ghiaskhan said:
Its a bit strange,Why would you cacell landing after going through a such a lengthy application process.?
Oh, weird things happen! I applied for a PR status as a skilled immigrant in 1996, and got my visa in 1997. I landed in Canada, planned to stay there, but had to return home to Lisbon due to family matters. Circumstances in life changed, I was not able to return for an entire year. In those days, the law said you could not be away for longer than six months without a good reason. Having two sick elderly parents going through pain and surgeries was not a valid reason to stay away for that long, according to a cannadian immigration officer at the embassy in Paris.
Years later, in 2007, when I returned to Canada for a holliday, I was grilled by immigration officers for hours. Apparently, I could not return to Canada with my Portuguese passport without canceling my immigrant visa (I thought it was canceeled already). Apparently, you have to go to a Canadian embassy and give them back the "Record of Landing" document, and sign a paper. Only then will they see you as a tourist if you return to Canada again, and have a nationality that exempts you from travel visa requirements.
I decided to apply again in 2003, and the process, this time, took 5 years... Being Portuguese, I can live and work anywhere I want in Europe, where wages are higer than in Canada these days. So I wonder why the hell am I doing this!
