plus said:
how much should be the margin? if you have only traveled once outside the country?
I know of no generally applicable practical rule for determining the amount of margin a specific applicant would be prudent to have before applying . . . and there is certainly no definitive one.
1095 days of physical presence does the trick, makes the grade. As long as that is what CIC concludes.
Apart from padding enough of a margin to cover potential errors (as perfect as many of believe we are, the risk of making mistakes is always present, usually high), the bigger issue, however, is how certain is it that CIC will conclude that the applicant has met that threshold of actual physical presence. What is the risk that CIC will have doubts?
There is absolutely
NO one-rule-fits-all answer to this question.
Going into all the details about factors influencing an individual's
when-to-apply question would be, I think, too much of a tangent from the subject of this topic. As I noted before, this topic is about the effective date of provisions in Bill C-24, with some tangential discussions related to how those provisions may affect applicants. I am particularly reluctant to stray too far from this subject because it is clear, many, many PRs are on the cusp this year, PRs for whom the effective date of the revised residency requirements is very important . . . and I believe quite a few will watch a topic like this for real news (if and when we get any) about when this will happen. I do not want to be part of what is more of a distraction.
That said, though, the
when-to-apply question, including how much of a margin is prudent, looms huge in the decision-making many of those on the cusp this year must make. Wait too long, try to build too much of a margin, and miss getting the application submitted before the new residency requirements take effect could mean having to wait a year, up to nearly two years, to apply. So yes it is an issue high on the list for many.
For purposes of this topic, it is best to highlight the importance of having a margin
IF possible, but how much is dependent on many aspects of the applicant's situation.
I will note that I personally think that the number of trips abroad is not a particularly significant factor . . . except for the obvious, the high frequency traveler, the PR with extended absences, or the PR who reports never having gone abroad (all of which may, I think, draw elevated scrutiny from CIC). Just one trip is close to no trips, so maybe that could invite CIC's doubts (as in doubt that the applicant is disclosing all travel abroad), but it really depends a lot, lot more on all the other circumstances of the individual. For example, a PR originally from Detroit, Michigan who reports only one trip outside Canada is almost certainly going to invite questions . . . that close to home and only one trip? Beyond that it gets very individual specific.
Personally I waited to have a very big margin. But there was no rush for me, and no sword-of-changing-law hanging over my head. I am sure many, many will be applying this year with less of a margin than would have if the new residency requirements were not hanging over their head.