puamelia said:
I have submitted my RQ and CBSA report to the CIC back in June, 2014. I submitted change of address in May 2014., and it was reflected on ecas Feb, 2015. I would assume my application is under the review but should I withdraw my application regardless?
I used a notary to submit all my documents and he is still telling me to wait for an interview. I am running out of my patience and I would like to push my application if I can. I do am afraid to interrupt the process if the CIC is reviewing my application now and submitting my withdrawal may lead to rejection or any other bad result....
Overall, based on your first two posts, it appeared you should be
OK but may need to submit a new PR card application. While there should be no problem with that, I cannot guess how long it would take. There is a significant probability it too will go into a non-routine processing track and take some time. But a lot less time than you have already been waiting.
The caveat is that it also appears something is wrong, something is awry.
The timeline alone suggested something might be awry. Things should not take this long without something more definitive happening. But, sure, sometimes that does happen.
But in your last post this jumps out, waving a red flag:
". . . I used a notary to submit all my documents and he is still telling me to wait for an interview."
There is no authorized process pursuant to which a
"notary" can submit documents to CIC on your behalf, unless that notary is a lawyer or an
authorized representative. Thus, hopefully the "notary" you are referring to is
either a lawyer or an authorized representative, NOT a mere "notary."
See
this CIC webpage "Find out if your representative is authorized" (this is a link) to check if your "notary" is an authorized representative.
If you cannot confirm that your "notary" is an authorized representative, do
not contact him. Especially if you have paid this person any money. If you have paid this person money to submit anything to CIC on your behalf, and he is not an authorized representative, it is very likely he is committing a criminal offence . . . if this is the situation, you need to distance yourself from him as much as possible
beginning right now. If he is a volunteer, or family member or friend, it may not be a big deal. But, again, if this person is being paid and he is
not a lawyer or an authorized representative, it appears he may be engaged in committing criminal offences. If so, eventually you will want to report this person to CIC. In the meantime you want nothing to do with him.
But first you probably want to sort out your own status.
What really matters right now is whether or not a 44(1) Report or Departure order has been issued. If not, your PR status is secure and you are OK.
Your posts do not indicate a 44(1) Report has been issued, but . . . well, you need to be certain about this and as soon as possible.
First thing to do:
Thus, first thing to do, and do this immediately (will now have to wait until Monday of course)
is to find out your current status. You should be able to do this by telephoning the CIC call centre. Be politely persistent if the call centre representative is reluctant to access your personal records. Be
polite! But what you really need to know is your
current status. For CIC's information about using the call centre see
this webpage, and expand the "Call centre services" link.
I cannot say precisely how this conversation will go. Ultimately what you need to find out, what you need to know as soon as possible, is affirmation you still have PR status and that you have not been
reported for being in breach of the PR Residency Obligation, that there is no removal order for you.
Again, so long as you have not been reported (no 44(1) Report issued, and no Removal or Departure Order issued), you have nothing to worry about (all of my observations are based on the assumption you have, as you say you have, proof of your presence for 730+ days within the last five years, as of June 2015 and continuing still to today).
The worry is that there has been some correspondence or communication which has not, for some reason, reached you. If CIC has
your personal address (not the
notary's address for example), you should have received communications OK.
But given the inordinate timeline plus use of a
notary, first thing to do is to confirm your present status. The eCas appears to indicate you have not been reported, based on having an application "in process," so you are
probably OK, but before you decide what to do next you need to be more certain of your current status.
What to do next?
Obviously, what you do next depends on what you find out in the meantime. If you confirm you still have PR status and have not been reported for a breach of the PR RO, relax.
Assuming you confirm you still have PR status and have NOT been reported for a breach of the PR RO:
Relax. Then . . .
Technically you could travel abroad any time and should be able to obtain a PR Travel Document for the return flight to Canada (so long as you do so within a reasonable amount of time of course). You may not want to risk running into problems doing this, but if you have proof of being in compliance with the PR RO
as of now, you are certainly entitled to a PR Travel Document for the return to Canada and with that should encounter no problem at the POE when you return.
You could submit a new application for a PR card. There is a significant chance it would also be diverted into, at the least, a secondary review, and could perhaps result in another Residency Determination process. So it too could still take awhile. But if you are now in compliance with the PR RO, the process should go more quickly and result in you getting your new PR card.
