I will be applying at 1095+a few days.
I was in the country I immigrated from right before arriving to canada and did provide a police certificate then during my application process. I then returned to that country for about 3 months after landing in Canada and upon my return to Canada, I have never left since. Do I need to provide a new police certificate? Acquiring a new one now is extremely difficult for the country I came from.
Work your way through the instructions for item 10(b). And follow them.
It asks whether the applicant was "
in a country or territory other than Canada for 183 days or more in a row."
If you can honestly answer "no" that means you do not need to submit a police clearance.
If the truthful response is "yes" then you list the country in the chart and indicate, in the drop down, whether you will or will not include a police certificate.
Generally, if you were in a country other than Canada for 183 or more days in a row within the preceding four years, you should check "yes" you will provide a certificate. And, of course, provide the police certificate.
To suffice the police clearance needs to have been issued either:
-- within the preceding six months, or
-- since the last time the PR was in that country
There are exceptions. That is, even if the PR applying for citizenship was in a country for 183 days or more in a row with the four years before applying, if one of the exceptions applies (and the applicant does not have a certificate to submit; noting that if the applicant has the clearance, check yes and submit it), LIST the country in the chart, and check "no," a police certificate will not be provided, and then give an explanation.
The main exception regards presence in the applicant's home country. That is, the applicant's "
country of origin." If the applicant was only in the applicant's country of origin for more than six months in the last four years, the applicant checks "yes" to item 10.(b) and lists the country, but then can check "no," not submitting a police certificate, and in the explanation box simply state "country of origin."
The other exception is described by Example 1 in the guide for completing the application form. See instructions and the examples for Question 10 b. in the guide here:
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/application-forms-guides/guide-0002-application-canadian-citizenship-under-subsection-5-1-adults-18-years-older.html#Step4
This exception ONLY applies if the applicant did NOT travel to that country AFTER becoming a PR.
