SOFT LANDING- NEED GUIDANCE ON PR CARD

[javisam376]

Piggybacking off this thread if that's okay.

I have a question about applying for my first PR card when I first land. On the IMM5445 form they ask for your Canadian residential address, however, I don't have one as I would be entering Canada for the first time. I have family in Montreal so is it okay to use their address as my residential address even though I received PR through the FSW program? Would that create any problems in the future?

I ask only because it is my understanding that I would not be able to settle in Quebec after landing in Toronto but placing a QC address as my residential address implies that I would be settling there. Is this a valid set of assumptions?

Hi @Das86, I am in a very similar situation as yours.

Have you already done your soft landing? Did you got your PR card delivered to a Quebec address?

 

[conscientious]

The link is right. Your PR status does not guarantee approval of your PRTD application.

On whether you should be present or not for any procedures, I believe it is ideal after all.

Hi, I'm in a similar soft landing situation and also came across the settlement.org link below.

https://settlement.org/ontario/immigration-citizenship/landing-and-leaving/leaving-canada/i-need-to-leave-canada-but-do-not-have-my-pr-card-yet-what-should-i-do/

01. When they say PR status does not guarantee a PRTD could they be referring to the residency obligation?

Calculating days present in Canada
If you have been a permanent resident for five (5) years or more

• you must have been physically present in Canada for a minimum of 730 days within the five (5) years immediately before you apply for a PRTD.

If you have been a permanent resident for less than five (5) years

• you must show that you will be able to meet the minimum of 730 days of physical presence in Canada within five (5) years of the date you became a permanent resident.

02. Can you think of any other reason for refusing a PRTD request , provided that a complete application is submitted?

03. I noted PRTD application asks for evidence to prove your PR status. After a soft landing one would only have the stamped COPR and a confirmation of landing. Will these two documents be enough ?

 

[fayfeily]

Hi @Das86, I am in a very similar situation as yours.

Have you already done your soft landing? Did you got your PR card delivered to a Quebec address?

Similar situation here. If my destination city is Montreal but i provide an address in another city. Would this be ok? Please advise. Thanks.

 

[Nasrab2005]

As long as the address is in the province, i doubt it will be an issue. I did a soft landing last year for 3 weeks and gave the address of a relocation company i booked in Montreal. Everything went smoothly.

 

[amit202]

I have one query, after making a soft landing, for how long can you be outside Canada and must return back - so that it doesn't create any issues in Canadian Immigration when you try to enters again ?

 

[conscientious]

I have one query, after making a soft landing, for how long can you be outside Canada and must return back - so that it doesn't create any issues in Canadian Immigration when you try to enters again ?

In general, you must be physically present in Canada for a minimum of 730 days within the five (5) years to keep your permanent residency status. The time you can spend outside can be calculated based on that.

However, in order to return to Canada one should have either a PR card or a PRTD.

If you are thinking of applying for a PRTD, it has an expiration date. In general, given for 6 months, for single entry, unless you provided a valid explanation why you should be given a multiple entry PRTD.

 

[amit202]

In general, you must be physically present in Canada for a minimum of 730 days within the five (5) years to keep your permanent residency status. The time you can spend outside can be calculated based on that.

However, in order to return to Canada one should have either a PR card or a PRTD.

If you are thinking of applying for a PRTD, it has an expiration date. In general, given for 6 months, for single entry, unless you provided a valid explanation why you should be given a multiple entry PRTD.

thanks conscientious for the quick response but i have another query. In case i have a PR card, which is valid for 5 years, can i make an entry in Canada(after soft landing) after a gap of , say, 3-4 years ? Would that create any problem ?

For the citizenship, i think PR card can be renewed again for another 5 years and i can apply for citizenship once i have completed the minimum time period of stay required to apply for it. Just trying to understand due to some personal reasons.

Appreciate your response.

 

[conscientious]

thanks conscientious for the quick response but i have another query. In case i have a PR card, which is valid for 5 years, can i make an entry in Canada(after soft landing) after a gap of , say, 3-4 years ? Would that create any problem ?

