Absolutely no need to worry. The liberal government stopped opening new cases. Just relax and wait for your citizenship.Good morning
I'm a protected person and I never traveled back to my home country or renew my passport, but I did use it to travel twice to a third country where they don't accept refugee travel documents (Arabic countries).
When I received my COPR, I remember asking the officer from CBSA when she returned my original passport and other documents, if I can travel with my passport, she said of course you can travel with it but do not go back to your home country.
I'm really confused.. should I worry?
Refugee status cessation and PRs applying for citizenship
- Thread starter dpenabill
- Start date
It is clear the Liberal government has not been nearly as aggressive in pursuing cessation as the Harper Conservative government was.
However, actually, the government statistics show that there were 81 new cessation applications made in the first six months of THIS YEAR, and 94 in all of 2016, showing that not only is Canada continuing to open new cessation cases under the Liberal government, it appears the government is pursuing more this year than last.
See http://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/Eng/RefClaDem/stats/Pages/RPDVacStat.aspx
The number of these cases which have been finalized in the last two years is down considerably, but the government's information does not illuminate why (my recollection is that a large number may have been on hold pending judicial review, which as the cases referenced in posts above illustrate, mostly have not gone in the PR-refugee's favour).
Nonetheless, the odds are probably good that Derut will be OK. The consequences of cessation are so severe, however, if it is at all feasible (affordability looming large), it would be a good idea to at least consult with a reputable, competent immigration lawyer who is familiar with refugee issues and cessation in particular.
Blanket assurance that nothing will be done is reckless. The UNHCR guidelines, which are operative in cessation cases, specifically provide that there is a presumption of reavailment if a protected person obtains or uses a passport from the home country. While this presumption is rebuttable, and for both Derut and NonaArso it appears it should be relatively easy to rebut this presumption, this is nonetheless a serious matter which warrants due consideration before proceeding to make a citizenship application.
The few facts referenced by both Derut and NonaArso suggest the odds are favourable, that it appears IRCC is more likely to proceed with the citizenship application (in these circumstances) rather than suspend processing while there is a referral to CBSA to investigate and determine whether to proceed with cessation. But lawyers who are engaged with IRCC and CBSA relative to refugee issues, and on a regular basis, should have a much better perspective on the risks and, very importantly, can review the relevant facts and background with the prospective applicant to better assess the particular risk for that individual.
Again, given the severity of the consequences if the government does make an application for cessation, a consultation with an appropriate professional would be the prudent thing to do before making the citizenship application.
The main reason I started this topic, in the summer of 2015, was very much a reaction to the scope and impact of the BAD ADVICE too often being given PR-refugees. There are, indeed, scores of reports and many occasions in this forum in which PR-refugees had been wrongly advised they should obtain a passport before applying for citizenship. The reports refer to this advice coming from call centre representatives, CBSA officers at a PoE, local office personnel, among others who should have known better but obviously did not.
The odds are good that neither of you will have a problem. BUT, as I emphasized above, the potential consequences are so severe, that before applying for citizenship it would be prudent to review your own particular facts, the whole range of them, with a professional who is familiar with refugee issues generally and cessation in particular.
Since the passport has never been used, odds are particularly good for Derut a, compared to someone who has used the passport, such as NonaArso reports. The absence of any travel to the home country is a big plus, but as I also noted above the UNHCR guidelines, which govern cessation, just obtaining the home country passport supports a presumption of reavailment.
The particular facts in your respective cases are important. Reviewing your particular circumstances with an appropriate professional would be a good precaution to take before applying for citizenship. If you apply for citizenship, after all, you will need to disclose and provide a copy of the home country passport.
It is feasible that IRCC citizenship processing agents are not screening applicants for potential cessation, or at least not doing so unless there are blatant indications of in fact reavailment. But again, the potential consequences are so severe (loss of all status to live in Canada), this is not something the prudent protected person should gamble on without carefully considering what is at stake.
there is now no war in east europe, haiti, jamaica and sri lanka, they dont need protection, once they travel there as PR they should be sent next flight back home.
I renews my passport too:/ Im aware I cannot travel to my country and so i never did. But as soon as I became PR, CIC sent me back my passport and asked me to obtain new SIN (the old one starts with "9", that means refugee, new one starts with "3") This whole thing made me think that I changed status and Im no longer a refugee, so I can use my passport, Its got expired and so was my travel.doc. So I renewed passport of my country. My friends did the same and told me its all good and since you're PR you no longer eligible to renew your travel doc, and I need to renew my country's passport. I had zero doubts about it. So confusing !!
Later on, when I was planning to travel to Paris, my travel visa application wasnt accepted, they said I need to use travel doc only! So I went to passportCanada and I even brought that new passport with me. PassportCanada got angry and took my passport away saying im not supposed to do that!, then asked me to write an explanation letter and explain why did I renewed it. Then 2-3 weeks after that episode they sent me a new travel.doc. I wasn't even trying to hide anything, i was as honest as it gets. I even brought that stupid passport along with all my flight tickets to europe etc and said that im very confused and I wanna travel but nobody wants to give me visa. I explained in the letter that I've had this passport for only 4 days and never used it and never planned to go home. I had no intention to go back home. There was a war at that time actually. And im also a lesbian, that's like double suicide to go back there. I didnt even travel back home when my father was dying, he passed away , i didnt even go say goodbye, it was very very tough decision but I had no choice. After i spoke with passportcanada they issued me a new travel.doc.
