Applying before eligible?

[suzanne_m]

Hi There!!

My husband will be eligible to apply on April 21st of this year. However, a friend of ours, who also became PR on the same day as my husband, was told by an custom's officer that he can apply right away even though he is not eligible yet. They won't turn away an application even if it's sent in 2 months before the eligibility date.

Has anyone else heard the same thing? We are trying to reach CIC to confirm. But just wanted to see if anyone else has submitted an application before the eligibility date.

Thanks!!

 

[PMM]

Hi

Hi There!!

My husband will be eligible to apply on April 21st of this year. However, a friend of ours, who also became PR on the same day as my husband, was told by an custom's officer that he can apply right away even though he is not eligible yet. They won't turn away an application even if it's sent in 2 months before the eligibility date.

Has anyone else heard the same thing? We are trying to reach CIC to confirm. But just wanted to see if anyone else has submitted an application before the eligibility date.

Thanks!!

If you read the instructions, you have to be eligible on the day you apply. I think I would take what is in the Citizenship Act, rather than what a Customs agent tells a friend.

 

[Leon]

He can not apply unless he has at least basic residence. That means he has the 1095 days of PR even though he might not have been in Canada the whole time. His application would then take forever because they would have to send it to a judge who would call him for an interview and have him explain why he deserves to get citizenship even though he doesn't meet the requirements.

This is from the application guide at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/adults.asp

Note. Are you applying too early? If you apply before you meet the residence requirement you will not qualify for citizenship. Your application will be returned to you and you will have to re-apply later and pay new fees.

You will also see there instructions on how to calculate your residency for citizenship. If you read that, you will see this:

The Citizenship Act requires a person to have accumulated 3 years (1095 days) in the past 4
years on the day before the application. If you have less than 1095 days in Canada because
of absences outside of Canada you may still apply for citizenship. It will be up to a judge to
determine if those absences affect your application. There is no refund of the processing fee
if your application is not approved because you do not meet the residence requirement.

 

[peoples_champ]

Thank you for this information. I will really appreciate if I can get an answer specific to my case.

PR Card date: 9 Nov 2008
Went to US for work: 29 Nov 2008 to 16 Aug 2010 (Moving back and forth between US and Canada during this time).[/list]
Move back to Canada: 16 Aug 2010
Visited parents: 02 Dec 2010 to 21 Dec 2010

I don't know if it matters, my time away from Canada when I was employed in Canada, I continued to file taxes for 2008 and 2009.

Per the basic residency calculator, I do meet the residency requirement. But I am not sure if I should apply for citizenship or wait. Also, if I apply for citizenship after meeting basic residency, what are the chances that my application will be returned?

Thank you in advance for responding to my question.

Peoples_Champ

 

[Leon]

Nobody can tell you exactly what the chances are but your application will take so much longer because of this special situation that you might be better off just waiting until you meet the requirements and applying then.

 

[suzanne_m]

Hi


If you read the instructions, you have to be eligible on the day you apply. I think I would take what is in the Citizenship Act, rather than what a Customs agent tells a friend.

HI there!! I have read the instructions a number of times, thanks!! As my post had stated, I am aware of the eligibilty date, I was just checking into see if anyone else has heard the same thing. We put alot of trust into what the Customs officers say these days, that it doesn't hurt to doublecheck.

 

[jaamenazar]

Hi,
My Citizenship application has been rejected due to some complains , however the immigration officer renewed my PR card and asked to apply later on , What is the way forward for me to apply , during my stay in Canada i also visited my native country Pakistan , I also lost the record for previous citizenship application ? Is it possible to know the current status now i have a valid PR card only just to make sure that the complain is not effective anymore ? I'm very much afraid i also don't have record of previous application if i replied something wrong what will be the worst response in this case... Should i consult some lawyer ,
Please help

 

[Mary Chad]

Complain? about what? You completed residency requirement before applying for citizenship? Give details and dates in order to get
suggestions...

 

[Leon]

Hi,
My Citizenship application has been rejected due to some complains , however the immigration officer renewed my PR card and asked to apply later on , What is the way forward for me to apply , during my stay in Canada i also visited my native country Pakistan , I also lost the record for previous citizenship application ? Is it possible to know the current status now i have a valid PR card only just to make sure that the complain is not effective anymore ? I'm very much afraid i also don't have record of previous application if i replied something wrong what will be the worst response in this case... Should i consult some lawyer ,
Please help

It is your responsibility to keep records of your travels and dates, time spent in and outside Canada. If you have already applied for citizenship and applied for PR renewal once, you should know that by now.

Losing the copy of your citizenship application and not knowing what you wrote in there any more is also a problem. They are now cracking down on people who lie about their residency in Canada in order to gain citizenship so if you had applied before telling one story and apply again giving different dates, they will have a problem believing you.

I suggest you start keeping good records of your travel dates as of now and once you have your 1095 days in Canada within a 4 year period, you can apply and know for sure that your application is good.