+1(514) 937-9445 or Toll-free (Canada & US) +1 (888) 947-9445

Refugee Travel Document - Questions and Answers

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
UPDATE

ON APRIL 29TH I call them
+1 (888) 242-2100 because since March 19th I haven’t got any news!

so I waited on line 45 minutes and finally this lady asked me a bunch of questions and after I have to wait like 4 minutes for her to verify my identity...


when she came back told me I have good news for you, your travel document has been approved and will be sending to your address in two days

so today May 2th I received my travel document.

but I didn’t get back my old travel document even when I asked to get it back!

anyway I guess Now I have to call them and ask for it!

now next step USA VISA !

wish me good luck!!!





Hey guys I did my application to get my new RTD as permanent resident .. I did on February 19th in Gatineau , they check all my papers and I should received on March 19th ... so today March 25th I received a letter from them saying that:

We refer to your application for travel document.

Inform us whether you are in possession of any valid or expired travel document or passport from any country . if you are, the original document must be submitted to the office for examination. if the passport you used to enter Canada is in the possession of Immigration authorities , prove us the NOTICE OF SEIZURE from immigration , Refugees and Citizenship Canada . A copy of the passport that has been certified by an Immigration official , confirming that the original has been seized , would also be acceptable.

When sending back the requested information , please ensure that you inform this office of any change in your mailing address , sign your letter and quote your application number XXXXXXXXXX .

Yours Sincerely.

Certificate of Identity
Passport Program
Immigration , Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Ottawa , Canada K1A-1L2




Ok now continuing with mi post , I'm so mad with this people , everything should be on the system , I dont have my old passport because it was seize at the by the officer , so why they didn't check all the requirement , so now I will have to go to Gatineau , lost a day work with not pay ...

the first time that I did my application for the RTD ( for 2 years ) they didn't ask for it?

is a lot of bureaucracy that I never expect in the first world! ( in my own country yes a lot of bureaucracy , corruption )

anyway in two days ill be going to Gatineau to see what else they want!! if any of you guys , pass through this , please be free to share your experience. thanks!

wishing a nice week to everyone!!

Alberto
 

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
adding to the list


Ecuador and Colombia you don’t need visa either en the travel document.




!!!! Warning !!!! : I give this list for informational purposes ONLY ... Some of these territories or countries still apply for a visa for permanent Canadian resident card holders when they do not have a normal passport (refugee travel document) . It is therefore always necessary to contact the embassy, the consulate, or the high commission before the trip to be sure.

Outside Canada[edit]
For visa-free travels, Canadian permanent residents require a PR card, unless the person's passport in itself is sufficient for exemption. A Canadian PR card holder may travel visa-free to the following countries if not already exempt:

For non-visa-exempt nationals, UK allows holders of a valid PR card issued after 2002 to transit without visa under TWOV program.[21]

Source : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_permanent_resident_card#Outside_Canada
 

xichanmontreal

Star Member
Nov 26, 2018
133
53
[QUOTE = "Albertooo, post: 7798302, member: 759132"] Je suis allé en Equateur en janvier et je me suis arrêté à Bogota pendant quelques jours. [/ QUOTE]

Without visa ? ... Canadian refugee travel document is accepted as a valid document , yes , but you need a visa now . You can check on skyteam or official tool of IATA
 

Kaisa_18

Hero Member
Nov 26, 2018
252
175
AOR Received.
08-03-2019
Looking for help when filling out a Schengen visa application for a French visa. When I indicate that Canada issued my travel document it just tells me I don't need a visa and I can't proceed with my application. Those of you who have done it what was the workaround? I know that I do need a visa, but not sure what to select so it lets me apply.
I applied for Schengen visa with the French consulate in Toronto last year in November. I will be quoting the requirements for applying for the visa from the official visa website of France, along with my personal experience:


Me:
At the time, I was working part-time. I had good savings. I didn't have PR status.

Visa application:
1 - You must choose your country of citizenship, not Canada. then "Ordinary passport" from the travel document list. Once you are at your appointment with VFS, inform the agent that there was no " Refugee Travel document " option in the list.
Note: the printed copy of the application might show " Refugee travel document " though, so just tell the agent that the option was not available online and they will fix it.

2 - You must bring either Work permit or Study permit. They won't accept your Convention Refugee papers as proof of legal residency in Canada.

3 - You must bring 3 months bank statement, Pre-booked return ticket and detailed trip itinerary (hotels bookings, etc)

4 - You must bring proofs of the professional situation (employment contract, work certificate, pay slips, proof of pension) or any document relating to your personal links in the country of residence.

