Shall I decline the ITA?

[hasanaliii]

I recieved the ITA at 481 CRS in the express entry education draw this month
The cutoff was 479
Due to some reason my sister who is a PR has not been in Canada since January 2024

I think I might not be able to get those crucial 15 points
Shall I decline the invitation now and wait for another education draw?
My score will be 466 now and will drop to 461 in June end due to age factor

Please help

 

[CanGoldDigger]

You age will be locked after a PR application submission.

But a sibling must reside in Canada. You can try attach just a PR card, but it's really risky and might not be enough, IRCC may request for more proof like a lease, utility bills, etc.

 

[hasanaliii]

You age will be locked after a PR application submission.

But a sibling must reside in Canada. You can try attach just a PR card, but it's really risky and might not be enough, IRCC may request for more proof like a lease, utility bills, etc.

Other than PR Card I have Bank Statements in my sisters Name with address on it

Is it worth taking a shot at it considering I might miss a good cutoff released while my application is being processed?

 

[scylla]

I recieved the ITA at 481 CRS in the express entry education draw this month
The cutoff was 479
Due to some reason my sister who is a PR has not been in Canada since January 2024

I think I might not be able to get those crucial 15 points
Shall I decline the invitation now and wait for another education draw?
My score will be 466 now and will drop to 461 in June end due to age factor

Please help

Your sister isn't living in Canada so you don't qualify for the 15 points. You can certainly try applying regardless, however you'll want to have a firm back up plan in place on alternative paths for PR or ways of increasing your score since there will be a high chance of refusal if IRCC asks for further evidence for your sister.

 

[scylla]

Other than PR Card I have Bank Statements in my sisters Name with address on it

Is it worth taking a shot at it considering I might miss a good cutoff released while my application is being processed?

Generally this isn't sufficient and you can expect IRCC to request additional evidence that she is actually residing in Canada such as employment records, property ownership / rental, etc.

 

[hasanaliii]

Generally this isn't sufficient and you can expect IRCC to request additional evidence that she is actually residing in Canada such as employment records, property ownership / rental, etc.

I was actually thinking on these lines because if you go by the book they asked for “Bank statement OR Utility bills that have an address on them”
They did not ask for a recent one or a current one, I am only planning to give them what they have asked for, they never said residency can be proved by a recent bill only.

Only problem is when I weigh investing time in this instead of going back to the pool which might cost me a lower cutoff

What do you think when we weigh these two options

 

[scylla]

I was actually thinking on these lines because if you go by the book they asked for “Bank statement OR Utility bills that have an address on them”
They did not ask for a recent one or a current one, I am only planning to give them what they have asked for, they never said residency can be proved by a recent bill only.

Only problem is when I weigh investing time in this instead of going back to the pool which might cost me a lower cutoff

What do you think when we weigh these two options

I think it's more likely that IRCC will end up saying you cannot claim the 15 points, you'll drop below the cut off, and the application will be refused - and it's less likely this will result in a successful path to PR. Your sister has been outside of Canada for well over a year now and is not living in Canada, so by the book, you definitely do not qualify for the 15 points. Submitting a stale bank statement is really just drawing attention to the fact you cannot get a recent one IMO.

Ultimately your call what you do and if you try all the same.

 

[hasanaliii]

I think it's more likely that IRCC will end up saying you cannot claim the 15 points, you'll drop below the cut off, and the application will be refused - and it's less likely this will result in a successful path to PR. Your sister has been outside of Canada for well over a year now and is not living in Canada, so by the book, you definitely do not qualify for the 15 points. Submitting a stale bank statement is really just drawing attention to the fact you cannot get a recent one IMO.

Ultimately your call what you do and if you try all the same.

Makes sense, just being optimistic about it because it isn’t easy to get an ITA these days who knows about the cutoffs from now on.

Thanks anyway buddy

 

[canuck78]

Makes sense, just being optimistic about it because it isn’t easy to get an ITA these days who knows about the cutoffs from now on.

Thanks anyway buddy

Exactly why IRCC is now verifying things like whether family members are actually residing in Canada.

 

[hasanaliii]

Exactly why IRCC is now verifying things like whether family members are actually residing in Canada.

I know this, the question is what do they mean by residing in canada.
My sister has all intentions to live in Canada only, she came back for an academic commitment that has been delaying, her husband got a job in Canada but he left too because she was stuck with the project. She doesn’t work here or anything like that.

But IRCC doesn’t care does it, it wants to go by the book, that is why I was wondering if what they asked for is a bank statement with address I could give them that.

But no one really knows if they want it to be recent, it’s all speculations

 

[scylla]

I know this, the question is what do they mean by residing in canada.
My sister has all intentions to live in Canada only, she came back for an academic commitment that has been delaying, her husband got a job in Canada but he left too because she was stuck with the project. She doesn’t work here or anything like that.

But IRCC doesn’t care does it, it wants to go by the book, that is why I was wondering if what they asked for is a bank statement with address I could give them that.

But no one really knows if they want it to be recent, it’s all speculations

I don't think it's speculation at all. Residing means living in Canada now. It doesn't mean a future intent to reside. We've seen plenty of people here lose the 15 points since their sibling was not currently living in Canada. The definition of residing is quite straight forward.