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Oath of Citizenship - expired PR Card - please help

dpenabill

VIP Member
Apr 2, 2010
6,432
3,175
have a situation here - 1) PR renewal still in process, 2) Citizenship Oath invitation comes, 3) outside of the Canada and PR card expired. I do have a COPR but that's issued in 2018... Would I be able to enter Canada with it from the US (I have US tourism visa), and would I be able to take the oath?

I definitely met the PR renewal requirement, but it just took them over 5 months to review for some reason.. Would contact MP help in this case?
@armoured and @scylla have covered this as well as it can be in a forum like this.

As long as you are in compliance with the PR Residency Obligation, there should not be any serious issues; and as long as you can travel to Canada in time for the oath, such as travel via the U.S., there should be no problem at all.
 
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pxu061

Member
Aug 14, 2023
18
0
@armoured and @scylla have covered this as well as it can be in a forum like this.

As long as you are in compliance with the PR Residency Obligation, there should not be any serious issues; and as long as you can travel to Canada in time for the oath, such as travel via the U.S., there should be no problem at all.
Thank you for the additional information! Since we are on the subject, may I bother you with this: when you say in compliance with the RO, what’s the RO really about? I mean, how would the officer determine that? Do they calculate from the time when I enter Canada, that exact moment, see I’ve stayed 2 years in the last five years (like… how they even gonna calculate that on the spot? Should I bring additional proof like a landlord letter?) Or would they maybe pull out my PR renewal application record and see if I met the requirement when I applied (5 months ago)? Or would they just say oh you come for the oath, then you must’ve met the RO requirement? Sorry for all these wild assumptions I just want to be fully prepared when I cross the border. Thank you!
 

armoured

VIP Member
Feb 1, 2015
17,138
8,787
Thank you for the additional information! Since we are on the subject, may I bother you with this: when you say in compliance with the RO, what’s the RO really about? I mean, how would the officer determine that? Do they calculate from the time when I enter Canada, that exact moment, see I’ve stayed 2 years in the last five years (like… how they even gonna calculate that on the spot? Should I bring additional proof like a landlord letter?) Or would they maybe pull out my PR renewal application record and see if I met the requirement when I applied (5 months ago)? Or would they just say oh you come for the oath, then you must’ve met the RO requirement? Sorry for all these wild assumptions I just want to be fully prepared when I cross the border. Thank you!
It's you being in Canada more than 730 days in last five years (outside Canada < 1095 days) counting back from any date of examination.

They will have through their 'computers' access to information about most entries and exits. If it seems like - for example - you've been out of Canada more than three years, then they don't need to do a lot of arithmetic. Other more complex cases - they would likely ask to see if that's the case (or get a rough idea of whether it's worth looking into in more detail). They would also have access to any 'flags' (eg notes to file) from previous officers, who might've found or suspected out of compliance but decided to be lenient or too much trouble at the time.

If in the normal course of questioning it seems all is in order, or the computer data is clear and simple, they probably won't even mention it. It sounds like your case - since you applied for PR card not long ago, presumably while still in cimpliance - you are probably still well in compliance and there may even be notes about pending PR card renewal / citizenship.
 
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dpenabill

VIP Member
Apr 2, 2010
6,432
3,175
Thank you for the additional information! Since we are on the subject, may I bother you with this: when you say in compliance with the RO, what’s the RO really about? I mean, how would the officer determine that? Do they calculate from the time when I enter Canada, that exact moment, see I’ve stayed 2 years in the last five years (like… how they even gonna calculate that on the spot? Should I bring additional proof like a landlord letter?) Or would they maybe pull out my PR renewal application record and see if I met the requirement when I applied (5 months ago)? Or would they just say oh you come for the oath, then you must’ve met the RO requirement? Sorry for all these wild assumptions I just want to be fully prepared when I cross the border. Thank you!
As @armoured noted, compliance with the PR Residency Obligation is simply about being IN Canada at least 730 days within the previous five years . . . for a PR returning to Canada from abroad, that means being IN Canada at least 730 days within the previous five years of the day they arrive at the Port-of-Entry.

If you meet the RO, and will still meet it the day you return to Canada, there is no need to think about this aspect any further. As I said, no serious issues.

If you are not in compliance with the PR RO, that's a different scenario. That is, if you have been outside Canada more than 1095 days in the previous five years (thus IN Canada less than 730 days within the last five years), that's a different discussion, a more complicated discussion . . . but no point going into that if it does not apply to you.
 
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pxu061

Member
Aug 14, 2023
18
0
It's you being in Canada more than 730 days in last five years (outside Canada < 1095 days) counting back from any date of examination.

They will have through their 'computers' access to information about most entries and exits. If it seems like - for example - you've been out of Canada more than three years, then they don't need to do a lot of arithmetic. Other more complex cases - they would likely ask to see if that's the case (or get a rough idea of whether it's worth looking into in more detail). They would also have access to any 'flags' (eg notes to file) from previous officers, who might've found or suspected out of compliance but decided to be lenient or too much trouble at the time.

If in the normal course of questioning it seems all is in order, or the computer data is clear and simple, they probably won't even mention it. It sounds like your case - since you applied for PR card not long ago, presumably while still in cimpliance - you are probably still well in compliance and there may even be notes about pending PR card renewal / citizenship.
The extra bit of colour makes a lot of sense. Really appreciate it!
 

pxu061

Member
Aug 14, 2023
18
0
As @armoured noted, compliance with the PR Residency Obligation is simply about being IN Canada at least 730 days within the previous five years . . . for a PR returning to Canada from abroad, that means being IN Canada at least 730 days within the previous five years of the day they arrive at the Port-of-Entry.

If you meet the RO, and will still meet it the day you return to Canada, there is no need to think about this aspect any further. As I said, no serious issues.

If you are not in compliance with the PR RO, that's a different scenario. That is, if you have been outside Canada more than 1095 days in the previous five years (thus IN Canada less than 730 days within the last five years), that's a different discussion, a more complicated discussion . . . but no point going into that if it does not apply to you.
Thank you very much. Good to know!