IEC + Partner sponship/OWP -> Implied status: to work or not to work?

[Aquakitty]

Hi Volkov,

I haven't really received a definitive answer regarding this from CIC other than having their call centre agents confirming the implied status several times over.
To date I am in the process of my inland spousal sponsorship application and should be hearing back in the next few months, however in the meanwhile I did receive
an open work permit as part of a pilot program.

It's very hard to definitely say whether or not someone would benefit from implied status or not as CIC seems to refuse specific information (especially on a case basis) about this.
There are some very strongly opinionated people about this topic on this forum so I do not wish to get back into the whole yes/no argument but what I can tell you is that I feel like I made
the right decision in my specific case (for several reasons, including not wanting to start over my jobhunt which took me over 6 months to find a job I really like).

To date I have not received any correspondence from CIC indicating that I had worked without a permit or that anything is wrong with my application.

Not sure if this helps but I hope it does!

Actually it's pretty definitive now I'm sorry to say...

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=188&top=17

I have applied for a new work permit. Can I stay in Canada if my work permit expires?

Yes. You can stay in Canada, and may be able to keep working, under what's called implied status. That means the law implies you are a temporary resident. The implied status lasts until Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) decides on your new permit application. However, you must respect the following requirements:

If you applied for another work permit

You must stay in Canada and meet the conditions of your original work permit. If you applied for a work permit extension before your work permit expired, you can keep working under the same conditions as your existing permit until CIC decides on your application unless you have applied to extend your stay under another category.

If you applied for a different kind of permit

You cannot do any of the activities allowed by the original work permit. For example, you may have come to Canada as a worker and then applied for a study permit. If so, you must stop working once your work permit expires. After that, you cannot work or study until you get a new permit.

The fact is, you aren't extending the IEC, you are switching to another category.

 

[volkov]

Actually it's pretty definitive now I'm sorry to say...
....
The fact is, you aren't extending the IEC, you are switching to another category.

but it isn't definitive at all

it doesn't state what happens if you applied for a work permit in another category, it just says "unless you have applied to extend your stay under another category"... it then leaves that unresolved, as the next statements pertain to a completely different kind of permit (ie. study vs work)... one could wonder, do they leave that unresolved if in fact you are now allowed to work under the conditions of the new permit application? a lawyer in a courtroom could easily use that logical argument to see the holes in their wording imho.

I also notice another wording flaw, "... UNTIL CIC decides on your application unless you have applied to extend your stay under another category." This can be argued that the "unless..." clause is now referring to after the CIC decides on your application, therefore now saying that the "unless..." clause is for the future beyond the decision point, meaning that your application to stay under another category now rules from that point instead of the implied status.


The silly thing about the whole way it is written, is at the top it talks about applying for "a NEW work permit", not about extending an old expiring permit, which in itself only makes sense if one is changing the category of their permission to stay. If they intended for implied status for working to only work for extensions, that would have been an obvious easy thing to state, but they didn't.

so this is still an open issue that is not properly addressed in that link

 

[Ponga]

but it isn't definitive at all

it doesn't state what happens if you applied for a work permit in another category, it just says "unless you have applied to extend your stay under another category"... it then leaves that unresolved, as the next statements pertain to a completely different kind of permit (ie. study vs work)... one could wonder, do they leave that unresolved if in fact you are now allowed to work under the conditions of the new permit application? a lawyer in a courtroom could easily use that logical argument to see the holes in their wording imho.

I also notice another wording flaw, "... UNTIL CIC decides on your application unless you have applied to extend your stay under another category." This can be argued that the "unless..." clause is now referring to after the CIC decides on your application, therefore now saying that the "unless..." clause is for the future beyond the decision point, meaning that your application to stay under another category now rules from that point instead of the implied status.


The silly thing about the whole way it is written, is at the top it talks about applying for "a NEW work permit", not about extending an old expiring permit, which in itself only makes sense if one is changing the category of their permission to stay. If they intended for implied status for working to only work for extensions, that would have been an obvious easy thing to state, but they didn't.

so this is still an open issue that is not properly addressed in that link

To quote Aquakitty's post:

If you applied for another work permit


...If you applied for a different kind of permit

...You cannot do any of the activities allowed by the original work permit. For example, you may have come to Canada as a worker and then applied for a study permit. If so, you must stop working once your work permit expires. After that, you cannot work or study until you get a new permit.


Why don't you seem to understand what that means? The OWP that is available for an Inland applicant is a different type of WP.

 

[Jamesdavid3]

I worked under Implied Status for a whole year after the IEC, I made sure to apply for my OWP when sending off my application and before my IEC expired and I have no ISSUES at all...

I cant talk on behalf of everyone however during my application at the CIC they know I continued to work, I continued to file taxes etc.. If there was a RED flag on me because of that they would have done something and deported me without a doubt but they didn't...

People on this board always tell you of the people that had "Issues" and people who continued to work and got deported who continued to work, Its always people they heard stories of and they can never back it up or provide any proof that this really happened and if it did happen to 1 or 2 people, it was because they CLEARLY had a red flag to begin with.

I am now a full PR..

 

[Ponga]

I worked under Implied Status for a whole year after the IEC, I made sure to apply for my OWP when sending off my application and before my IEC expired and I have no ISSUES at all...

I cant talk on behalf of everyone however during my application at the CIC they know I continued to work, I continued to file taxes etc.. If there was a RED flag on me because of that they would have done something and deported me without a doubt but they didn't...

