PR card just expired but want to travel, need advice

[dave from ottawa]

I am canadian and my wife is american, she is the one with the PR card that expired last month. We have an opportunity to travel to Florida at the end of this month, but with her PR expired we are not sure if we can make this happen. There shouldn't be any problem with the PR renewal itself - my wife has been living and working in Canada since September 2007.

After googling for a while, I think we have two options:
1) Do our application for PR card renewal and mark it as URGENT, and in order to do this we must be at least 3 weeks away from the travel date and we must have bought our plane tickets already. cic.gc.ca/english/information/pr-card/apply-urgent-processing-not-submitted.asp
2) Apply for a Travel Document, but I think we want to avoid this one! From my understanding we can only apply for one when we get to our destination and the closest canadian visa office is many, many hours away from Florida. cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/travel.asp

So I think we want to do option #1. We would leave on Oct 27th or 28th which from today is 3 weeks and 2 days so we are close to the 3 week cutoff time! My biggest concern is that even if we buy the tickets and send in our application that there is still a good chance that we will not get the new PR card before we travel.

Could anyone shed some light on what we should do? Obviously we are in a hurry because we would have to buy the plane tickets tonight or tomorrow to get in before the 3 week window.

Thanks!
Dave

 

[steaky]

There is an option three. Your wife can just use her US passport to return to Canada and show her expired PR card.

 

[dave from ottawa]

Wait, that would work?? Is there anywhere that says this will be OK? Not that I don't trust you, I just want to feel confident when we re-enter Canada.

 

[dave from ottawa]

My wife called Citizenship and Immigration Canada and asked about being able to re-enter with just a US passport and an expired PR card. The person said maybe that would work if we are driving, but "no way" if we are flying.

The person also said to give 30 days for an urgent PR card renewal as well, which we don't have.

Is there any hope for us being able to travel or should we not do it?

 

[Leon]

Why would it not work if you were flying? The thing is, what doesn't work when you are flying is that if you are not visa exempt, you will not be allowed to board a plane without a valid PR card, travel document or other Canadian visa. However, your wife having a US passport has the option of boarding the plane just by showing her passport because she is visa exempt to Canada. Once she lands in the airport and goes to the immigration desk, she is in exactly the same position as if you were driving across the land border.

An expired PR card will work. They will give her trouble for not having renewed it but there is no way they will refuse her entry because she is a PR (in spite of expired card) and she is entering with a Canadian spouse. If you want to make your case even stronger, have her get a bank letter from her employer. It will say how long she is working there. If it is more than 2 years, she can show that she meets the PR residency obligation as well. Not that she even has to as long as she is living with her Canadian spouse anywhere in the world but hey, there is no way she is not a PR. When they give you trouble about not having renewed it, simply say that you noticed too late that it was expiring and you did not have time to renew it before your trip.

 

[dave from ottawa]

Thank you Leon and steaky, you are wonderful people!

You are right, they will only ask for her US passport before she lands back in Canada and has to talk to the Canadian border guards. We will make sure to bring more than enough proof that she is a good PR so they only give her a little bit of trouble.

 

[KW2012]

Hello,

I just wanted to say thanks to Leon and Dave. I am in exactly the same situation as Dave's wife and was just about to post the same question before seeing this. Dave, you may have left already but I actually went ahead with submitting my 'urgent processing' application with 5 weeks before I travel and there is still no sign that its being processed. Who knows, I may get it back within the next 2 weeks but its very good to know I can re-enter through an airport with my expired card, I will also have my Canadian husband with me and i'm visa exempt. Leon, thanks for the tip about getting a letter from my employer - i'm going to do that before I go.
Kat.

 

[us2yow]

actually I wonder if once they realize the applicant is from a country with a passport that can be used to enter Canada without a visa, they have their own "internal methods/processes" to re-prioritize for speediER issuing of new cards to those PR renewal cases where the applicant is NOT from a visa waiver country.

Makes sense to - since an EU or American passport holder could get back in to Canada using their national passport anyway.

 

[riz01]

Leon I have a similar issue and I will be travelling with my husband n kids. Who are Canadians, Im visa exempted too and I can carry my tax slips and landing document as a proof. Hope they dont say or do anything harsh on the border. I have applied for a renewal but doubt it would come any time soon.

Why would it not work if you were flying? The thing is, what doesn't work when you are flying is that if you are not visa exempt, you will not be allowed to board a plane without a valid PR card, travel document or other Canadian visa. However, your wife having a US passport has the option of boarding the plane just by showing her passport because she is visa exempt to Canada. Once she lands in the airport and goes to the immigration desk, she is in exactly the same position as if you were driving across the land border.

An expired PR card will work. They will give her trouble for not having renewed it but there is no way they will refuse her entry because she is a PR (in spite of expired card) and she is entering with a Canadian spouse. If you want to make your case even stronger, have her get a bank letter from her employer. It will say how long she is working there. If it is more than 2 years, she can show that she meets the PR residency obligation as well. Not that she even has to as long as she is living with her Canadian spouse anywhere in the world but hey, there is no way she is not a PR. When they give you trouble about not having renewed it, simply say that you noticed too late that it was expiring and you did not have time to renew it before your trip.

 

[Msafiri]

Return to Canada via commercial carrier has two aspects:

1. At check in outside Canada - airport, bus terminal etc. The agent wants to ensure you will be admitted to Canada. If you have a valid PR card then the agent doesn't care much what passport you have as long as its valid. If your PR Card is expired and you are visa exempt then the agent will look into your passport. The issue for the agent here is the lack of a return ticket (this because you are on the return leg of the trip)..for all they know you could be a tourist. The agent is thinking I don't want the person turned away at the border as my company will get a fine and have to return the person back say to the USA at own cost.

Some agents will accept you are a returning PR with an expired card. Others will not take the risk and you may have to buy a ticket of a journey out of Canada.

2. At the Canadian POE - CBSA agent will verify you have PR status and check if you have met the Residency Obligation. This can range from a wave into Canada to a detailed review of your time since becoming a PR.