Received online test invitation but can't be "physically present in canada"

[nyima]

Hi all,

I have just received my online test invitation (originaly submission in September 2019 and resubmitted in December 2019 due to correction). The instruction requires the applicant to be "physically present in Canada" when taking the online test. I'm presently living in the US and can't travel to Canada due to Covid 19. Have anyone encountered this? I will contact IRCC but just curious to see if anyone here had to deal with a similar situation.

 

[BOYX]

Hi all,

I have just received my online test invitation (originaly submission in September 2019 and resubmitted in December 2019 due to correction). The instruction requires the applicant to be "physically present in Canada" when taking the online test. I'm presently living in the US and can't travel to Canada due to Covid 19. Have anyone encountered this? I will contact IRCC but just curious to see if anyone here had to deal with a similar situation.

Yes, unfortunately you will be required to take the test in Canada. No one knows what the potential ramifications of taking the test abroad are. However, the general consensus is that it would be best if you travelled into Canada to give the test, or alternatively, you postpone the test once again.

Regarding your situation, it is in my understanding that any Canadian Nationals AND Permanent Resident's of Canada are allowed into Canada irrespective of where they depart from. As someone staying in the US, you may have some further requirements, but you currently have the right to head back home.

I confirmed this by checking flights from Dallas (random choice) to Toronto: airlines are still running the route both ways - presumably for Canadians & PRs given the Foreign National ban AND Americans wishing to go back home from Canada.

Therefore, your decision boils down to whether you are willing to travel or not.

If you defer the test, you may end up waiting for a long time - possibly over a couple of years. A member on this forum deferred their test long before the pandemic hit (think early 2019). They have yet to receive their follow-up test date two years since. Given the current massive backlog, you may possibly have to wait for even longer; absolutely zero regular applicants have had their application processed in ALL of 2020. IRCC is quite literally a year behind & they are still accepting applications for 2021.

No one can predict where your application may sit in the pile, but the potential outcomes are not too encouraging.

If you end up travelling for the test, beware that you may have to stay to take the oath (also required to be taken in Canada), OR you may have to make another trip. However, with the current angst the government has against Canadians travelling, the possibility of travelling a second time lays in balance.

Quite a few factors at play - but it really depends on how important getting a citizenship is for you right now and going forward.

 

[nyima]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I've decided to drive to the border before the deadline. It's complicated but is probably the right thing to do.
I'll post an update later.

Yes, unfortunately you will be required to take the test in Canada. No one knows what the potential ramifications of taking the test abroad are. However, the general consensus is that it would be best if you travelled into Canada to give the test, or alternatively, you postpone the test once again.

Regarding your situation, it is in my understanding that any Canadian Nationals AND Permanent Resident's of Canada are allowed into Canada irrespective of where they depart from. As someone staying in the US, you may have some further requirements, but you currently have the right to head back home.

I confirmed this by checking flights from Dallas (random choice) to Toronto: airlines are still running the route both ways - presumably for Canadians & PRs given the Foreign National ban AND Americans wishing to go back home from Canada.

Therefore, your decision boils down to whether you are willing to travel or not.

If you defer the test, you may end up waiting for a long time - possibly over a couple of years. A member on this forum deferred their test long before the pandemic hit (think early 2019). They have yet to receive their follow-up test date two years since. Given the current massive backlog, you may possibly have to wait for even longer; absolutely zero regular applicants have had their application processed in ALL of 2020. IRCC is quite literally a year behind & they are still accepting applications for 2021.

No one can predict where your application may sit in the pile, but the potential outcomes are not too encouraging.

If you end up travelling for the test, beware that you may have to stay to take the oath (also required to be taken in Canada), OR you may have to make another trip. However, with the current angst the government has against Canadians travelling, the possibility of travelling a second time lays in balance.

Quite a few factors at play - but it really depends on how important getting a citizenship is for you right now and going forward.

 

[cooldoc80]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I've decided to drive to the border before the deadline. It's complicated but is probably the right thing to do.
I'll post an update later.

all the best and hopfully you get in. could you please share how long you have been out of the country since you applied? I'm in a similar situation where my wife has already applied for citizenship 2 months ago and is thinking of travelling abroad for 6 months to pursue a diploma degree? do you think this could affect the processing of her citizenship in your opinion assuming she comes back when needed for test and oath?

thanks and all the best

 

[nyima]

I think our applications are evaluated based on our circumstance when we submitted our application. The fact that IRCC dragged so long to process it should not impact the processing our application. In other words, as long as we have met the requirements for citizenship when we applied, what we do and where we stay afterwards are irrelevant. Of course, we have to come back to Canada for the test and the oath ceremony.