For the citizenship, i think PR card can be renewed again for another 5 years and i can apply for citizenship once i have completed the minimum time period of stay required to apply for it. Just trying to understand due to some personal reasons.

Appreciate your response.

Provided that you possess a valid PR card, it is not re-entry to Canada that you need to worry about , but keeping the PR status for which a PR needs to satisfy the Residency Obligation.

Minimum residency obligations

You must meet the residency obligation to get a PR Card.

If you have been a permanent resident for five (5) years or more

• you must have been physically present in Canada for a minimum of 730 days within the past five (5) years.

Citizenship is few more steps down the line where you must be physically present in Canada as a permanent resident for 1,095 days within the five (5) years immediately before applying.

 

[Bs65]

thanks conscientious for the quick response but i have another query. In case i have a PR card, which is valid for 5 years, can i make an entry in Canada(after soft landing) after a gap of , say, 3-4 years ? Would that create any problem ?

For the citizenship, i think PR card can be renewed again for another 5 years and i can apply for citizenship once i have completed the minimum time period of stay required to apply for it. Just trying to understand due to some personal reasons.

Appreciate your response.

If you do not return to Canada 3-4 years after an initial soft landing although as a PR you will always be entitled to enter the country there will always be the chance that you might be reported for failing the RO leading to your PR status being revoked subject to appeal.

Financial or personal reasons are generally not a case for a successful appeal unless maybe involving a seriously ill close relative, mother / father for example even then no guarantees given it is expected that a new PR is aware of what they are signing up for in becoming a PR.

The validity of your PR card is irrelevant really to meeting the RO you simply must be in Canada for 730 days in the first 5 years from initial landing , not from the date a PR card is issued, anything less and you could lose your PR status when you enter the country.

 

[Ouluman]

As long as the address is in the province, i doubt it will be an issue. I did a soft landing last year for 3 weeks and gave the address of a relocation company i booked in Montreal. Everything went smoothly.

ok how much did it cost you

 

[samy_8789]

Dear All!

===========ALERT=========LONG POST============
i want to share my landing experience in toronto after getting COPR, so that it can be helfpul for others. Mainly, it was a smooth sailing. Prior to landing , i was very tense, because i was doing landing for only a week, so i was apprehensive that due to short landing, may not they process my PR delivery. However, there was no such problem.

there were mainly five steps

1) fill-in declaration card given to you on plane and declare money if you are bringing more than 10 ks CAD,......or.....do data entry in KIOSK terminals on
landing before passport control section

2) show passport and KIOSK printed slip to passport control officer and say i am new immigrant.

3) they will send you to other immigration section, where you have to show your COPR, possibly answer few questions, provide your PR delivery address,
show proof of funds ..

4) from there you have to come out and collect your luggage

5) after collecting luggage, you have to go to customs, if you have any list of goods to follow with you....if you have brought more than 10000 CAD, then
you have to take a signed/stamped receipt/copy from there as well, which will be needed by the bank once you go to bank for account opening.

--================================i will explain this process in detail in following paragraphs=============================================

1)

The declaration form the ariline gives you which you have to fill in the plane, and keep it with you. However, in toronto airport, now they have started mandatory
KIOSK slips system, so after landing , first of all you encounter kiosk terminals in corridors, or in front of passport control, where there is usually a staff to direct you towards the KIOSK. however, they don't help much in data entry. KIOSK interface is simple. you have to select your country from where you are coming, airline and the flight number,

and then, the important part, you have to scan the passport, so place your passport upside down, and place it on the scanner, such that the bio page of your passport is
on the scanner and touches the inside (stem) body of the KIOSK, once that scanning is completed, screen will give notification to see towards the camera above the screen, you have to take out glasses (if any), once picture is shot, and visible on the screen, you are ok to proceed to next screen. on the next screens, questions are similar to as asked on the declaration form, so if you have filled that card, it will be easy to select the relevant options, and proceed to the finish page. once you click finish,
you are given a printed slip from the kiosk, which you have to collect and proceed towards the passport control alongiwth your passport. Declaration card is never asked,
only passport and printed KIOSK slip now .

