I certainly understand that before PR time is hard to prove and responsibility of proving is on our shoulder. What i am not able to understand is that implied status "time when we applied for visa renewal while inside Canada and remain in Canada until we get a renewed visa" is this implied status time does not count under the days before PR??
Any document reference or written proof for this policy
Somewhat Short Version:
Pre-PR days during which the citizenship applicant had implied status (as a visitor or pursuant to a work or study permit) should count toward meeting the physical presence requirement. However, it appears that during the completeness screening of citizenship applications, in at least some circumstances (it is not clear if this happens in all cases), the failure to verify the applicant had temporary resident status (based on implied status) in the client's GCMS records results in not counting those days. If the deduction of those days from the applicant's total physical presence calculation results in falling short of the required 1095 days credit, the application is returned as incomplete.
Since such days should count, an applicant should be able to successfully challenge this.
But the better approach, by far, is to wait and apply when the applicant has a good margin over the minimum based on days in Canada with PR status plus pre-PR days for which the applicant's temporary resident status is explicitly documented (relying on
from-and-to dates based on the date that status is granted, and the date status expires, as stated in the grant of status).
Longer Explanation:
I am
NOT aware of any information provided by IRCC that indicates a "
policy" to
not count days during periods of implied status. (And it seems likely that IRCC processing agents and citizenship officers count these days when fully processing the application.)
Days IN Canada prior to becoming a PR will count toward meeting the physical presence requirement (half day credit, up to a maximum total of 365 days credit) so long as:
(1) the days are within the five year eligibility period, and
(2) the applicant was physically present IN Canada "as a temporary resident."
I am NOT at all certain, but I believe that the Citizenship Act provision (this is
section 5(1.001)(a) in the Citizenship Act) prescribing the calculation of physical presence for days in Canada as a "
temporary resident," applies to periods of implied status, including visitor status.
That is, technically these days should count ("
should" in the according-to-what-the-law-prescribes sense).
In other words, as best I can figure out, it is NOT correct that the period of time during which the applicant had implied status, "
time when we applied for visa renewal while inside Canada and remain in Canada until we get a renewed visa," that this time "
does not count under the days before PR."
The problem is not that such periods of time do not count. Indeed it should count (again, as best I can figure out, noting again that I am NOT an expert, not even a Canadian lawyer). And, as noted, it seems likely that IRCC processing agents and citizenship officers will count these days when fully processing the application.
The problem appears to be about
verifying the applicant actually had status during a period of time in which there is no visa or permit or other documentation of that status.
Moreover, I suspect this is a problem peculiar to the completeness screening. As I have stated many times, it appears that the completeness screening relies on GCMS records to verify the applicant's pre-PR status as a temporary resident. By definition "
implied status" is not documented., That is, it is not explicitly granted or specifically stated in any documentation but, rather, is simply "
implied," as in understood or inferred based on an operation of law (this is
section/regulation 183(5) IRPR) applicable to the particular facts.
To Challenge or Not to Challenge:
I am not certain about what would be the best way to challenge IRCC about this.
@Seym has recently suggested including proof and justification of presence as a visitor with the application:
. . . the onus is on you to prove your physical presence. If you can convincingly prove every single day you were in Canada as a visitor, send that justification with your application and are ready to face a potentially lengthier application processing before your physical presence turns green, by all means . . .
I do not know if that will work. Maybe. But the completeness screening appears to be a more or less mechanical checking-off-checklist-items procedure. Indeed, it appears that online applications are electronically screened. My sense is that the process of verifying pre-PR status is automatic, and depends on matching the applicant's declarations with GCMS records. So I doubt that additional information included with the application will change the outcome at the completeness screening step . . . except . . .
I believe applicants can make an application compelling IRCC to process the application despite it appearing to not pass the completeness screening. I do not know how to do this, other than using a lawyer to do it.
I am quite sure, nonetheless, that in addition to the complexity and difficulty involved, this would likely take a lot longer than waiting to apply (or re-apply) without relying on the days that GCMS records do not explicitly verify. That is, the faster (by a lot I suspect) way to get to the oath would be to wait and apply only when the applicant has a good margin over the minimum based on dates of status as documented in the grant of status.
