Continuing discussion from previous post; again, this will be very long.
Received the email to send additional information today (passport pages + entry/exit proof + proof of residence). Application received Jun 6th and the processing started on Sep 17th. Now wondering if it really takes a whole year to process the additional information!!
As previously noted,
this does NOT appear to be a referral for Secondary Review. Rather, it looks like this is about compliance with the PR Residency Obligation as of the date you made the application for a new PR card. That is, IRCC is questioning your account of actual presence in Canada during the relevant five years (June 4, 2013 to June 3, 2018), and is requesting documentation to corroborate (prove) your travel history, residence, and thus also your presence in Canada.
This may be little more than a program integrity check, perhaps even random, or perhaps triggered by technical criteria, in which case there should be NO problem so long as you made no misrepresentations, no big mistakes, and you have solidly been in compliance with the PR Residency Obligation, and you timely and appropriately respond to the requests.
OR it may have been triggered by overt concerns or even suspicions about you in particular, which if this seems possible (looking at things from the perspective of IRCC), including just the fact of
cutting-it-close (if, say, you have spent less than 900 days in Canada between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2018). The seriousness of this will VARY widely, depending on the specific facts and circumstances and reasons for questions, concerns, or suspicions. Unlike the better-practices approach for the application itself (for which it is prudent to follow the instructions and ONLY SUBMIT specifically what is requested), IF YOU APPREHEND the POSSIBILITY this was triggered BY OVERT CONCERNS (if for example, you have been
cutting-it-close),
it may be a good idea to lean toward submitting more proof, additional documentation tending to show where you have been living in Canada (including when), what you have been doing in Canada (again, including when), and to verify dates you entered Canada.
If you applied short of meeting the 730 days RO, and especially if your application purports to show you met the RO but in fact you were short, OR there is a significant risk IRCC has reason to suspect misrepresentation or you are currently short of complying with the RO, YOU MAY WANT TO SERIOUSLY CONSIDER SEEING A LAWYER.
What I have to offer is NO SUBSTITUTION for what a competent immigration lawyer can offer. No where near it.
Here is what I can offer about the process going forward:
Depending on the quality and persuasiveness of the documentation you submit, the next step may be:
-- a favourable decision to issue a new PR card, or
-- scheduling an in-person interview in a local IRCC office, to conduct a formal determination of compliance with the RO, or
-- referring the application for further review, that is, a referral for Secondary Review
There are other possibilities, but one of the above is the most likely next step. How it goes will depend in significant part on what you submit. This is your best opportunity to submit proof of your presence.
IF you reasonably apprehend this was more or less a program integrity check (possibly even random), that is that there is no factual basis for IRCC to have actual concerns about the truthfulness of what you submitted in the application and no reason to have concerns about your compliance with the Residency Obligation, the main thing is to timely make a responsive submission of the requested documents. Thus, for example, if your information was accurate (but for, say, some small errors) and you have been well-settled permanently in Canada for well over two years (and thus have a margin of presence significantly over 800 days), and you are currently living in Canada (even if you often travel abroad for short periods), odds are good there is no reason to worry. Submit a timely response. And wait and watch for further communication from IRCC.
This process does NOT ordinarily take nearly so long as many of those cases which are referred to SR, but will typically take a few months more than the routine process, which will be longer if there is an in-person interview scheduled.
The shortest timeline will happen if the next step is a favourable decision to issue a new PR card. Of course this will only happen if the documentation and information you now submit is deemed credible AND it objectively documents you were actually present in Canada for MORE than 730 days during the period June 4, 2013 to June 3, 2018 (precise dates based on the date you signed the application).
If you are scheduled for an interview that does not necessarily mean your response was inadequate. The interview may be mostly about verifying your information, including your identity and current presence in Canada.
However, if you are scheduled for an interview AND there are potential reasons for IRCC to have overt suspicions, or you are significantly short of compliance (especially if so as of the date the interview is scheduled, that is, in terms of presence during the five years immediately preceding the day of the interview), AGAIN it may be prudent to obtain the assistance of a lawyer.
In particular, IF this request was triggered by overt suspicion:
If this request was triggered by overt suspicion, either about possible misrepresentation, or about how much you were actually in Canada between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2018, it is fairly likely the next step will be an in-person interview, in large part a procedure to verify the information submitted. How this goes will depend, again, on what you submit, but also on what it is that IRCC has suspicions about.
If you apprehend there could be some substantial concern about possible misrepresentation, or about how much you were actually in Canada between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2018, it is important to OBJECTIVELY assess your situation and respond accordingly. The potential seriousness of this varies widely depending on what the facts are and what the facts might APPEAR TO BE.
If there are small discrepancies between your account of facts (such as travel dates), and what IRCC perceives, these are no big deal. The bigger the discrepancy, the bigger the deal, the more serious it can be.
Similarly as to concerns about being short of 730 days in Canada during the last five years. If you have been in Canada more than 900 days between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2018, no big deal, not likely there is an issue. If, in contrast, you have been
cutting-it-close (which obviously you have at least sometime since becoming a PR if you were once outside Canada for more than 1000 days in a stretch), HOW CLOSE matters.
It MATTERS how well settled in Canada it APPEARS you have been in the last two to three years.
IF THERE IS AN IN-PERSON INTERVIEW:
If there is an in-person interview, the outcome of that could be:
-- a favourable decision to issue a new PR card, or
-- a negative decision resulting in a Departure Order (which would constitute loss of PR status, subject to an appeal if you appeal), or
-- referring the application for further review, that is, a referral for Secondary Review
The rest of this post is ONLY relevant if there are reasons to be concerned about proving your RO compliance or there are possibly big discrepancies between the information you have provided and other information IRCC might have.
IF THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDED WAS INACCURATE:
If the information you provided in your application was inaccurate in any material respect, this is potentially a SERIOUS matter. Minor mistakes, small omissions, or slight oversights are
NOT a problem. If there are big discrepancies between what you stated in the application and what information IRCC might otherwise find, it would be time to LAWYER-UP.
IF, IF YOU WERE SHORT OF 730 DAYS:
That is,
IF you were in Canada fewer than 730 days between June 4, 2013 and June 3, 2018, by how much matters. In this regard, it also matters how many days you have been in Canada in the five years as of the date you send off your response to these requests, and likewise as of the date you attend an interview. The last is probably the most important. Thus, for example, if you are scheduled for an interview December 3, 2018, the number of days you have been in Canada between December 3, 2013 and December 3, 2018, is the MOST important calculation (if the total is less than 730 as of this date, there is a serious risk of being issued a Departure Order, or its equivalent).
IF, IF YOU WERE SHORT OF 730 DAYS and INFORMATION YOU PROVIDED WAS SIGNIFICANTLY INACCURATE: AGAIN, probably time to LAWYER-UP.
