PR renewal from US (do NOT meet residency requirement)
- Thread starter kmaharaj
- Start date
Given that you are living in the US under a diplomatic visa we can only assume you are working for your home country or an international organization both would be unlikely considered H&C reasons. That would be viewed as personal choice. How much time have you spend in Canada since securing PR. How did you secure PR? Without knowing what what your H&C reasons nobody can comment. 30 minute, hopefully paid, consultation over zoom or phone may not be enough time to provide adequate advice especially if a true H&C application which is typically quite complex and should include review of concrete evidence.
I believe your question has been answered multiple times.
Short version:
- If you are certain that you have compelling H&C reasons, and that these reasons will persist until you are finally ready to move to Canada, you can travel to Canada and apply for a PR card
- Else, refer to my comment here
Another important factor for a positive H&C decision is your intent to live in Canada, and your return to Canada at the earliest opportunity. Your continued employment in the USA means these factors are not in your favour either.
This means the H&C reasons you bring forward must be exceptionally grave to outweigh all the other factors mentioned above.
And assuming the H&C reasons are not your employment in the US (which would be a very difficult case to make), but some other event in the past, the hypothetical approval of your PR card application using this H&C reasoning would only clear you for the past, but not going forward. This means if you remain in the US for employment, you will continue to accumulate days of absence for which you will NOT have H&C reasons, meaning you could get reported when you finally move to Canada in 2-3 years as you say.
With all of that being said, this is not a legal forum and most of us (including myself) are not lawyers, so if you are unsatisfied with the legal advice you have received from the lawyer you spoke with, perhaps you should invest into getting a second opinion.
Last edited:
Overall:
Probably NOT.
Generally a new PR card will NOT fix the situation if you continue to remain outside Canada. NOT much point in making a request for H&C relief for a breach of the Residency Obligation UNTIL you are ready to STAY in Canada. Further explanation below.
Some aspects of this question are simple, including what several here have clearly stated: you must be IN Canada to make a PR card application.
Other aspects of this are complex and subject to the influence of other factors. Outcomes can vary depending on particular details and subject to contingencies, and yeah, that includes contingencies like how much longer you are actually outside Canada.
Explanation With Further, Longer Observations:
As noted, some aspects of this are complex and subject to the influence of other factors. Some of this has also been addressed by others here. There are several variables which can influence how these things go. Some of the variables are yet to be determined, like how many days you have been IN Canada compared to the number of days outside Canada the next time you are examined in a Port-of-Entry while returning to Canada . . . this will change day-to-day, and yes, even with a solid H&C case (assuming such a thing exists), the actual numbers can matter and make a difference in the outcome.
Be aware, NO matter what H&C reasons you have for failing to comply with the RO, the actual numbers play a big role in assessing whether such reasons are sufficient to allow the PR to keep PR status despite failing to comply with the RO. This can pose something of a dilemma, making it seem a good idea to make the H&C case soon, before the numbers get worse (comparing number of days outside Canada to number of days IN Canada). But it is almost always premature to seek H&C relief unless and until the PR is actually ready to settle and STAY in Canada.
In particular, one of the factors that can be important to how you approach this is how long it will be before you relocate to Canada, to settle and STAY in Canada. Remember, a new PR card will NOT restart the clock on calculating compliance with the Residency Obligation. If, for example, you visited Canada and while here applied for a new PR card relying on H&C relief for the breach of the RO, and you were issued and delivered a new PR card, even with a new PR card in order to be in compliance with the RO going forward you will still need to be here, IN Canada, at least 730 days within the preceding five years, as of any day, as of EVERY day.
So, if you get the new PR card but continue to stay outside Canada, you will continue to be in breach of the RO and thus could be subject to inadmissibility proceedings the next time you are examined in a Port-of-Entry when coming into Canada. Even if you have an almost brand new PR card.
This is perhaps the key reasoning behind advice to NOT make a PR card application relying on H&C relief for a breach of the RO UNTIL the PR is actually back IN Canada and ready to STAY in Canada. This is similar to what you report an immigration lawyer initially advised, except if you are in the U.S. and can travel to Canada in a private vehicle, there would be no need to make an application for a PR Travel Document. (There is generally a higher risk of a negative decision when seeking H&C relief in a PR TD application than by a PR who is currently in Canada, or even for a PR being examined at a PoE when returning to Canada.)
Generally I will defer to advice from lawyers. They are the experts, not me. However, the advice you got in a call back, as you report it, is suspect to me. As I have noted, in most situations, and generally, there is not much to be gained by making an application for H&C relief UNLESS, and not until, the PR is prepared to settle and STAY in Canada. But as I also noted, some aspects of this are complex and subject to the influence of other factors, and if that advice (in the call back) was based on an in-depth analysis of YOUR particular situation and facts, it could be that in your particular situation it would be prudent to proceed with coming to Canada while your PR card is still valid and making an application for a PR card sooner, even if you do not stay here and you are not moving to Canada soon.
MAYBE. Just maybe.
There are many possible explanations for the call back advice. Those get tangled in some of the more complex and variable aspects of such situations.
That said, a big factor is whether or not this was advice you PAID for (consultations are generally worth little more than what you pay for them), and the extent to which YOUR specific circumstances were considered.
Note, for example, as I previously noted, since the risk of a negative outcome is significantly higher when making a PR TD application from abroad, and depending on how long it has been since the PR was last IN Canada it might be difficult to return to Canada for an appeal, the call back advice might be about avoiding that, avoiding being stuck outside Canada. With a new PR card that would enable the PR to return to Canada a year or even years later, and at that time fight to save PR status from within Canada rather than being stuck abroad. BUT any PR who can travel to Canada from within the U.S. does not need to worry about this.
There are other explanations.
A new PR card gives the PR better odds of being waived through the PoE the next time the PR is returning to Canada. BUT it does NOT change the RO calculation if the PR is questioned about RO compliance.
A positive H&C decision to issue a new PR card also carries significant weight the next time a PR is questioned about RO compliance (again, main example would be PoE examination when returning to Canada). HOWEVER this is NO blank cheque. A lengthy absence from Canada after being issued a new PR card based on H&C relief changes things. Again, the numbers matter. H&C relief for not returning to Canada sooner granted in the summer of 2024 does NOT offer much insurance that there will again be H&C relief allowed if the PR is questioned about RO compliance during a PoE examination in 2025, after being outside Canada for most of the previous year. The numbers have changed significantly. This is what the courts refer to as a change in circumstances.
Among other tangents in this. It can get rather complicated.
H&C Relief Skepticism:
Meanwhile, several of the responses here have expressed or indirectly alluded to skepticism about relying on getting H&C relief. In contrast, your posts seem to suggest there are no reservations, no doubt, that you will be allowed H&C relief.
There are good reasons for the skepticism. H&C cases are almost always tricky and even in the strongest cases there are NO guarantees there will be H&C relief.
It warrants noting, with emphasis, that "a legitimate H&C reason" for not returning to Canada sooner is just ONE factor considered when CBSA or IRCC officials are evaluating whether to allow a PR to keep PR status despite failing to comply with the RO. Other factors will be considered. I have referenced one of the biggest factors, the numbers, the number of days IN Canada compared to the number of days outside Canada. But there are others, including how much hardship will the loss of PR impose. Again, H&C cases are almost always tricky; even the strongest H&C case can be tricky; there are NO guarantees of H&C relief.