People on this board always tell you of the people that had "Issues" and people who continued to work and got deported who continued to work, Its always people they heard stories of and they can never back it up or provide any proof that this really happened and if it did happen to 1 or 2 people, it was because they CLEARLY had a red flag to begin with.

I am now a full PR..

To say that you were extremely lucky (as in winning the CIC PR lottery) would be an understatement. Many people here know the whole story regarding your application.

 

[volkov]

To quote Aquakitty's post:

If you applied for another work permit


...If you applied for a different kind of permit

...You cannot do any of the activities allowed by the original work permit. For example, you may have come to Canada as a worker and then applied for a study permit. If so, you must stop working once your work permit expires. After that, you cannot work or study until you get a new permit.


Why don't you seem to understand what that means? The OWP that is available for an Inland applicant is a different type of WP.

ok, I guess we will respectfully disagree, I fully understand that a Study Permit is different than a Work Permit, but a PGWP and a OWP are both the same kind of permit, they are Work Permits

 

[Ponga]

They are not the same.

Good luck!

 

[Aquakitty]

People get away with stuff all the time. I just read an article where 50 different people used the same address for their citizenship applications (residency fraud) and it was never discovered till now, some of them even obtained citizenship. People work illegally, stay here illegally, do all sorts of things and nothing happens. It doesn't mean it's not technically against the rules. Sometimes even the CIC officers are incorrect about their own rules.

Personally I see no reason why CIC doesn't just allow an IEC to bridge into a spousal OWP, but they must have their reasons. Maybe the spousal OWP has certain conditions the IEC does not, or certain requirements. I think that FAQ is pretty clear.

 

[renoreaper]

I'm sure this will be interpreted as a "you just got lucky" thing by those who so chose to, but I recently received my PR without any issue as well, and I did continue to work while waiting for my new OWP following IEC (under inland partnership).

Happy Canada day weekend all!

 

[screech339]

I'm sure this will be interpreted as a "you just got lucky" thing by those who so chose to, but I recently received my PR without any issue as well, and I did continue to work while waiting for my new OWP following IEC (under inland partnership).

Happy Canada day weekend all!

Just because you didn't get caught and land as PR doesn't mean working past expired IEC is legal.

There are those who are in Canada on visitor visa working for cash. They haven't gotten caught either. Does this mean it is all legal? No.

Happy Canada Day to you too.

 

[Aquakitty]

I'm glad you got through, I just don't think it's responsible to tell everyone it's ok without actual proof from CIC. Anecdotal proof isn't proof. Something like that could really mess up a person's life.


Oh and for the record, I know people who have worked with NO work permit for a while and still got their PR with no questions. So it's meaningless.

 

[volkov]

I'm sure this will be interpreted as a "you just got lucky" thing by those who so chose to, but I recently received my PR without any issue as well, and I did continue to work while waiting for my new OWP following IEC (under inland partnership).

Happy Canada day weekend all!

you were under implied status then, correct? there is nothing wrong with that at all, not a matter of "luck"

 

[screech339]

you were under implied status then, correct? there is nothing wrong with that at all, not a matter of "luck"

There is no "implied status" to continue working past IEC expired date. The only "implied status" after IEC expire date is "visitor status".

 

[volkov]

There is no "implied status" to continue working past IEC expired date. The only "implied status" after IEC expire date is "visitor status".

says who? do you have an official statement from CIC on this? of course you don't, just forum heresay

 

[screech339]

says who? do you have an official statement from CIC on this? of course you don't, just forum heresay

Hey guys, I received this email from CIC that might answer our questions about the implied status for IEC and PGWP.

Note the "*" in the end of the message. It states clearly that international youth exchange programs do not apply for Implied Status.

At the same time, it clearly states that this relates only to international youth exchange programs. That means it does not apply to PGWP. So yes, people with expired PGWP are indeed allowed to continue working under implied status.

------------------------------------------------------------

Sir, Madam,

Thank you for contacting Citizenship and Immigration Canada. I am pleased to follow up on your request:

Implied Status - Temporary Residents

As a temporary resident (TR), if you send your application for an extension of your authorization to remain in Canada at the latest on the expiry date of your status, you will be considered in status as a TR until a decision is made on the application. This is known as an Implied Status*.

If you hold a work permit or a study permit, you can continue working or studying under the conditions of your previous permit if you have applied to extend your stay in Canada under the same category. However, if you have applied to extend your stay under another category, you must stop working or studying.

If you leave Canada while under implied status, you may be authorized to:

Re-enter Canada as a TR, if the Case Processing Centre (CPC) has not yet made a decision on your application to extend your work permit. Please note that you will not be permitted to work/study until you receive your new permit. You must satisfy the officer at the port of entry (POE) that you have sufficient means of support. This applies if you:
are temporary resident visa (TRV) exempt;
held a valid multiple-entry visa before leaving Canada; or
travelled only to the United States** and/or St.Pierre and Miquelon by the end of the period initially authorized for their stay or any extension to it;
Re-enter Canada as a worker/student, if the officer at the POE determines that your application to extend your work/study permit was approved by the CPC while you were outside Canada;
or
Apply for a new work/study permit at the POE provided you have the right to do so under the Regulations.
For more information on implied status, please consult the Operational Manual - Overseas Processing (OP 11) - Section 24.

* Participants in international youth exchange programs (e.g., Student Work Abroad Program (SWAP), International Experience Canada (IEC) or Working Holiday Program (WHP)) do not benefit from implied status, unless extending a work permit not initially issued for the time limit authorized by the program.

**Including its Territories and Possessions.

------------------------------------------------------------

Says the letter from CIC to PRSoon. Check out at bottom in red.