all the best and hopfully you get in. could you please share how long you have been out of the country since you applied? I'm in a similar situation where my wife has already applied for citizenship 2 months ago and is thinking of travelling abroad for 6 months to pursue a diploma degree? do you think this could affect the processing of her citizenship in your opinion assuming she comes back when needed for test and oath?

thanks and all the best

 

[dpenabill]

I think our applications are evaluated based on our circumstance when we submitted our application. The fact that IRCC dragged so long to process it should not impact the processing our application. In other words, as long as we have met the requirements for citizenship when we applied, what we do and where we stay afterwards are irrelevant. Of course, we have to come back to Canada for the test and the oath ceremony.

Not exactly how it works.

The applicant must meet the eligibility requirements on the date the application is made, AND CONTINUE to MEET the REQUIREMENTS right up to taking the oath.

The obvious example of what an applicant might do after applying that could change the outcome is do something resulting in an arrest for a criminal offence constituting a prohibition. A prohibition arising after applying will result in the applicant becoming ineligible and the application being denied. (Domestic assault and driving while impaired tend to be the most common *slips* some citizenship applicants make, blocking their path to citizenship.)

For those who leave Canada after applying, other than the logistical risks (as you mention, of course the applicant needs to travel to Canada for scheduled events, including the test and the oath), the current concern has to do with how long processing is taking. The applicant MUST remain in compliance with the Residency Obligation right up to taking the oath. In normal times this would rarely be an issue, given the very generous 2/5 years RO. But given current delays in processing, particularly if the application gets involved in non-routine processing adding to the timeline, some applicants living abroad after applying may encounter RO compliance issues.

Just within the last couple days a forum participant with a citizenship application pending has reported being issued a Removal Order, in a PoE examination, based on being deemed inadmissible due to a breach of the RO. AT BEST, that individual's citizenship application will be on hold (technically "suspended") pending the outcome of an appeal to IAD. And that individual MUST win the appeal just to keep PR status let alone to become a citizen.

 

[canuck78]

Yes, unfortunately you will be required to take the test in Canada. No one knows what the potential ramifications of taking the test abroad are. However, the general consensus is that it would be best if you travelled into Canada to give the test, or alternatively, you postpone the test once again.

Regarding your situation, it is in my understanding that any Canadian Nationals AND Permanent Resident's of Canada are allowed into Canada irrespective of where they depart from. As someone staying in the US, you may have some further requirements, but you currently have the right to head back home.

I confirmed this by checking flights from Dallas (random choice) to Toronto: airlines are still running the route both ways - presumably for Canadians & PRs given the Foreign National ban AND Americans wishing to go back home from Canada.

Therefore, your decision boils down to whether you are willing to travel or not.

If you defer the test, you may end up waiting for a long time - possibly over a couple of years. A member on this forum deferred their test long before the pandemic hit (think early 2019). They have yet to receive their follow-up test date two years since. Given the current massive backlog, you may possibly have to wait for even longer; absolutely zero regular applicants have had their application processed in ALL of 2020. IRCC is quite literally a year behind & they are still accepting applications for 2021.

No one can predict where your application may sit in the pile, but the potential outcomes are not too encouraging.

If you end up travelling for the test, beware that you may have to stay to take the oath (also required to be taken in Canada), OR you may have to make another trip. However, with the current angst the government has against Canadians travelling, the possibility of travelling a second time lays in balance.

Quite a few factors at play - but it really depends on how important getting a citizenship is for you right now and going forward.

Ramifications could be pretty serious and expect that the software will be able to identify where you are and should be able to identify if you are potentially using a VPN. Needing to make sure applicants were in Canada and didn't cheat were the 2 major issues that virtual tests needed to address.

 

[canuck78]

Hi all,

I have just received my online test invitation (originaly submission in September 2019 and resubmitted in December 2019 due to correction). The instruction requires the applicant to be "physically present in Canada" when taking the online test. I'm presently living in the US and can't travel to Canada due to Covid 19. Have anyone encountered this? I will contact IRCC but just curious to see if anyone here had to deal with a similar situation.

You will need to get a PCR test and have a quarantine plan and remain in Canada over 15 days.

 

[fr72]

Ramifications could be pretty serious and expect that the software will be able to identify where you are and should be able to identify if you are potentially using a VPN. Needing to make sure applicants were in Canada and didn't cheat were the 2 major issues that virtual tests needed to address.

There is no need for any fancy VPN detection software in tests. It's very simple - the CBSA knows you are not in Canada. They now track exits too.