Work permit that comes with Sponsorship application (Question)

[Yourname]

Hey guys,

I sponsored for my wife and we put in her sponsorship and also applied for her work permit.
I was told that in less than 4 months after filing for sponsorship, she may receive her work permit.

So, we filed on Jun 5, got Acknowledgment of Receipt on Jul 31.
So hopefully we get her work permit soon.

My question is, once she gets her work permit and while still waiting to get her PR... can she leave the country for a short period (christmas holidays) and come back without any trouble?

We are all planning to go visit her parents (since we also had a baby recently) during the holidays.
Wanted to know if that's fine?

Thanks!

 

[profiler]

Hey guys,

I sponsored for my wife and we put in her sponsorship and also applied for her work permit.
I was told that in less than 4 months after filing for sponsorship, she may receive her work permit.

So, we filed on Jun 5, got Acknowledgment of Receipt on Jul 31.
So hopefully we get her work permit soon.

My question is, once she gets her work permit and while still waiting to get her PR... can she leave the country for a short period (christmas holidays) and come back without any trouble?

We are all planning to go visit her parents (since we also had a baby recently) during the holidays.
Wanted to know if that's fine?

Thanks!

OWP can take up to 4 months. So you can ask them about it in about 2 weeks.

The OWP only permits her to stay. It does not grant re-entry. So she would need to have a visitor visa that's valid still if she plans to cross the border; unless she is from a non-visa requiring country.

Passing the border isn't recommended because it is totally up to the CBSA to decide if she can re-enter. If for whatever reason they deny entry, the CIC can deem the application abandoned. It is highly subjective, and no one can guarantee re-entry.

Leaving for short periods is usually ok. But the CIC did state somewhere that a month might be the maximum.

I'll defer to more senior membership to fill in or correct what I've said here.

 

[canadianwoman]

It depends what country she is from. If she needs a visa to enter, and does not have a multiple-entry visa, then she should apply for one before she leaves Canada.
If she does not need a visa to enter Canada, then there is some risk in leaving when you have an inland application, but she will probably be let back in.

 

[Yourname]

Thanks guys!
She's from the Philippines.

Wouldn't the work permit mean she can leave and re-enter as needed?

 

[Ponga]

Thanks guys!
She's from the Philippines.

Wouldn't the work permit mean she can leave and re-enter as needed?

No. It actually states that it does NOT authorize re-entry.

 

[CDNPR2014]

Thanks guys!
She's from the Philippines.

Wouldn't the work permit mean she can leave and re-enter as needed?

she needs a separate visitor's visa to re-enter. the OWP only gives her the right to work in canada while she's waiting for her app to process.

 

[Yourname]

she needs a separate visitor's visa to re-enter. the OWP only gives her the right to work in canada while she's waiting for her app to process.

Ah, I see.. thanks. Thanks Ponga!
Her visitor visa is expiring next month. So we were thinking once we have the work permit in hand, we can apply to renew her visitor visa to leave around the holidays.

Except the work permit may take another 2-3 weeks.

 

[Yourname]

Oh one more thing to add:

While visitor status document says expiration is October 6, 2016. Her visitor visa (multiple re-entry, stuck to passport) expires in September 02 2018.

This should make it fine for her to leave for the holidays, right?
And by that time, she will have her work permit, and an unexpired, multiple re-entry visa.

 

[Yourname]

Hey guys,

Just adding to this.
So now she has a work permit, and a multiple re-entry visitor visa. However, her visitor status expired in Oct 2016. After looking around, lawyer said she can't leave the country and return showing the multiple re-entry visitor visa. She will now need to apply for a TRV that is connected to her work permit.

Is that true, or is that a quest for getting more money from us?

 

[profiler]

Hey guys,

Just adding to this.
So now she has a work permit, and a multiple re-entry visitor visa. However, her visitor status expired in Oct 2016. After looking around, lawyer said she can't leave the country and return showing the multiple re-entry visitor visa. She will now need to apply for a TRV that is connected to her work permit.

Is that true, or is that a quest for getting more money from us?

You said, "visitor status document says expiration is October 6, 2016. Her visitor visa (multiple re-entry, stuck to passport) expires in September 02 2018." Does she have both a Multiple Entry Visa and a Visitor Record?

If she has a MEV in her passport (it will be stuck in there), then she can attempt re-entry as long as that's valid. If she has a visitor record stapled to her passport, make sure she returns that to CBSA before she leaves...

 

[Yourname]

You said, "visitor status document says expiration is October 6, 2016. Her visitor visa (multiple re-entry, stuck to passport) expires in September 02 2018." Does she have both a Multiple Entry Visa and a Visitor Record?

If she has a MEV in her passport (it will be stuck in there), then she can attempt re-entry as long as that's valid. If she has a visitor record stapled to her passport, make sure she returns that to CBSA before she leaves...

Sorry, no more visitor record. Now, she has a Work Permit expiring in 2018. She received this Work Permit while waiting for our Spousal sponsorship to process.
And yes, MEV (Visitor) expiring in 2018.

So she can come back into Canada showing her MEV (Visitor) even though now her status is that of a Worker?

 

[profiler]

Sorry, no more visitor record. Now, she has a Work Permit expiring in 2018. She received this Work Permit while waiting for our Spousal sponsorship to process.
And yes, MEV (Visitor) expiring in 2018.

So she can come back into Canada showing her MEV (Visitor) even though now her status is that of a Worker?

She cannot use the Inland OWP to pass the border. She should bring it with her though and show the CBSA to strengthen her case for why she has returned to Canada. The Visitor Visa from her passport is what she needs to pass the border. As long as that hasn't expired, she can attempt to cross.

 

[Yourname]

She cannot use the Inland OWP to pass the border. She should bring it with her though and show the CBSA to strengthen her case for why she has returned to Canada. The Visitor Visa from her passport is what she needs to pass the border. As long as that hasn't expired, she can attempt to cross.

I see. Thanks!
We even called CIC today and they said the same thing, as long as the TRV is not expired and she has a valid permit of some sort (in this case, OWP), she should be able to come in.

We will also have our 21 month old baby in tow so hopefully we won't be too inconvenienced

 

[profiler]

I see. Thanks!
We even called CIC today and they said the same thing, as long as the TRV is not expired and she has a valid permit of some sort (in this case, OWP), she should be able to come in.

We will also have our 21 month old baby in tow so hopefully we won't be too inconvenienced

It's up to the CBSA. The TRV == valid permit. They would permit her to stay as a visitor (at a minimum). Recall when she originally entered Canada with it. Same scenario. The OWP just strengthens her case for being able to return.