Common questions regarding PR status! Help! Thanks!

[Maxmillion]

Hi there,

Here are some intro of us:
My wife and I are perminant resident of Canada since June 2010, expired June 2015, and our son was born in Canada the end of 2011 with citizen status. We left Canada a month after landed in but I resided in Canada during 2002~2010 as a student, worker then PR. We came back 2011 to have our son and left 7 month later when my son is stable to be travelled.

Here are the questions:
1. Because we come and go all the time, if we have fulfill the obligation at 2015 and apply a new PR card. Is that we have granted another 5 years window? Coz. I have heard they IO check your stays every time when you pass the boarder. Let's assume if I have fulfill my first 5 years obligation 2013 and stay outside until 2015. Even though I will have a new card which valid until 2020, if we stay absent from 2015 to 2017, when I come back at 2017 they won't let me in ( since from 2012 to 2017 I haven't fulfill the obligation). Even I can fulfill the second 5 yrs period from 2017 to 2020. I am just curious how they count it.

2. Is my stay before my landin day helps me to fulfill the PR obligation? Coz. I know for applying citizen, they counted one day as half before landin.

3. Since my son is a Canadian citizen, is it help for us to apply for renewal of PR status without fulfill the obligation? Is it accomply citizen abroad exception only apply for spouse?

4. If our PR status expired in 2015, should I just let it be that way without apply for renewal until I finally decide to come back settle in Canada in the future? What I mean is do not renew my status and apply any travel document to Canada, until the future if I can find a H&C reason for appeal. Since they will give me 30 days for appeal when they first found out I have a expired PR status, no matter how long my PR status had expired for(may be has expired for 10 years). Am I right?

5. This question is a little contradict to last one. If my PR status expired, with my son's citizen status, can I apply for travel visa to come back to Canada if my son wants to attend Canadian school or other medical circumstance?

I knew my questions are very long. But I think they are very common for new immigrant who still wants adventure life or family issue outside of Canada. For some point, I don't understand why Canadian government choose to cancel our PR status, compare to put a temp stop until we come back to reside a few year in order to resume again. Canada is a good place to retire or live for peaceful life with beautiful landscape and healthy living condition, but not a good place for adventure life and build your dream. Life is too good to work hard and reach one's protential.

Anyways, thanks for experts to spend time to read my long article and answer my questions :-D. Appreciated!!!

 

[Leon]

1. It is a rolling 5 year period so if you are a PR for more than 5 years, they always look at the last 5 years. However, as long as you have a valid PR card, people often slip through. However, keep in mind that if you lose that card and have to apply for a new one and now you do not meet the requirements for the past 5 years, you would have a problem.

2. Days before landing do not count. They look for 730 days in Canada in the first 5 years after you got your PR and once you are PR for more than 5 years, it is always the last 5 years that get looked at.

3. You can not use your son to protect your PR because your minor son is not making you live outside Canada but the other way around. A spouse can protect the PR of a spouse and a citizen parent can protect the PR of a minor child but not the other way around.

4. If you have valid H&C reasons why you can not live in Canada, I suppose as long as those reasons are valid, you could apply for a travel document any time. However, being young and wanting to have adventures is generally not considered a H&C reason.

5. Your sons citizenship gives you no rights. Once your son is 18, if he wants to study in Canada, he can come alone. Once he has a job and is making some money, he could eventually apply to sponsor you for PR again.

The purpose for the PR is to allow people who want to live in Canada to do that in the hopes that they will enrich and build up the country. A PR who is stopping by every once in a while when he sees fit or coming just to have a baby, possibly at the tax payers expense is not enriching the country. Living in Canada for 2 years out of 5 is actually very relaxed compared to most countries. In many places you lose your PR if you leave for as much as 6 months.

 

[Maxmillion]

Thanks Leon for your percise answers. But I am still confuse about my first question. If they only look at theloose recent 5 years, the only way for me to keep my PR is going back and forth every year and spread those 730 days evenly through these 5 years. Am I right?

On the other hand, how can I get into Canada with a expired PR card? I knew there are many rumors about crossing the boarder from US by using the landing paper. Is that possible? I drove to US many times when I was in Canada, they ask for my PR card every single time! I think this case is only apply on those from countries that don't need a visa to Canada.

