is your spouse, common-law partner or parent (if you are a child under 19 years of age)."

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/5445ETOC.asp#appendixA

 

[Gumper]

Please note, there are different requirements for maintaining PR status and being eligible for citizenship status.

For maintaining, PR status, "You may count each day that you accompanied a Canadian citizen outside Canada provided that the person you accompanied is your spouse, common-law partner or parent (if you are a child under 19 years of age)."

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/5445ETOC.asp#appendixA

Thanks for the link Mapleson. I think that clarifies it. And also begs the next question: Should my wife want to apply for CDN citizenship would she be able to do so during the time potentially living abroad?

 

[OhCanadiana]

Thanks for the link Mapleson. I think that clarifies it. And also begs the next question: Should my wife want to apply for CDN citizenship would she be able to do so during the time potentially living abroad?

Under the current rules, time spent abroad (even if accompanying a Canadian citizen spouse) won't usually count toward the 3 out of 4 years currently required. Under the soon-to-be rules, only time physically present in Canada will count toward the 4 out of 6 years that will soon be required to live in Canada to qualify to apply for citizenship. So, not for now, but she'll keep her PR status and the right to enter Canada it confers, and will be able to accrue time once you move back and she accrues the time living in Canada necessary to apply.