5 - You must bring Travel Health Insurance (Travel health insurance certificate (cf FAQ))

6 - The agent at the time advised me to write a cover letter explaining why I wanted to visit France. I did.

7 - You will find the other requirement such as photos and fees at the end of your visa application online process

Results:
I got my visa in less than a month. I asked for 20+ days trip (with pre-booked return ticket), but they issued my a visa with 15 days only duration of stay.



good luck!


------
 

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
I went there in January. without visa ...
I think sometimes is better double check with the embassy!

I will be applying soon for my USA visa .




[QUOTE = "Albertooo, post: 7798302, member: 759132"] Je suis allé en Equateur en janvier et je me suis arrêté à Bogota pendant quelques jours. [/ QUOTE]

Without visa ? ... Canadian refugee travel document is accepted as a valid document , yes , but you need a visa now . You can check on skyteam or official tool of IATA
 

Dinc

Newbie
Feb 19, 2019
6
1
Hi Dear friends
I applied for RTD in person on March 20 2019. I have not received my travel doc yet ( they said that you will receive RTD in 20 business day ). It is almost 35 business day passed so far
What do you recommend? is this happening so often?
Thanks in advance
 
  • Like
Reactions: Albertooo

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
bro you have to call them
+1 (888) 242-2100.

and do some pressure asking what happens!

they will ask you your UCI number.


Hi Dear friends
I applied for RTD in person on March 20 2019. I have not received my travel doc yet ( they said that you will receive RTD in 20 business day ). It is almost 35 business day passed so far
What do you recommend? is this happening so often?
Thanks in advance
 

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
Yes bro is the CIC call center , but it is a option for Travel Documents ... you could call to Ottawa. , but I got my answer from the CIC call center ... and 3 days after I got my travel document ... is like they are waiting for us to cal or they are so inefficient doing the job!



Thanks for answer
The number you have given is CIC call center, but I thought I should call Ottawa passport office. Any idea?
 

Ridhishuwedha

Full Member
Apr 23, 2019
42
6
Thank you for ur advise and shared ur experience.
I would like to come to canada in visit and thinking to apply refugee status.me and my husband have visit visa but I didn't apply for my minor kids..So the doubt is after i reach canada can i take my kids in refugee status..So give me some suggestions how to take them after reach.
2. Is it possible to concert to work permit.
3. In how many months i will get PR in case of holding refugee.
4.Once I get PR am i eligible to travel to india for visit and come back to canada
I created this topic to share my knowledge and experience with all of you. I will try to answer some important questions and concerns regarding travel as a Convention Refugee or a Protected Person living in Canada.

I’m not a lawyer, just a person who likes clarity. I am very proud to call Canada my new home. I want continue traveling and explore the world, but at the same time stay I want to stay mindful, and avoid doing anything wrong that would compromise my PR or Refugee status here. Some terms are below being simplified.

As most of you know, when you make your refugee claim, your passport is being seized by CIC or CBSA.

When my refugee claim was accepted I discovered that there are certain things we are not advised to do:

• Do not travel back to your home country
• Do not renew your home country’s passport.
• Do not travel on your home country’s passport, even to a third country, such as USA for example
• Just simply don’t have any contact with embassy of your home country.

All those things could put you at risk of losing your refugee status, because CBSA may interpret those actions as you no longer fear your home country, so you no longer need Canada’s protection.

I am not able to specify which law applies here and so on, but I know for sure that there are legal cases in which government took action and stripped or tried to strip person’s protection because they did one of above mentioned things.

Also it’s a matter of interpreting the law, so I think we should take those warnings seriously, it’s our lives and protection we are talking about.

If you want to get more information, I would suggest checking out Canadian Council for Refugees and other websites.

After I received a positive decision on my refugee claim, soon I applied for RTD and was able to get it. It says that the RTD validity period is determined by the issuing office. In my case it was issued for 2 years. I personally know at least four other cases, where people applied for RTD before becoming PRs and received it also for 2 years. So I guess it’s safe to assume that majority of people, before PR will get it for 2 years.

When I was applied for it, I noticed that on application form it says: “I understand that if I am issued a Canadian travel document and later obtain a passport issued by my country of citizenship, I am obliged to return the Canadian travel document to Passport Program, Citizenship and Immigration Canada.”

