ITA but not sure if CEC Eligible - URGENT!

[bhabna579]

Hi all, really need definitive advice on this since there are so many conflicting opinions, thanks for the help in advance!

Working in Canada on valid PGWP since Jan 2021, eligible for both FSWP/CEC with score 471. Recently since I finished 2 years at my job, my score bumped to 496 and I got an ITA for CEC (Jan 18 draw). I also then came across a reddit thread that says working outside Canada remotely doesn't count as CEC experience, and since then have been going down the rabbit hole of finding out if I'm still eligible.

While working for the last 2 years, I've travelled outside Canada quite a bit since my job is WFH, I would say approximately 10 months of the 2 years. They trips were not continuous, and I kept coming back to my home base in Vancouver frequently. Most places say I'd still be eligible since I've worked with valid authorization inside Canada as opposed to accepting a "remote job" in Canada from another country. I obviously have my rent proof, pay stubs, the basics etc. etc.
I also saw that even with valid work permit/residence, working from outside Canada while travelling wouldn't count since I wasn't physically here. So to sum up: WHAT COUNTS AS TRAVEL and WHAT COUNTS AS FOREIGN EXPERIENCE? It doesn't make sense to me to list my job experience as 9 different countries inc. Canada under the same Canadian company/job offer, but since I travelled 8 countries is that what I should do? Is there a duration cutoff like to only list places I was at over a month? Or do I just accept the invite, list all under travel and write a LOA for this?

Should decline the ITA and go back to my 471 score since I still have 13 months in Canada? How do I include the 10 months in the work exp. section in a way that makes sense? I'd still only have the one set of docs from my employer for the full 2 years.

Please help, RCIC people and candidates are all giving contradictory opinions!

 

[scylla]

Hi all, really need definitive advice on this since there are so many conflicting opinions, thanks for the help in advance!

Working in Canada on valid PGWP since Jan 2021, eligible for both FSWP/CEC with score 471. Recently since I finished 2 years at my job, my score bumped to 496 and I got an ITA for CEC (Jan 18 draw). I also then came across a reddit thread that says working outside Canada remotely doesn't count as CEC experience, and since then have been going down the rabbit hole of finding out if I'm still eligible.

While working for the last 2 years, I've travelled outside Canada quite a bit since my job is WFH, I would say approximately 10 months of the 2 years. They trips were not continuous, and I kept coming back to my home base in Vancouver frequently. Most places say I'd still be eligible since I've worked with valid authorization inside Canada as opposed to accepting a "remote job" in Canada from another country. I obviously have my rent proof, pay stubs, the basics etc. etc.
I also saw that even with valid work permit/residence, working from outside Canada while travelling wouldn't count since I wasn't physically here. So to sum up: WHAT COUNTS AS TRAVEL and WHAT COUNTS AS FOREIGN EXPERIENCE? It doesn't make sense to me to list my job experience as 9 different countries inc. Canada under the same Canadian company/job offer, but since I travelled 8 countries is that what I should do? Is there a duration cutoff like to only list places I was at over a month? Or do I just accept the invite, list all under travel and write a LOA for this?

Should decline the ITA and go back to my 471 score since I still have 13 months in Canada? How do I include the 10 months in the work exp. section in a way that makes sense? I'd still only have the one set of docs from my employer for the full 2 years.

Please help, RCIC people and candidates are all giving contradictory opinions!

Thee are no RCIC people here. If you want advice from an immigration consultant or immigration lawyer, then you'll need to hire one.

The short answer is that it will be up to IRCC how they assess your situation. No one here is going to be able to give you a definitive answer based on the information you've provided. 10 months out of 2 years is a long time to have spent outside of Canada within the 2 years you are claiming as Canadian work experience. But again, it will be up to IRCC how they assess this. In my mind, if each of these trips was just a few days or a week, you are most likely fine. If some of these trips were several weeks or over a month, then it becomes less certain. You might be best off getting a consult with an immigration lawyer. This situation is too complex for an immigration consultant / RCIC, IMO.

 

[GiveMeSomeLuck]

Hi all, really need definitive advice on this since there are so many conflicting opinions, thanks for the help in advance!