On the declaration form, there were only three options previously for category, "business", "personal", "student", so if you are immigrant, you had to fill "personal" on that form. also, you have to spectify your intended no. of days stay over there. so if you are doing soft landing (and if have a return ticket like me), you have to specify no. of days over there, thats why i was nervous, and thinking that may not be my PR delivery by mail procedure may initiate if they knew that i am returning by next week.

however, new kiosk software made my entry easy, as there was a new category was also there i.e. "immigrant" alongwith "business", "personal" and "student". also, there was no asking of intended no. of days over there in the KIOSK interface/software.......................so unless specifically asked, i was never going to mention my brief stay over there............

i had also mentioned on kiosk that i am bringing more than 10000 CAD to the country.


2)

then i proceeded to passport control alongiwth my passport and KIOSK printed slip, and said that i am new immigrant. then sent me to the other
immigration section.

3)

over here, there was no queue, however you have to stand on the start of the queue, unless any officer from the hall asks you to come forward towards his cabin,
he seen my COPR, accessed his system and verified, no question was asked about proof of payment. however he asked that on my COPR, my initial destination
was BC, Vancour, then why i am landing to toronto..............in reply i said that i did some digging and did more research and came to know that toronto is relatively cheaper and has more job basket than vancour, hence.........in the menatime, he signed and stamped my COPR and recorded palce of landing and date of landing. and said to me, your research is wrong, both vancour and toronto are equally expensive cities. i got impressed and said ok....i see.
(for record, i was a FSW category immigrant)
i had already given printed page of my PR delivery address of my friend in canada straightaway alongwith COPR, so that he may feel over-whelmed and mayn't ask any question about my soft landing..........he recorded that address........and said welcome to canada.......and directed me towards exit.

4) from there i exited and collected my baggage.

5) after collecting baggage, on the intersection of corridors, there was a staff member checking printed KIOSK slip of every person, and he directed me to the customs
office, while some other travellers with other data mentioned in their kiosk printed slip were free to go outside. in the customs office, i presented my goods to follow list, he checked each page, signed and stamped, and asked specifically, if there are any jewellary items or expensive watches in the list, to which i said NO. i requested him that i want a receipt/copy of money declaration that i have brought more than 10 K CAD, as someone on this forum previously said that it will be needed by bank while opening the account.

he then asked specifically that whether i have brought that money in cash or demand draft format. i said NO, i have 3 ks in cash and rest is loaded in my international enabled ATM debit card, to that he said that no money declaration form is needed, and bank will never ask for such form, and you will have no problem in bank acct opening. After that he directed me to the exit way, and here i was, in the international arrival lounge of Pearson International Airport, Toronto.

Although, i was initially in doubt that whether i have to fill in the declaration form given in plane or in KIOSK entry, that i am bringing more than 10 KS CAD. But, anyhow, i decided to go with the YES option over there, as the presence of NO, in that section might ring alarm bells in the minds of migration officer encountered on step 3, and he may ask for proof of funds (which i would have shown if asked, by providing bank statments of my local country bank for last 4 months drawn 3 days earlier + cash + ATM debit card and physically showing balance in my acct through banking app in my android set). however they never asked for proof of payment.

i hope that this information will be fruitful for people doing their first lanidng in the coming months.

Cheers

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. This is really helpful. Just want to confirm - have you received your PR card? If yes, have you received the same in your home country and did you use the PR card to enter into Canada? I have heard that even if you have managed to receive your PR card while you’re outside Canada, you shouldn’t be using the same to enter back into Canada simply because the card was never used while exiting Canada in the first place. In such a scenario, they can question you why did you leave before the card was issued to you. Also, having said the above, if you apply for PRTD instead, there is no guarantee that the same will be issued to you since it is at the VISA officer’s discretion. Thinking of all of this, I am confused whether soft landing would be a right thing to do or not. Please advise whether using a PR card while returning back at a later date to enter into Canada would be fine or not (given that you did not have the PR card when you left Canada in the first place).

