For clarity, notwithstanding the lack of certain benefits the Canadian who is a citizen has that the Canadian who is a PR does not (and yeah, of course the right to vote looms large), generally, as a Canadian she has the same freedoms under Canadian law as Canadian citizens.
Beyond that . . . I was born among, and have mostly lived among the more privileged (the privilege of being born and living in the "
West;" although not anywhere near close to the upper echelons of privilege), and recognize there is no way I can imagine what many, many millions of people endure navigating life without documentation of status for where (the geo-political jurisdiction) their lives are in fact rooted. Meanwhile, immigration and other issues related to international movement of undocumented migrants and immigrants (acknowledging the profound disparity imposed just in recognizing a difference, let alone treating differently the documented and undocumented) is a huge, huge subject, rife with discrimination and injustice (for far too many the world is exceedingly harsh). Just to think of this triggers my deep underlying idealistic ideologies (
each according to their needs, from each according to their ability, with wide allowances in the latter but not so much the former), while also acknowledging how deeply entrenched my own hypocrisies are (if only one had the courage to truly practice what they preach), in this forum I generally steer wide of all that, it being tough enough to focus on addressing how things actually work in regards to real-life decision-making.
Which is to say, with context, I get the hardship of it and recognize that this too often has little weight when wrangling with how to better navigate the system recognizing how things actually work.
I understood you to be inquiring about how to handle the situation this applicant for citizenship currently faces, it being clear they do not meet the necessary requirements for a grant of citizenship, but can continue to pursue the application to a hearing with a Citizenship Judge. To reiterate, to be clear, NO expertise needed, here, to recognize as many have in posts above, that
withdraw and
re-apply is the way to go. No loss of freedom.
Note, under Canadian immigration law she is NOW and has been a "
Canadian;" has been since the day of landing and becoming a Permanent Resident. This has been and is home (it appears), and can continue to be permanently her home (only subject to loss of status based on personal choices and actions which do not involve any at all onerous restrictions -- a very liberal presence obligation plus no serious criminality, and no engaging in terrorism or such). While there are some important benefits of citizenship the PR does not enjoy, otherwise a PR has as much freedom under Canadian law as a Canadian citizen.
Get it right making the new application. A properly completed application should go as smoothly as an application can go, and be among those benefitting from the faster timelines. Congratulate her when done, and let go the regrets (and, after all, it was her cake to properly bake as well).
Apart from the fact
NO judge can do that, NO matter how compassionate they are, if the applicant did not meet the minimum physical presence requirement as of the day the application was made (signed),
for the purpose of figuring out what to do,
remember the timeline to proceed to a CJ hearing appears to be extraordinarily long, longer than it is likely to take to get to the oath with a new application (assuming there are no security, criminality, or status-related issues).
There is NO credit toward the physical presence requirement for "
time spent as Temporary Non-resident."
For general adult applicants and days they are physically present in Canada, they get:
-- a full day credit for each day present in Canada with Permanent Resident status
-- a half-day credit for each day present in Canada with Temporary Resident status
There are
no other credits toward the actual physical presence requirement. In particular, there is no credit for time in Canada as a "
non-resident" or pending application for refugee or protected person status prior to the claim being accepted, or time spent in Canada remaining here without otherwise being issued Temporary Resident Status (this includes applicants who do not have verifiable implied status for gaps in pre-PR status as well as failed refugee claimants).
There is some cloudiness in how you describe things.
Note that the oft times mixed use of terms like "
resident," recognizing profound differences in the colloquial meaning versus technical meaning in terms of immigration status, can be confusing.
Many FNs remain in Canada for various periods of time, some very lengthy periods of time, without having either Temporary or Permanent "
Resident" status. Even though they are an in-fact resident here for a long time. Some of this is legal (there is a range of circumstances in which a FN is not subject to deportation even though they do not have Temporary Resident status here). Some not. Neither count toward meeting the physical presence requirement.