Working in Canada on valid PGWP since Jan 2021, eligible for both FSWP/CEC with score 471. Recently since I finished 2 years at my job, my score bumped to 496 and I got an ITA for CEC (Jan 18 draw). I also then came across a reddit thread that says working outside Canada remotely doesn't count as CEC experience, and since then have been going down the rabbit hole of finding out if I'm still eligible.

While working for the last 2 years, I've travelled outside Canada quite a bit since my job is WFH, I would say approximately 10 months of the 2 years. They trips were not continuous, and I kept coming back to my home base in Vancouver frequently. Most places say I'd still be eligible since I've worked with valid authorization inside Canada as opposed to accepting a "remote job" in Canada from another country. I obviously have my rent proof, pay stubs, the basics etc. etc.
I also saw that even with valid work permit/residence, working from outside Canada while travelling wouldn't count since I wasn't physically here. So to sum up: WHAT COUNTS AS TRAVEL and WHAT COUNTS AS FOREIGN EXPERIENCE? It doesn't make sense to me to list my job experience as 9 different countries inc. Canada under the same Canadian company/job offer, but since I travelled 8 countries is that what I should do? Is there a duration cutoff like to only list places I was at over a month? Or do I just accept the invite, list all under travel and write a LOA for this?

Should decline the ITA and go back to my 471 score since I still have 13 months in Canada? How do I include the 10 months in the work exp. section in a way that makes sense? I'd still only have the one set of docs from my employer for the full 2 years.

Please help, RCIC people and candidates are all giving contradictory opinions!

I'm no expert so I can only give my own opinions. If your payrolls were registered and processed in Canada (you pay tax, CPP, etc. to the government), then it should be counted as Canadian experience. You can always consult a lawyer, approximately $200-300 per hour.

 

[scylla]

I'm no expert so I can only give my own opinions. If your payrolls were registered and processed in Canada (you pay tax, CPP, etc. to the government), then it should be counted as Canadian experience. You can always consult a lawyer, approximately $200-300 per hour.

Unfortunately this is inaccurate. If someone is working remotely from another country (but still for a Canadian employer, on Canadian payroll, paying taxes, etc.) IRCC classifies this as foreign work experience and not Canadian work experince since the individual was outside of Canada. What makes the OP's situation unclear is that they were taking business trips (rather than working remotely for extended periods of time outside of Canada) however these business trips were so frequent IRCC may end up viewing this as remote work outside of Canada (and therefore foreign vs. Canadian work experience).

 

[Taran D]

Y

Unfortunately this is inaccurate. If someone is working remotely from another country (but still for a Canadian employer, on Canadian payroll, paying taxes, etc.) IRCC classifies this as foreign work experience and not Canadian work experince since the individual was outside of Canada. What makes the OP's situation unclear is that they were taking business trips (rather than working remotely for extended periods of time outside of Canada) however these business trips were so frequent IRCC may end up viewing this as remote work outside of Canada (and therefore foreign vs. Canadian work experience).

Remote work done in Canada is considered Canadian work experience and not the remote work done outland even if done for Canadian employer, even though they agree to it. (By IRCC)

 

[GiveMeSomeLuck]

Y
Remote work done in Canada is considered Canadian work experience and not the remote work done outland even if done for Canadian employer, even though they agree to it. (By IRCC)

But I read before that if you work for a US company in Canada, without payrolls being processed in Canada, it doesn't count as Canada experience.

 

[GiveMeSomeLuck]

Unfortunately this is inaccurate. If someone is working remotely from another country (but still for a Canadian employer, on Canadian payroll, paying taxes, etc.) IRCC classifies this as foreign work experience and not Canadian work experince since the individual was outside of Canada. What makes the OP's situation unclear is that they were taking business trips (rather than working remotely for extended periods of time outside of Canada) however these business trips were so frequent IRCC may end up viewing this as remote work outside of Canada (and therefore foreign vs. Canadian work experience).

Thanks for the correction!

 

[scylla]

But I read before that if you work for a US company in Canada, without payrolls being processed in Canada, it doesn't count as Canada experience.

That's correct too.

Has to be work for a Canadian employer that's done physically in Canada.