PR Questions

[PRintheUK]

Hi all! Thanks for looking in.

I've had PR in Canada for the last 13 years. My PR card has expired in May 2009. Moved to the UK for work in December 2007. I'm with my girlfriend and we will likely marry in the future, so keeping my PR shouldn't be an issues after renewing. However I have a couple questions.

1) If I wasn't to renew my PR card and reapplied in the future, would there be any issues?
2) If I was to reapply, do you get new SIN/Health Care numbers? I'd also assume my Ontario drivers license would be revoked.

In relation to renewing my PR card, it's my understanding that I'll need to apply for a travel visa then reapply when in Canada. Does anyone know how long it takes to process a travel visa? My intentions are to renew it while on holiday this fall, return to the UK to work, then return to pick up the card.

Does anyone see any issues with this?

Thanks!

 

[Leon]

1) As long as you keep your PR status, there would not be a problem to renew your card once you are in Canada. If you mean you lose your PR and apply again, I don't think it's any harder it is for anybody else to apply for PR.

2) Somebody once told me that a SIN is deactivated once you are not in Canada for 10 or 20 years but I do not know if that is true. Once you are back in Canada, you would have to go to Service Canada and ask them. As for health care, once you are out of Canada for 6 months, your healthcare should be de-activated but health care may not know that you are out of the country so if you have a health care card and come back and start using it, nothing might happen. I don't see why your ON drivers license would be revoked though. If it expires and you come back, you should be able to renew it without too much hassle.

Yeah, if your PR card is expired, you need to apply for a PR travel visa. I do not know how long it takes. Once you are back in Canada, you can apply for your PR card but you need an address to give them where they can mail you the notice of the card. It currently takes 67 days to get a new card and when it's ready, they will send you a letter to the address you told them you were living at in Canada and you will have to go and pick your card up at the local CIC office. If you had left the country in the meantime, you would need another PR travel visa to get back.