I need help from you all. I am about to apply to renew my PR card. I live in Windsor and commute to work in the US so I need to have a card that is valid. I had periods when I had to be in the US for weeks or months at a time so I had to rent an apartment there. my family was always in Canada so I kept my apartment in Canada also.
1. Problem is I had residencies in both countries at once and I’m not sure what address to use?
2. I had at least 500 exit from Canada over past 5 years so There is a high likelihood that I will get selected for secondary review. However all my exits was to the US. What is the best way to avoid secondary review? Should I submit the documents they ask for secondary review in advance?
So far as Canada is concerned, what matters most is that you are in compliance with the PR Residency Obligation. A PR does not need a valid PR card to enter Canada via private transportation.
So, unless you need the PR card for some other reason, even if the PRC application is referred for Secondary Review that should not be too problematic.
In particular, assuming you commute via private automobile, you do not necessarily need a currently valid PR card in order to return to Canada daily or weekly. Indeed, a pattern of regularly commuting is readily apparent to border officers, and while presenting an expired PR card may occasionally result in additional questions and sometimes a referral to Secondary, that should go relatively smoothly, and the likelihood of a referral to Secondary should decrease significantly after the second or third time (if not the first).
Obviously, a pattern of daily commuting better establishes the extent to which you maintain ties in Canada, as compared, say, to periodically returning to Canada for weekends or holidays.
While you do not describe the commuting pattern in detail, there is some suggestion (given the apartment in the U.S.) it has NOT been a DAILY commute. On the other hand, you refer to "500 exits" from Canada during the preceding five years, which does suggest a regular pattern of some sort.
Assuming you either entered Canada through a regular PIL (booth) examination, presenting PR card to booth officer, OR you have used NEXUS driving your own vehicle, IRCC will be able to readily access a record of the times you entered Canada. Unless you are a U.S. citizen, it should also be able to access the record of your exits, as reflected by entries into the U.S.
By the way, 500 entry dates into Canada automatically documents at least 500 days presence in Canada, and assuming these all involved staying in Canada overnight, this practically documents a minimum of 1000 days presence in Canada. Easily meeting the PR RO.
In other words, especially if you are indeed predominantly based in Canada,
unless the extent of your absences is significantly greater than you suggest, you should have minimal problems . . . no problems being allowed in at the border even without a valid PR card . . . no problem being issued a new PRC (and even if the PRC application is referred for a Secondary Review, that should not be so long as many report in the forum).
As for how to fill in the application: use your best judgment and be honest. Obviously, if you were staying outside Canada for more than a calendar month, you should list the actual address where you were living for that calendar month. Otherwise, list the address at which you were actually living for any given calendar month. Your history of absences will detail where you were actually staying anyway.
Submitting Additional Documents:
Probably no reason to submit any additional documents; no reason to submit any documents other than those called for in the application instructions and checklist.
In following PR and citizenship cases for a decade now, I have seen near zero credible evidence that including additional documents with an application will help. I have seen isolated claims otherwise, on occasion, but those are invariably unverified and largely suspect claims. On the other hand, there are scores and scores of reports, anecdotal and in official sources (IAD and Federal Court cases, and in the past some internal CIC memos), illustrating instances in which additional information made no difference.
And that is what makes sense. IRCC procedure is to make a decision based on the information specified in the forms for applying (be that for a PRC or a PR TD or citizenship). If that information is sufficient to make a decision, the decision is made accordingly. If that information is not sufficient, if IRCC has concerns requiring further examination of additional information, there is a process for that (such as a referral for Secondary Review), and thus the application will be referred to that process.
That is, if IRCC has questions which will typically result in an application for a PRC being referred to Secondary Review, it is NOT as if a processing agent will review additional information before deciding to refer the application to SR.
By the way, it appears that many if not most PRC applications referred for SR do not result in the PR being required to submit additional information. Often, if not usually, the PR simply has to wait.[/S]