The fact that CIC gave me back that passport and didn't warn me not to renew it made me think it's fine to have/use your passport from that moment on. I was about to apply for citizenship but found out this can lead to cessation. Im scared to death. My life is here, ive been living in Canada for almost 10years. But now instead of applying im having anxieties and taking medications. Im really scared
Spoke with a lawyer, he said you got like 50/50 chance they would read your explanation letter and have a mercy on you and let your application pass through. Also, I dont know where is that passport now, maybe passport canada sent it to CIC or CBSA? But I haven't got any mails (at least im not aware of any) ever since that happened (this was 2 years ago btw) I traveled to US ones with new travel doc and didn't have any issues at the border.
Im scared to apply for citizenship. I don't know what to do now :'(
Please! any advice??
u have to prove you are lesbian ! Otherwise any one can claim gay like many cases from jamaica & nigeria.
u seem to want that passport sooo so bad, get over it. Just simply apply and explain the passport is with cbsa/cic.I renews my passport too:/ Im aware I cannot travel to my country and so i never did. But as soon as I became PR, CIC sent me back my passport and asked me to obtain new SIN (the old one starts with "9", that means refugee, new one starts with "3") This whole thing made me think that I changed status and Im no longer a refugee, so I can use my passport, Its got expired and so was my travel.doc. So I renewed passport of my country. My friends did the same and told me its all good and since you're PR you no longer eligible to renew your travel doc, and I need to renew my country's passport. I had zero doubts about it. So confusing !!
Later on, when I was planning to travel to Paris, my travel visa application wasnt accepted, they said I need to use travel doc only! So I went to passportCanada and I even brought that new passport with me. PassportCanada got angry and took my passport away saying im not supposed to do that!, then asked me to write an explanation letter and explain why did I renewed it. Then 2-3 weeks after that episode they sent me a new travel.doc. I wasn't even trying to hide anything, i was as honest as it gets. I even brought that stupid passport along with all my flight tickets to europe etc and said that im very confused and I wanna travel but nobody wants to give me visa. I explained in the letter that I've had this passport for only 4 days and never used it and never planned to go home. I had no intention to go back home. There was a war at that time actually. And im also a lesbian, that's like double suicide to go back there. I didnt even travel back home when my father was dying, he passed away , i didnt even go say goodbye, it was very very tough decision but I had no choice. After i spoke with passportcanada they issued me a new travel.doc.
The fact that CIC gave me back that passport and didn't warn me not to renew it made me think it's fine to have/use your passport from that moment on. I was about to apply for citizenship but found out this can lead to cessation. Im scared to death. My life is here, ive been living in Canada for almost 10years. But now instead of applying im having anxieties and taking medications. Im really scared
Spoke with a lawyer, he said you got like 50/50 chance they would read your explanation letter and have a mercy on you and let your application pass through. Also, I dont know where is that passport now, maybe passport canada sent it to CIC or CBSA? But I haven't got any mails (at least im not aware of any) ever since that happened (this was 2 years ago btw) I traveled to US ones with new travel doc and didn't have any issues at the border.
Im scared to apply for citizenship. I don't know what to do now :'(
Please! any advice??
they seize pasdports, phones all the time and no one complains as u will get into further crap.
And how is this person supposed to prove they are lesbian, in your own opinion? And from what OP wrote, it shows this person has already been found to be a protected person, meaning your 'you have to prove you are lesbian' is not founded.I read the same article/news about the gay or lesbian cases they get from these countries, but still they have to prove they are bogus. Otherwise it is as good as a mere hearsay.
Hello everyone,
So yeah.. I am in big troubles. I went back to my home country using my old passeport. I didn't know that I couldn't/shouldnt. I wasn't the one asking for the refugee statut. My parents did. But because I was 15, they gave me the refugee statut.
I sent my application even though I am not optimist, at all. And I'm so scared, because I had big plans for my career here.
Do you guys have some news? good or bad?
Thank you
So yeah.. I am in big troubles. I went back to my home country using my old passeport. I didn't know that I couldn't/shouldnt. I wasn't the one asking for the refugee statut. My parents did. But because I was 15, they gave me the refugee statut.
I sent my application even though I am not optimist, at all. And I'm so scared, because I had big plans for my career here.
Do you guys have some news? good or bad?
Thank you
I am asking about my refugee travel document. When I applied for a renewal, passport canada kept the old one. Now I applied for the citizenship and explained that the first refugee travel document was kept and destroyed by Canada passport. I also attached a letter from passport canada explains that this is their standard procedure when a refugee applies to renew his travel document. Do you think this could trigger an RQ? I did not visit my country nor applied for it's passport since I came to Canada.
they destroyed your old travel doc? this is odd. Makes no sense to me...
so what if you there was valid visa to some third country or you need to keep records of your travel? When I applied to renew travel doc they sent me back both, new and old one.
so what if you there was valid visa to some third country or you need to keep records of your travel? When I applied to renew travel doc they sent me back both, new and old one.
Yes it is a Canadian travel document, and I have a letter from them stating that they kept it.