@pd123 PLEASE CONFIRM THE OFFICIAL FORM NUMBER FOR WHAT YOU RECEIVED
Again, PLEASE CONFIRM THE OFFICIAL FORM NUMBER FOR WHAT YOU RECEIVED.
This is in the lower left hand corner of the form, and has the format:
CIT #### (mm-yyyy) which may include a final capital letter indicating if it is the English or French version.
The likely official form number based on what you describe is CIT 0171 (10-2017); possible alternative is a version of PPQ (Physical Presence Questionnaire) such as CIT 0205 (10-2017).
In particular, you say it is the "RQ- residence questionnaire," and if it is indeed the form titled "Residence Questionnaire," the form is PROBABLY CIT 0171 (10-2017), or a version otherwise dated. Again,
PLEASE confirm this.
(Description of questionnaire indicates this is NOT RQ-lite, which is CIT 0520.)
WHAT GETTING RQ MEANS:
The main thing RQ (issued at or after the test and interview) means is that your interviewer, or the Citizenship Officer responsible for your application, perceives a
reason-to-question-presence and you, the applicant, are required to more completely prove you meet the physical presence requirement for citizenship.
It is bit unfortunate you rushed submitting a response, especially since it is likely you could have and maybe should have included documents you could not obtain within just a day, such as a printout from OHIP (assuming you were living in Ontario at the time of applying) showing dates medical services were obtained (unless there were none). This is something which warrants taking the time to carefully and diligently complete, double checking all your facts, putting it aside for at least a day before reviewing it thoroughly, and potentially doing some extra homework, especially as to the collection and submission of supporting documents.
The seriousness of this can range widely, but it is nonetheless a substantially important step at the least. However, it can be so serious as to mean IRCC might not conclude you have met your burden of proof UNLESS your submission affirmatively and to a large extent objectively documents
ALL the days of physical presence you have declared . . . meaning, for example, IRCC might not infer presence in Canada the days between a date of entry and next shown date of exit, requiring some objective proof you were actually present in Canada those days. This can be tough for some applicants. Easy for applicants with a solid work history showing physical presence at a work site in Canada while employed by a readily identified and verifiable employer. Not so easy for applicants with periods of unemployment, self-employment, or employment with an employer which does NOT have an obvious workplace in Canada.
TIME LINE:
Thus, the impact on the time line can vary, and vary greatly.
If this RQ was triggered by criteria automatically triggering RQ without any overt or explicit suspicions, in that case a solid response to the RQ could facilitate minimal delay. Likely to be at least a month or three, potentially longer.
On the other hand, if this RQ was triggered by overt concerns about your physical presence, or explicit suspicions (especially any perception of compromised credibility, and even more so if there is any suspicion of intentional deception), such that the Citizenship Officer will review the submission pursuant to the File Preparation Template (or its current equivalent), that could result in a lengthy delay.
FRANKLY, the TIME LINE IS NOT the PRIMARY CONCERN:
I do not have any idea how strong the merits of your case are. To be frank, however, the forum is NOT seeing many reports of RQ at this stage of processing. The implication is that if RQ is issued, at this stage, it is fairly likely there is indeed a substantial concern. As noted, the RQ may be triggered by more or less mechanically applied criteria, but these days the odds appear to be higher that there is an explicit and somewhat serious concern.
Which is to say that the primary concern for someone issued RQ at or following the test and interview should be focused on submitting a response which will BEST SUPPORT A POSITIVE OUTCOME. How long it will take is, in this situation, a secondary concern. Proving actual physical presence is the PRIMARY CONCERN.
It is difficult to say whether you were issued RQ because of circumstances triggering formal criteria for issuing RQ or whether IRCC perceives cause to overtly question your accounting of days present in Canada. So I do not mean to cause alarm. If you have a strong case, and submitted a response which well-documents your strong case, this should go well, or at the least OK.
I note for example you have previously queried about living abroad after applying. This in conjunction with an error in the presence calculator could easily be WHY an applicant is issued RQ (rather than, say, RQ-lite). If you applied with a comfortable margin over the minimum, a "buffer" many call it, AND you have well-documented your presence in Canada, this should not be much of a problem.
If your application is now on a
presence-case-track, in contrast, that is more complex, more complicated, and more serious. And likely to take longer. And the outcome may be at stake (depending on the particular facts and circumstances in your case).
Again,
PLEASE confirm for us that this is the CIT 0171 form, or if not, which form it is. This information helps keep the forum informed so we can offer more and better information for those with questions.
Yup the mysteries of IRCC.