Thanks for a detailed reply. Can you advice what would be the best option for the person who is not ready to move permanently, family citizenship is important to get and then after period of 3 years from now, he can move permanently for good. As you mentioned new PR will not going to help and I will still be questioned at the POE regarding the RO compliance. This makes it difficult then.
I am not qualified to offer advice.
Any advice offered in this forum should be approached with elevated skepticism . . . THIS IS NOT a PROPER VENUE for GIVING ADVICE. For advice, see a licensed, reputable professional!
This forum is a good resource for sharing information and experiences. Advice in the nature of what is obvious or at least conventional wisdom, as in what is generally well understood, is OK. And I offer some of that, advice like "follow the instructions," "be honest," and "for a PR in breach of the Residency Obligation, the sooner the PR returns to Canada the better the PR's chances of keeping PR status."
A big, big part of why this forum is not suitable for giving or obtaining advice is the extent to which many individual details, the particular facts and circumstances in the individual person's case, can and will influence how things go. NOT a good idea to come anywhere near close to sharing enough personal details here to even approach engaging in a useful analysis. And, anyway, future contingencies play a huge role in how things will actually go.
For example: as I previously noted, absent what is referred to as a "change in circumstances," the positive H&C decision mostly will, in effect, reset the Residency Obligation clock. What will constitute a "change in circumstances" will vary greatly from one person to another. Generally, short trips abroad are not at all likely to trigger RO compliance questions or issues. But it would be very, very difficult to forecast if and when the amount of time abroad might trigger RO compliance questions upon arrival at the Port-of-Entry (PoE) when returning to Canada.
If, for example, you come to Canada for a time, and obtain a new PR card, it is fairly likely you could leave and return to Canada several times without being questioned, at the PoE, about RO compliance, even though the RO still applies and even though you have not been IN Canada at least 730 days within the five years preceding the date you are examined upon arrival here. But as I also previously mentioned, if you go abroad for extended periods of time, notwithstanding the previous favourable H&C decision, the border officials can examine you in regards to RO compliance and if you have not been IN Canada at least 730 days within the preceding five years, as of that day, determine you are in breach of the RO and make a decision to terminate your PR status.
Beyond that the variability of circumstances, and the vagaries of decision-making, make it incredibly difficult to predict how things will go. Just the number of days here, number of days abroad, frequency of the travel, and so on, can affect how it goes. The basics are clear: the longer you are in Canada, and the more frequently you return to Canada after you go abroad, and the sooner you make the move to actually stay in Canada, the better your chances of not running into a problem. But translating that rather imprecise outline into a practical plan, a reliable plan, is very difficult, and is moreover subject to all the vagaries of real life contingencies the future will likely throw at you.
And for you, there is no guarantee you will actually be issued a new PR card . . . and even if issued one, whether that will be done before you need to go abroad again. Thus, for example, even if a new PR card is issued it might not be mailed to you but instead require an in-person pick-up; if in the meantime you have gone abroad, you will once again need to apply for a PR Travel Document in order to return to Canada in order to pick up the PR card in person. There is a real RISK of a negative decision for that PR TD application, despite the necessarily positive H&C decision underlying the issuance of a new PR card.
It gets complicated. There are many directions in which things can go.
ALL THAT SAID: There is no harm in trying. And if you apply for and are issued a new PR card, a PR card you actually receive, that will, at the least, give you some more time . . . from several months, to a year, perhaps even two . . . with how long again subject to variables like how often and for how long you return to Canada. And as a person with family settled in Canada, even if you encounter a negative RO compliance decision in the future, if by then you are ready to settle and stay in Canada, you probably have decent odds of being allowed to keep PR status in an appeal. Again, it gets complicated. The main thing is to recognize the limitations and be prepared to deal with contingencies.
In regards to some of the vagaries in how things go, the contingencies: as already noted, the date a PR card expires is not relevant if and when PoE officials are examining a PR for RO compliance. But, presenting a valid PR card, and particularly one whose date of expiration is two or more years away, increases the chances a returning PR will not even be questioned about RO compliance. After all, the vast majority of PRs are not asked questions about RO compliance when they go through border control. In contrast, the longer the absence, the bigger the risk there will be RO compliance questions. Lots and lots of variability in how things will actually go for a particular individual.
Spouse-sponsored PR back-up plan: The PR with a spouse living in Canada who is qualified to sponsor the individual for PR, if necessary (if PR status is lost), fortunately has a back-up plan. Even this, however, is subject to the vagaries of real life contingencies . . . not too long ago, for example, a forum participant suffered the sudden, unexpected death of his spouse, which closed the door on the back-up plan. In his case their children, living in Canada, were still dependents, still minors, so there was a big, big H&C factor based on the interests of minor children which enabled him to get relief and keep PR status despite having spent very little time in Canada himself. But of course he had to actually relocate to Canada and I have not seen any follow-up reports about how that has gone.