For H&C reasons, what elses can it be except takin care of sick elders? I have heard if one's made certain commitment during the appeal which shows he will reside in Canada for good. The court might give him like a second chance. Is this real or just a story.

My wife and I had quite a argument these days. She think the overall environment in Canada is better for the kid, and for me, I have already spent quite a long time in Canada already(10yrs) and want to choose whatever I want to stay. Both of us don't want to separate anymore!

Don't get me wrong. I agree with you about one needs to make certain contributions in order to get certain privileges. But I am just saying what Canada should do is exchange this have to stay policy to tax contribution. If one wants to resume its expired PR, one has to contribute certain amount of tax. I would rather to pay money to exchange my freedom. Money is spandable asset but life is short. Do you agree? :-D

 

[Maxmillion]

Btw, forgot to ask. Is first 5 years are more important than the following years? You said once I renew my PR after first 5 years, they will only look at the most recent 5 years in later case. Am I understand it right? Thanks

 

[Leon]

You do not have to spread the 730 days evenly over the 5 year period. You can also do a chunk of 730 days at once, then leave for 3 years and then come back for another stretch of 730 days.

The first 5 years are not necessarily the most important. The most important 5 years are the 5 years before you apply to renew your PR card whether it had expired or was stolen/lost. If you get into Canada without meeting the requirements and stay for a solid 2 years, you can apply to renew and they will only look at the previous 5 years and approve.

If your PR card expires and you are outside Canada, if you are visa exempt to Canada, you would book a flight and only show your passport, not your PR card. The airline would not refuse you to board. Once you arrive in Canada and go to immigration, you show your expired card and they give you a talking to about why you did not renew it. If you are not visa exempt to Canada, you would not be able to fly unless you applied for a PR travel document at a Canadian embassy. Airlines do not want to be responsible for you if it turns out that Canada refuses to let you in, that is why. You would however still have the option of coming in by the land border. When they ask for the PR card, you give them the expired one etc.

I do not know what other H&C reasons would be accepted but having an awesome job and making a lot of money would not be popular. Studying in another country might not even be accepted. They would just say that you could have studied in Canada instead.

If you want to be able to leave Canada and come back any time, you could come back for 3 years and apply for citizenship. Or if you don't want to, your wife could and if she gets it, as long as she is living with you anywhere in the world, you still keep your PR.

 

[scylla]

Don't get me wrong. I agree with you about one needs to make certain contributions in order to get certain privileges. But I am just saying what Canada should do is exchange this have to stay policy to tax contribution. If one wants to resume its expired PR, one has to contribute certain amount of tax. I would rather to pay money to exchange my freedom. Money is spandable asset but life is short. Do you agree? :-D

I understanding where you're coming from. However I think the majority of us here on this forum will disagree with this approach. People shouldn't be allowed to "buy" their PR status - this sends the wrong message on so many different levels. As Leon explained so well, maintaining PR status is about making a commitment to actually live here (not just use Canada as a convenient "just in case I ever want to go back there" place of residence). Canada already has extremely generous policies when it comes to maintaining PR status. (You can technically be away from Canada for three years in a row without jeopardizing your PR status. In the US, six months away means you will likely be question extensively at the border and your file flagged. Away for over one year? Chances are high your green card is gone.) Sounds like you and your wife have a tough decision ahead of you.

To answer a few of your questions... Strong H&C cases typically involve unavoidable circumstances (personal illness, family illness). Attending school or taking a job elsewhere is typically a very weak excuse. Yes - during the appeal process is can certainly help to show that you have now settled in Canada permanently. However each case is individual - so it's impossible for any of us to guess what the outcome might be for you. The fact that you returned to Canada to have your son here and then left once he was stable enough to travel would probably work against you in an appeal since this makes it look like you are using Canada for benefits like citizenship but would rather be living somewhere else.

No - you don't have to spread the 730 days evenly through these five years. You could in theory live outside of Canada for three years, then return for two, then leave again for three, etc. and still maintain status. As Leon explained, as long as you have met the residency requirement for the preceeding 5 years, you're fine.