Leaving whilst waiting for PR?

[pip_kerr]

Has anyone had any successful or negative experiences when leaving Canada whilst waiting for their PR?

I'm curious I have heard over and over that it is not 'advised' to leave the country whilst one is waiting for a spouse sponsorship PR, however processing times are estimated for inland applications at 26 months! I have already been away from home for over 2 years and was thinking if I apply now I could visit home for a few months and when I return 4 months would have past and I would finally be eligible for an OWP, rather than sitting here and not working for the next four months.
I just read on the CIC website that as long as your passport is valid and you have an appropriate ETA there shouldn't be and issue, and if i was needed by CIC for an interview or something I could fly back immediately (I am assuming if the process takes 26 moths, they probably wont need to see me in the first 1/4)?
I had originally decided to do an offshore application through the Sydney office but that still takes 10 months which is too long for my Canadian partner to be stuck in OZ without work or on a holiday visa, plus we would rather setup in Canada anyway (I just dont want to go another two years without seeing my family). If the process truely does take 26 months than what harm is there with me being in Australia for the first 3?

Has anyone had experience with this? Surely if I fly back to Canada with my Wife, a valid ETA, passport and show the officer in charge all of my PR receipts and documents, what could be his issue and reasoning for not letting me back in? If this is possible it would solve a lot of issues for me and I could finally come back and work in Canada rather than sitting around twiddling my thumbs like I am now.

Thanks for any responses.

 

[pip_kerr]

From the CIC website:

Can I leave Canada while IRCC processes my application for permanent residence?
Yes. However, if you leave Canada while your application is being processed, you must meet all the admissibility rules before being allowed back into Canada.

If you leave Canada and want to return, you must have all the required documents to enter. This can include:

a valid passport or other travel documents,
a valid work permit or study permit, if you need one, and
a valid visitor visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), if you need one.
If you are unable to return to Canada, we could determine that you abandoned your application. In that case, we will not process it.


http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=248&top=28

 

[scylla]

Applying outland would be a much wiser choice for you.

 

[Rob_TO]

Inland rules require the sponsor and applicant to live together in Canada during entire Inland processing time.

So if either sponsor or applicant or both leave Canada for long enough that CIC considers you no longer living or residing here, they would have grounds to cancel the application.

 

[CDNPR2014]

the issue isn't that you are not allowed to leave. the issue is, an inland application assumes a person is LIVING in canada with their spouse and it's a requirement to be cohabitating the whole time. if a person leaves for an extended period of time, technically they are not currently residing in canada or with their spouse. a 4 month trip is not a vacation. a 2-3 week trip is, so people don't usually have problems returning to canada after a short trip. they may or may not experience trouble returning after an extended trip CIC can see a 4 month trip as a break in cohabitation which can cause the application to be rejected.

no one can tell you for sure what will happen since it's at the sole discretion of the cbsa officer who you meet at entry. if you get someone who doesn't like your answers or is in a bad mood, they have every right to deny you entry. if you are denied entry, then you can't cohabitate with your sponsor and your application will be considered abandoned and cancelled since one of the requirements is to be living IN Canada. does this happen often? probably not. is there a risk? sure is. it's up to each person to decide whether they want to take that risk. there are many people on this forum who travel for short visits outside of canada and have no issues returning, especially if they have a valid visa or work permit.

as an australian, i would really recommend applying outland. the posted processing time of 10 months is not accurate. it is not an average, and sydney is known to be a quick visa office. it's quite common for australians to be approved within 3-6 months. some sydney applications are currently being transferred to ottawa, which also sees a quick processing. check out the sydney thread to see how long it takes people to be currently approved as outland:
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/thread-for-applications-through-sydney-australia-office-t46958.2265.html

also, your spouse can be IN Canada as a visitor while the application approves, they don't have to stay in australia. while they can't work, the current average time for australians is not too much longer than getting an OWP through inland.

 

[canadianwoman]

Apply outland. The applicant can be in Canada as a visitor while the outland application is being processed, so there is no need to be apart, or for the Canadian to be stuck abroad.

Inland is a reasonable choice for people from countries where the processing times are very long, or if they need a visa to enter Canada. Since the applicant in this case can enter Canada without a visa, and the processing times are very short for outland through Sydney, there is no reason to apply inland.

 

[pip_kerr]

Wow thanks again for all the great responses, everyone on here is so helpful and really making me feel a lot more confident about tackling this application process myself! Ok so all signs always point to offshore, really happy to hear that it can be a lot shorter than 10 months, a lawyer I met the other day actually told me this too but then I thought the CIC website would be more reliable, I was wrong.

So I thought with offshore I had to be in Australia while it was being processed incase I was needed to be around for an interview? What your saying is I can come back to Canada and live as a tourist, obviously not working until it is approved? Does this mean if they need to speak to me I would have to fly home or can I arrange the interview in Ontario?

Also if I was going to wait in Australia and my Canadian partner had to go home a few weeks before me for work are we aloud to be separated? Not that we want this to happen but the way things look it may have to be like this for a bit.

Thanks again

 

[scylla]

Extremely unlikely that an interview will be required. If one is required, it will be held in Australia (you'll be given advanced notice).

 

[canadianwoman]

If you are married, then you do not have to be together. You can be if you want, but if your wife goes back to Canada before you, that is fine.

A common-law couple must stay together for 12 continuous months to establish common-law status, but after that they can be apart and still maintain their status.

You are unlikely to be interviewed, but if you are, it would be in Australia.

 

[pip_kerr]

We plan to get married now in the next couple of weeks, then we will send the application the week after. Because it takes a up to 8 weeks to get a proper marriage cert posted do you think sending in the marriage licence and other documents, including photos first in the PR accompanied with a letter stating we will forward the real document when we get it is enough?

Better to get the process rolling right and send the cert through when we have it?

 

[CDNPR2014]

We plan to get married now in the next couple of weeks, then we will send the application the week after. Because it takes a up to 8 weeks to get a proper marriage cert posted do you think sending in the marriage licence and other documents, including photos first in the PR accompanied with a letter stating we will forward the real document when we get it is enough?

Better to get the process rolling right and send the cert through when we have it?

since a marriage certificate is the required document for proving your marriage and is needed for processing both the sponsor and applicant applications, it is not advised to send in the application without it. there is no guarantee it will "get the process rolling". More than likely, either CIC will send back the application as incomplete, or they will send a request for the certificate. the sponsor's application will not be processed until the entire application package is considered complete, so if they send a request for it, the application will be held until they receive it. the request will give a specific time frame for sending it. in most cases, the application will not be picked back up until that due date, which can be anywhere from 30-90 days from the day of request. sometimes, it will continue processing as soon as the requested document is received. it's not a guarantee you'd be better off than just waiting for the actual certificate.

 

[profiler]

since a marriage certificate is the required document for proving your marriage and is needed for processing both the sponsor and applicant applications, it is not advised to send in the application without it. there is no guarantee it will "get the process rolling". More than likely, either CIC will send back the application as incomplete, or they will send a request for the certificate. the sponsor's application will not be processed until the entire application package is considered complete, so if they send a request for it, the application will be held until they receive it. the request will give a specific time frame for sending it. more than likely, the application will not be picked back up until that due date, which can be anywhere from 30-90 days from the day of request.

+1.

What's another couple weeks -- you have time while you are on your work permit anyway. Better to send in the correct documents.