Residency Obligation - work remotely in a foreign country due to personal reasons

[zhroc]

Hey guys, I just got my PR card but start to worry about my renewal already. The situation is that even though I'm employed by a Canadian company, I plan to work remotely in the States for quite some time in the upcoming years due to some personal reasons.

Now based off my own research, it seems IRCC would be cool with this only if this is required by my company (some explanation letter required). But that's not my case, I'm doing this for my own reasons.

Does anyone know whether this would be a problem if I just work remotely for the entire 5 years? I still pay the taxes, buy the insurance, own a car, and might even rent a room in Canada.

I can provide more details of my situation if needed. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

 

[armoured]

Now based off my own research, it seems IRCC would be cool with this only if this is required by my company (some explanation letter required). But that's not my case, I'm doing this for my own reasons.

Does anyone know whether this would be a problem if I just work remotely for the entire 5 years? I still pay the taxes, buy the insurance, own a car, and might even rent a room in Canada.

You already know the answer - it's very unlikely this will work. If you wish to reside elsewhere for your own purposes, that's not meeting the terms of the residency obligation.

 

[scylla]

Hey guys, I just got my PR card but start to worry about my renewal already. The situation is that even though I'm employed by a Canadian company, I plan to work remotely in the States for quite some time in the upcoming years due to some personal reasons.

Now based off my own research, it seems IRCC would be cool with this only if this is required by my company (some explanation letter required). But that's not my case, I'm doing this for my own reasons.

Does anyone know whether this would be a problem if I just work remotely for the entire 5 years? I still pay the taxes, buy the insurance, own a car, and might even rent a room in Canada.

I can provide more details of my situation if needed. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

As said by the poster above, the time you spend working remotely in the US will not count towards RO.

There are specific requirements that need to be met in order to be able to count the time outside of Canada towards the residency requirement. Specifically, you need to be hired by the Canadian company for a role in Canada, and then at some point later, be transferred to a role outside of Canada. You would need paperwork from the company to back up this arrangement if that was your situation.

In your case it sounds like you are making the choice to work from another country yourself remotely rather than being transferred by your company to a role outside of Canada with your company's operations in that country. If that's the case, this will not count towards RO. It will count as time spent outside of Canada.

If you just got PR recently, the the good news is that you have some runway before this becomes a real issue for you. Maybe your personal circumstances will change in a couple of years and allow you to move to Canada.

 

[zhroc]

As said by the poster above, the time you spend working remotely in the US will not count towards RO.

There are specific requirements that need to be met in order to be able to count the time outside of Canada towards the residency requirement. Specifically, you need to be hired by the Canadian company for a role in Canada, and then at some point later, be transferred to a role outside of Canada. You would need paperwork from the company to back up this arrangement if that was your situation.

In your case it sounds like you are making the choice to work from another country yourself remotely rather than being transferred by your company to a role outside of Canada with your company's operations in that country. If that's the case, this will not count towards RO. It will count as time spent outside of Canada.

If you just got PR recently, the the good news is that you have some runway before this becomes a real issue for you. Maybe your personal circumstances will change in a couple of years and allow you to move to Canada.

Thank you so very much for the detailed answer! Just a few follow-up questions if I may:

1. Is there any official source for the specific requirements that you mentioned? I found this page that's on the topic but certainly not as detailed as your answer: https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=1466&top=10

2. Would IRCC be willing to count these days if I can prove my strong will to live in Canada for the long run? For instance: I was physically in Canada for 2.5 years before being approved of PR, for study and work. Plus, I'm pretty sure I will be physically in Canada for most of the next 5-year cycle. Because the reason for me being mostly in the States during this cycle is to accompany my GF's PhD study, which just started and will take about 5 years. (My GF was also in Canada before this for 3+ years.) After her graduation, we both plan to return to Canada.

Thanks

 

[canuck78]

Thank you so very much for the detailed answer! Just a few follow-up questions if I may:

1. Is there any official source for the specific requirements that you mentioned? I found this page that's on the topic but certainly not as detailed as your answer: https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=1466&top=10

2. Would IRCC be willing to count these days if I can prove my strong will to live in Canada for the long run? For instance: I was physically in Canada for 2.5 years before being approved of PR, for study and work. Plus, I'm pretty sure I will be physically in Canada for most of the next 5-year cycle. Because the reason for me being mostly in the States during this cycle is to accompany my GF's PhD study, which just started and will take about 5 years. (My GF was also in Canada before this for 3+ years.) After her graduation, we both plan to return to Canada.