You could withdraw the 2014 application but I do not think that is necessary before submitting a new application. I believe you can simply make the new application.
You could contact CIC and request (or in writing demand) that the 2014 application be processed. Frankly, while I am far from sure, my guess is that the best case scenario for this is that it would take nearly as long as a new application would take and it could be rejected based on your not being in compliance with the PR RO on the date it was made. Does not seem to be worth pursuing.
I disagree with
scylla that a negative decision now (or in the future), for the 2014 application, would or even could result in the loss of PR status.
So long as there has been no 44(1) Report or Departure Order issued already, all the time you have spent in Canada since applying will count toward being in compliance with the PR Residency Obligation.
Thus, for example, CIC may reject the 2014 PR card application, because you were not eligible for it on the date you applied, but now you are in compliance, so that is all that would mean, that application is rejected. Since you currently meet the PR RO, you are now eligible for the PR card and a new application should result in your getting the new card. May take awhile, but not so long as the 2014 application has been taking, and the outcome should be favourable.
In particular, your time in Canada will count towards compliance with the PR RO
unless and until a formal 44(1) Report or Departure order is issued. (See
Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulation 62.(1)) This is why it is so critical to know for sure there has been no report made.
A summary of sorts:
Since the eCas shows the PR card application in process, and reflects a date significantly later in time than when the request for documents was made, I infer that
NO 44(1) Report or Departure order has been issued, and that you are OK. But, the length of time the process for the PR card appears to have been inactive does not seem right. In particular, given how much short of compliance with the PR Residency Obligation you were at the time of making the PR card application, and the rather prompt request for documents as part of what appears was probably a Residency Determination back in the first half of 2014, it is surprising there was not a decision or you were not called in for an interview sooner, or otherwise sent further communications.
The worry is that you have, for some reason, not received notice of some sort. From what you have posted, this does not appear to be what has happened, but again the time line suggests something may be awry. And if you have been using what amounts to an unauthorized representative (the
notary), that is where a disconnect could have (too easily) taken place.
Nonetheless, if indeed there has been
NO 44(1) Report or Departure order, you are OK. Probably just need to make a new application. See
for CIC's guide to the new PR card application process, and
page with links to the forms to use.
If you learn that there has been a 44(1) Report, or Removal or Departure Order issued, see a licensed Canadian lawyer, one experienced in immigration law, SOON.
For reference:
puamelia said:
Hello everyone.
I just discovered this site and I would like to ask for your opinion/insight on my case.
Now I realize that I made a mistake of sending an application for PR Renewal without meeting the RO.
As of today, e-cas showing
1.We received your application for a permanent resident card on February, 2014.
2.We started processing your application on August, 2014.
At the time I sent in my application, I only had 360 days. My file got transferred to a local office in April of 2014 and they requested an additional document(colour copies of my passport, Determination of PR questioner, tax info and so on). All the document was sent in June, 2014.
June, 2015, as I did not leave Canada since I move back here, I completed my 730 days so I sent in my employment letter along with T4 and credit card statements for the last 2 years, hoping that will support of my intension to stay in Canada.
Please advise if I can send in any other documents to support my application to move ahead....
or any suggestions...... I am a bit desperate not being able to leave for holiday nor home to visit my family.
Thank you.
scylla said:
The only thing that matters is how many days you had been living in Canada at the time your PR renewal application was submitted. CIC will not count the days you have lived in Canada since submitting the renewal application.
If you applied with only 360 days, you should be expecting a refusal and will need to appeal if you want to try to keep your PR status. An appeal will only work if you have strong humanitarian and compassionate reasons for having failed to meet the residency obligation (e.g. you had to remain outside of Canada due to a very serious personal illness that prevented you from traveling).
Alternatively you can try withdrawing your old application and submitting a new one now that you meet the residency obligation. Although it's possible CIC may not allow you to withdraw your current application.
puamelia said:
Thank you for your reply Scylla.
It has been more than a year since cic started processing my application. As CIC hasn't rejected my application, I was hoping they would consider the fact that I have not left the country for the past 2 years.
I would imagine cic won't accept if I were to withdraw my application at this point.
the only thing I can do here is to wait till CIC send me their decision.....?
scylla said:
CIC won't consider the time you've spent in Canada since submitting your application.
If I was in your shoes, I would try withdrawing the application. The best option for you would be for CIC to allow you to withdraw and reapply.
