Hi - I don't want to alarm you as much as alert you to the idea that you're in a foreign country without any legal status. If you come to the attention of the CBSA their perspective will centre on you being in contravention of Canada's Immigration Act and their responsibility to enforce it.
If you can demonstrate that you're trying to fix your status, and not be here without authorization (legal status) then this is a good thing. If you're peddling about without any visible evidence that you're not just ignoring Canada's laws then the grounds for arrest could be your unlikeliness to appear for any further action.
A person can come to the attention of the CBSA in any number of ways, so a jealous or malicious person who gets wind of your status is a common source of CBSA statistics. A small car accident, your partner's friends and/or enemies, the jerk next door - ya just never know.
If you're in any country without status you can end up in detention awaiting removal, Canada too.
Good luck
I’ve already paid for the permanent residency common-law fee in the application, is that enough to show proof that I’m looking to restore my status?
We’re also during a pandemic, it would be very inconsiderate for me and heartbreaking to just go up and leave my partner of 4 years at our apartment where we both pay rent. And a country I have lived in legally for 7 years (had work permits before), I’ve only been out of status for 1 month. Also the Canadian international borders might not reopen for 2 years because of Covid so it makes no sense to apply Outland, it’s not that easy to just go up and leave everything behind. Canada is more my home than anywhere else now. Keep in mind I am 25 so most of my adult life has been here.
So it’s not like I’m just trying to stay in Canada out of status, I’ve been working non-stop on this application for the last 4 weeks.
I know what the risks of being out of status are, my question is regarding the solutions. Is it recommended I apply for restoration of status before I complete my application to avoid the risks? Or is it okay to just send it in along with my application?
Thanks