Obviously I started to get worried, because once I become a PR, CIC will return my national passport and in theory I must return RTD. I will have no choice, but to use my national passport to travel, but I don’t want to do that! What should I do?!

After more than two years, I got my PR interview, I got my passport back, at the end of my interview I decided to ask officer in person about my RTD dilemma.


So I did, I called them and I talked with call center agent at first, and explained my situation:



So finally after several minutes of back and forth, agent agreed to put a special call back request directly from “Certificate of Identity Section - Passport Program” located in Gatineau, QC.

Next day I received a call and talked with a senior officer from that department, I explained my situation to him and finally I got the missing peace of a puzzle.


Some important points and additional information:

• As a Convention Refugee or a Protected Person in Canada we do have a right to travel.

• In order to be able to travel internationally, we must have a valid Travel Document.

• The only Travel Document we entitled to is a Refugee Travel Document, forget about Certificate of Identity

• In order to apply for RTD you need to use an application form “[PPTC 190] Adult travel document application form”, form is universal and is used to apply for both – RTD and COI.

• After becoming a Permanent Resident, you are still considered to have a refugee status in Canada

• RTD issued for 2 years before PR and after becoming PR for 5 years

• If you got your national passport back when you became PR, do not use it, instead send it to “Certificate of Identity Section - Passport Program” along with your explanation letter

Travel Document - is an identity document issued by a government and allowing us to travel internationally. Generally, Travel Documents look like a passport-like booklets. The most common Travel Document is a Passport.

Government of Canada has a special department responsible for issuing Travel Documents for Refugees and Stateless Persons, and it’s called: “Certificate of Identity Section - Passport Program”, located in Gatineau, QC

That department is issuing two types of a Travel Documents:

1. Refugee Travel Document (light blue) (United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951 and its Protocol of 1967): issued to persons in Canada with protected person status, including Convention refugees and persons in need of protection

2. Certificate of identity (grey or formerly brown): issued to permanent residents of Canada who are not yet Canadian citizens, who are stateless or who are unable to obtain a national passport.

Personally I would advise everyone including myself, travel only using RTD, we shouldn’t put ourselves at risk. Getting RTD for 5 years is a great solution and hopefully by the time we need to renew it, we will have our Canadian Citizenship :)

I will mention it again, I am not a lawyer, just sharing summary of my findings with you. If you have additional questions or information, you are welcome to ask and contribute.
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,758
Thank you for ur advise and shared ur experience.
I would like to come to canada in visit and thinking to apply refugee status.me and my husband have visit visa but I didn't apply for my minor kids..So the doubt is after i reach canada can i take my kids in refugee status..So give me some suggestions how to take them after reach.
2. Is it possible to concert to work permit.
3. In how many months i will get PR in case of holding refugee.
4.Once I get PR am i eligible to travel to india for visit and come back to canada
1. You will need to apply to bring your kids after you get approved as a protected person and get PR. That could be a 3-4years.
2. Yes you will get a work permit.
3. 3-4 years for India.
4. Not until you are a citizen. You should be aware that getting asylum if you are from India will be difficult. You will be expected to show that you have tried to relocate within India but your life was still at risk before you are given protected status in Canada.
 

nourmandy2

Hero Member
May 11, 2019
214
25
Yes bro is the CIC call center , but it is a option for Travel Documents ... you could call to Ottawa. , but I got my answer from the CIC call center ... and 3 days after I got my travel document ... is like they are waiting for us to cal or they are so inefficient doing the job!
Hi Guys ,
I submitted the application for TD to Gatineau office 200 Promenade as requested but the courier delivered it to 70 cremazie Gatineau passport office and I had been told that all packages should be delivered to this address and the transfer should be done internally . I am calling CIC every day to check if they received it or not but nothing yet and some agents said it is wrong address and you have to reapply ,others said you did the right and nothing to worry and it a matter of time , the original PR in the package , is someone had the same problem before , it is more than 11 days now !! Thanks
 

Albertooo

Full Member
May 17, 2018
30
18
But di you give the wrong address or was their mistake??? Wow bro let me know how end up everything.
Good luck




Hi Guys ,
I submitted the application for TD to Gatineau office 200 Promenade as requested but the courier delivered it to 70 cremazie Gatineau passport office and I had been told that all packages should be delivered to this address and the transfer should be done internally . I am calling CIC every day to check if they received it or not but nothing yet and some agents said it is wrong address and you have to reapply ,others said you did the right and nothing to worry and it a matter of time , the original PR in the package , is someone had the same problem before , it is more than 11 days now !! Thanks