 

[samy_8789]

Provided that you possess a valid PR card, it is not re-entry to Canada that you need to worry about , but keeping the PR status for which a PR needs to satisfy the Residency Obligation.



Citizenship is few more steps down the line where you must be physically present in Canada as a permanent resident for 1,095 days within the five (5) years immediately before applying.

Hi conscientious,


As per your reply, what I understand is that if the person has a valid PR card, he/she can enter into Canada without facing any issues.
However, I have heard that since your PR card and passport is scanned every time you leave or enter Canada, if the person leaves Canada before receiving his PR card (in case of soft landing), then there is no record of exiting the country using the PR card in the first place.

In such a scenario even if the person has managed to receive his PR card in his home country (by post or through friends) which he intends to use while going back to Canada, he/she can be questioned why he left at the time when he did not have the PR card. Also, the records would show that PR card was never used for exit but it is now being used to enter into Canada (which creates a mismatch of exit and entry in their records).

So my question is - Has anyone tried to use their PR card to enter into Canada without having exited using the same? Did they face any issues?

Also, I have read about PRTD which can be used as a second option, but getting a PRTD is not guaranteed as it is at the discretion of the Visa officer. This again seems to be a risky option to me.


I am planning to soft land in about two months and cannot move permanently because of work commitments in my home country. However, I confused if I am risking my PR status because of this. Please advise!

 

[Canada_cube]

If you do not return to Canada 3-4 years after an initial soft landing although as a PR you will always be entitled to enter the country there will always be the chance that you might be reported for failing the RO leading to your PR status being revoked subject to appeal.

Financial or personal reasons are generally not a case for a successful appeal unless maybe involving a seriously ill close relative, mother / father for example even then no guarantees given it is expected that a new PR is aware of what they are signing up for in becoming a PR.

The validity of your PR card is irrelevant really to meeting the RO you simply must be in Canada for 730 days in the first 5 years from initial landing , not from the date a PR card is issued, anything less and you could lose your PR status when you enter the country.

Please correct me if this is wrong. PR card and PR status are different things and you using them interchangeably. PR card is simply a travel document much as a passport is. Not every PR in Canada keeps a PR card from what I've read (it simply means they cannot travel by air out of Canada). Provided one doesn't intend to travel, one can meet RO even if they enter the 5th year and then stay on for 730 days to meet the RO before applying for a new PR card.

 

[cool_eagle]

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. This is really helpful. Just want to confirm - have you received your PR card? If yes, have you received the same in your home country and did you use the PR card to enter into Canada? I have heard that even if you have managed to receive your PR card while you’re outside Canada, you shouldn’t be using the same to enter back into Canada simply because the card was never used while exiting Canada in the first place. In such a scenario, they can question you why did you leave before the card was issued to you. Also, having said the above, if you apply for PRTD instead, there is no guarantee that the same will be issued to you since it is at the VISA officer’s discretion. Thinking of all of this, I am confused whether soft landing would be a right thing to do or not. Please advise whether using a PR card while returning back at a later date to enter into Canada would be fine or not (given that you did not have the PR card when you left Canada in the first place).

i havn't yet used, and havn't gone back. i received it in my home country by a friend. however, as per my understanding, receiving PR card in my home country is not a problem. and i can travel back and enter canada any time.

moreover, while u r exiting canada, they don't check anything, so there is no need to get scanned PR card or etc.

 

[cool_eagle]

i havn't yet used, and havn't gone back. i received it in my home country by a friend. however, as per my understanding, receiving PR card in my home country is not a problem. and i can travel back and enter canada any time.

moreover, while u r exiting canada, they don't check anything, so there is no need to get scanned PR card or etc.

Moreover, you can always leave any time, before issuance of PR card, as you can face any emergency in your home country, e.g. death of a close relative etc., so there is no compulsion. And, its not illegal. And, i havn't heard about any such issue over here in these forums, which i am going through for a couple of years. So, be relax, and you can do your soft landing, if you have some long-term plan spanning 1-2 years in your home country.