Thanks

2. No special exception. This is personal choice. Other couples have had to make the hard decision to live separately or for your gf to do some of her thesis writing from Canada. Canada can’t operate on promises to live in Canada in the future. If you want to live in the US for 5 years I would look at the possibility of reapplying for PR. How are you legally able to work in the US? That will be the other issue. Most spouses of students aren’t able to work while accompanying a spouse.

 

[zhroc]

2. No special exception. This is personal choice. Other couples have had to make the hard decision to live separately or for your gf to do some of her thesis writing from Canada. Canada can’t operate on promises to live in Canada in the future. If you want to live in the US for 5 years I would look at the possibility of reapplying for PR. How are you legally able to work in the US? That will be the other issue. Most spouses of students aren’t able to work while accompanying a spouse.

Thank you for the reply. Right.. I guess I might need to make some hard decisions too. On that reapplying option though, I think the answer is most likely no, but can I reapply before my current PR expires?

And regarding working in the US, I'm just on a visitor visa here, working from home remotely for my job in Canada. But I'm not entirely sure how legit this situation is.

 

[canuck78]

Thank you for the reply. Right.. I guess I might need to make some hard decisions too. On that reapplying option though, I think the answer is most likely no, but can I reapply before my current PR expires?

And regarding working in the US, I'm just on a visitor visa here, working from home remotely for my job in Canada. But I'm not entirely sure how legit this situation is.

It isn’t legit so you’re going to run into problems if you get caught and you may not be able to extend you stay past a certain point. If you leave the US you may have problems getting back in because there will be questions about why you are visiting the US for so long, how are you supporting yourself, where is your permanent home, etc. This is a more complex situation than you think.

 

[scylla]

Thank you so very much for the detailed answer! Just a few follow-up questions if I may:

1. Is there any official source for the specific requirements that you mentioned? I found this page that's on the topic but certainly not as detailed as your answer: https://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=1466&top=10

2. Would IRCC be willing to count these days if I can prove my strong will to live in Canada for the long run? For instance: I was physically in Canada for 2.5 years before being approved of PR, for study and work. Plus, I'm pretty sure I will be physically in Canada for most of the next 5-year cycle. Because the reason for me being mostly in the States during this cycle is to accompany my GF's PhD study, which just started and will take about 5 years. (My GF was also in Canada before this for 3+ years.) After her graduation, we both plan to return to Canada.

Thanks

1. You need to refer to the IRCC manual. This is where the details are. You'll want to review pages 26-30 in detail since this describes the specific circumstances under which this rule applies and what evidence you and your employer need to supply to prove you meet the conditions. Manual link: https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/ircc/migration/ircc/english/resources/manuals/op/op10-eng.pdf

2. No.

 

[scylla]

Thank you for the reply. Right.. I guess I might need to make some hard decisions too. On that reapplying option though, I think the answer is most likely no, but can I reapply before my current PR expires?

And regarding working in the US, I'm just on a visitor visa here, working from home remotely for my job in Canada. But I'm not entirely sure how legit this situation is.

In order to reapply, you would need to officially renounce your PR status first.

I assumed you were a US citizen or held a visa that entitled you to work in the US. If you do not, suggest you look into that immediately. You're not going to be able to live in the US indefinitely on a visitor visa and if your company has any presence in the US, what you are doing may not be legal. The US is generally far less flexible with visitor extensions and you really need to be spending at least six months out of the year outside of the US. Are you planning on converting your status to green card through a spouse or something like that in the near future? You need to figure out a path that allows you to stay in the US beyond a six month visit (and also the legalities of your employment there).

Good luck and hope this helps.

 

[zhroc]

It isn’t legit so you’re going to run into problems if you get caught and you may not be able to extend you stay past a certain point. If you leave the US you may have problems getting back in because there will be questions about why you are visiting the US for so long, how are you supporting yourself, where is your permanent home, etc. This is a more complex situation than you think.

Got it, thanks very much for pointing this out! Will look into this right away.

 

[zhroc]

In order to reapply, you would need to officially renounce your PR status first.

I assumed you were a US citizen or held a visa that entitled you to work in the US. If you do not, suggest you look into that immediately. You're not going to be able to live in the US indefinitely on a visitor visa and if your company has any presence in the US, what you are doing may not be legal. The US is generally far less flexible with visitor extensions and you really need to be spending at least six months out of the year outside of the US. Are you planning on converting your status to green card through a spouse or something like that in the near future? You need to figure out a path that allows you to stay in the US beyond a six month visit (and also the legalities of your employment there).

Good luck and hope this helps.

This absolutely helps, and thanks so much again. I'll look into this right away.

Thank you