Withdrawing Citizenship Application

[bl2021]

Hi,

I applied for my citizenship application (ON PAPER) in March 2021, background verification was completed in September 2021. Couple days ago, IRCC sent me an invitation to complete my online citizenship test, the test is available between 2021-11-12 to 2021-12-02. However, after deep consideration, I have decided to withdraw my application since I don't want to give up my current citizenship.

1. How do I withdraw? Is it necessary to go through a withdrawal process? Or I simply don't reply to any further IRCC messages regarding my current application?
2. If a withdrawal process is required, do I have to withdraw before 2021-11-12 (the start date of my test period), or is there another deadline?
3. Since I applied for citizenship on paper, how will the above process be different for me? I read somewhere that IRCC requires a written withdrawal form in paper mail if I originally applied on paper. Can I just send a web form instead of sending paper mail since I am currently outside of Canada?
4. What is a valid reason to withdraw my application?
5. How will the withdraw affect my future PR renewal?
6. How will the withdraw affect me if I decide to reapply for Canadian Citizenship in the future? Will this cause any significant issue or potentially lead to a rejection?
7. If I do not reply to the test, what is going to happen?
8. If I decide not to withdraw, but just to postpone the test to a later date so that I have enough time to think over this issue, what is the procedure? How many times do i have to reschedule for the test? And what is the maximum length of time that I have before my application would be finally closed?


Thank you very much!
If anyone has experience to such case or know the answer, please share them, I really appreciate your help!
Have a nice day.

 

[CaBeaver]

You cannot postpone the test to think more about the implications of getting Canadian citizenship. This is not a valid reason. You may try saying that you prefer to take the test in-person when they resume it to give yourself more time to think. But if you know you want to withdraw, it's better to withdraw (see here and here) and not to ghost them (as recruiters do). Your PR status won't be affected, and if your withdrawal approved, I don't see why you cannot apply again later

 

[justanotherguy28]

Hi,

I applied for my citizenship application (ON PAPER) in March 2021, background verification was completed in September 2021. Couple days ago, IRCC sent me an invitation to complete my online citizenship test, the test is available between 2021-11-12 to 2021-12-02. However, after deep consideration, I have decided to withdraw my application since I don't want to give up my current citizenship.

1. How do I withdraw? Is it necessary to go through a withdrawal process? Or I simply don't reply to any further IRCC messages regarding my current application?
2. If a withdrawal process is required, do I have to withdraw before 2021-11-12 (the start date of my test period), or is there another deadline?
3. Since I applied for citizenship on paper, how will the above process be different for me? I read somewhere that IRCC requires a written withdrawal form in paper mail if I originally applied on paper. Can I just send a web form instead of sending paper mail since I am currently outside of Canada?
4. What is a valid reason to withdraw my application?
5. How will the withdraw affect my future PR renewal?
6. How will the withdraw affect me if I decide to reapply for Canadian Citizenship in the future? Will this cause any significant issue or potentially lead to a rejection?
7. If I do not reply to the test, what is going to happen?
8. If I decide not to withdraw, but just to postpone the test to a later date so that I have enough time to think over this issue, what is the procedure? How many times do i have to reschedule for the test? And what is the maximum length of time that I have before my application would be finally closed?


Thank you very much!
If anyone has experience to such case or know the answer, please share them, I really appreciate your help!
Have a nice day.

Most of your questions are around the process of withdrawal which I don't know a lot about. But, withdrawal or even abandonment of your citizenship application shouldn't affect your current PR status in any way (as long as you continue to satisfy your PR obligations).

If you apply for citizenship again, I'd think it'd be part of their routine to check what happened with any prior applications so it might cause a bit of a delay but it's unlikely to affect the final decision on your application (as long as you don't have other issues).

Obviously, a lot of folks here would instantly swap their application progress with yours given a chance but of course one should do what they desire for themselves. I'll still say this, I think you should just examine the source of your decision/indecision and see if it could be a product of overthinking. For example, if you haven't dealt with immigration agencies frequently before, it's not uncommon to develop anxiety over some minor mistakes you made in your citizenship application and start assuming worst case outcomes. In most cases, it's usually over something meaningless. Obviously, I don't know your situation and again, since you're free to apply again anytime you want, it's not an irreversible course, but you should do a gut check.

If you worry over something and do not wish to discuss it in a public forum, you could consult a qualified immigration attorney. Generally many attorneys offer one-time consultations for a nominal fee and attorney-client interactions are generally protected (what you discuss is typically between you and your attorney only, the government is usually not allowed to use that information in prosecutions). So that's an option.

Otherwise, the environment seems unlikely to change in near future. Hypothetically speaking, another Stephen Harper could be elected in the next election and declare all immigrants are second class citizens but there's some time before that could happen. So the only uncertainty is around IRCC processing times. If that doesn't matter to you, you have a decent amount of to reapply if you decide so.

 

[bl2021]

Thank you everyone,

Also, how do I cancel my online citizenship test and withdraw my Canadian Citizenship Application?
Do I just send an email to the IRCC office or does it have to be in paper mail?

1. If I have already sent an email about withdrawing my application for Canadian Citizenship. Do I still have to fill out the "withdrawal request form [CIT 0027]" in writing and mail it to the local office responsible for the processing of my file?
2. If yes, how do I find out which office is the local office responsible for the processing of my file? And how do I find the mailing address for that local office?
3. Since I am not in Canada right now, is IRCC able to receive international mail? It could take more than normal delivery time because of the delays caused by Coronavirus, is there a deadline for the "withdrawal request form [CIT 0027]" to be delivered?


Thank you.