Re: Renewing OHIP on implied status

[Choo]

Hello everyone,

Here is my situation.

Right before my PGWP expired, I applied for PR under common law and therefore, I am on implied status. I can continue to work full-time in Canada. However, I was told by Service Ontario that I can't renew my OHIP until I receive my PR. My OHIP as well as SIN expired when my PGWP expired.

I'd like to know if there is absolutely NO WAY to renew my health card until I get my PR. I need to get an MRI done as soon as possible.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much.

 

[rmust]

I dont think you can get OHIP unfortunately with out a valid work permit or PR.

Also, I want to bring to your attention another matter, please look into it or seek professional advise. My understanding is that although you applied for PR before your work permit expired, you can not continue to work unless you applied to renew your work permit before it expired.
Implied Status after applying for PR and your work permit expiring would only allow you to remain in Canada till a decision is made on PR application, but will not allow you to work. However to continue working, you must apply to extend your work permit before it expires and then only will you be under Implied Status to continue working till a decision is made on your work permit.

Please seek some professional advise, my understanding is that legally you should not be working right now because you did not apply to renew your work permit before it expired, regardless if you applied for PR before your work permit expired.

So moving forward, you will need to stop working, then ask your employer to get Labor Market Opinion (LMO) for you, and then apply for a new work permit before you can start working. There should be plently of article in this forum on LMO.

Hope this helps and guides you to the right direction! Good luck

 

[Choo]

Here is the email I received from the government. Yes, I can legally work as I applied PR under common law and I confirmed it with an agent over the phone. Please see the below:

Sir, Madam,

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

Open Work Permit – Sponsorship of a Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada

If a spouse or common-law partner is sponsored from inside Canada, they can apply for an open work permit by completing an Application to Change Conditions or Extend Your Stay in Canada as a Worker (IMM 5553). This application must be sent before their status expires in the same envelope as the sponsorship application. This will allow them to keep a legal status in Canada up until the time their application for permanent residence is *approved in principle.

If their status expires before the application for permanent residence is approved in principle, they will still have a legal status in Canada. This is called implied status. Please note that the open work permit will only be issued once the application for permanent residence is approved in principle. Visit our Web site to see how long it may take to get approval in principle.

If the sponsored person did not send an open work permit application with their permanent residence application, they can send it, by mail, at any time while it is in process by writing Open Work Permit - Application for permanent residence in Canada - Spouse or common-law partner on the top of the form. They should also include proof that the permanent residence application was submitted. The open work permit application cannot be submitted online.

Please note that they must keep a legal status in Canada during the entire process of their application for permanent residence.

*Approved in principle means that the person being sponsored received a letter from the Case Processing Centre or local office stating that they meet the eligibility (minimum) requirements to apply for permanent resident status but that a final decision will not be made until all requirements for becoming a permanent resident have been met. These requirements include medical, security and background checks for the applicant and, if applicable, their family members.

 

[jes_ON]

Choo, this forum is for CEC applicants, not family class applicants. You should post your questions in the Family Class Sponsorship forum, otherwise people will misunderstand you and/or give advice that is not relevant to your case.

I am nonetheless concerned that you have mis-read and misunderstood the email from CIC. It is POSSIBLE for family class applicants to apply to extend their work permits (and thus have implied status) before their current status expires. But that is not automatic, it requires an ADDITIONAL application for a work permit, separate from your PR application.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/extend-worker.asp


you can send it at two times:

1) "This application must be sent before their status expires in the same envelope as the sponsorship application."

OR

2) "If the sponsored person did not send an open work permit application with their permanent residence application, they can send it, by mail, at any time while it is in process by writing Open Work Permit - Application for permanent residence in Canada - Spouse or common-law partner on the top of the form. They should also include proof that the permanent residence application was submitted. The open work permit application cannot be submitted online."

If you did not submit the application to extend your work permit, you do not have implied status.

If it has been less than 90 days since your work permit expired, you can still submit the application, but you must also apply to restore status. You will not have "implied status" however, since your status has already expired.

You will only be able to apply to renew your OHIP when:
1) You get a new work permit
2) You get your PR visa...



The PR application is exclusively for PR - it does not provide any authorization to visit, study, or work in Canada.

 

[lilyluvx]

as the agent said... you have to submit an application for work permit before your PGWP expires so that you will be considered under implied status before your PR is approved..... currently you are not under implied status

I agree with jes_ON, you should apply to restore status. You do not want to illegally stay or work in Canada (although it wasn't your intention) now because you may have problem later at landing.

 

[Choo]

Hello Jes_On,

I apologize for the confusion. I initially posted my questions in the Family Class Sponsorship forum, but no one was able to help. I figured the category may not matter too much in my case, as it applies to anyone on implied status. Regardless, I am sorry for the confusion.

Also, I did include an additional application for an open work permit, separate from my PR application. I was advised to submit them all together in separate envelopes. Thank you for pointing that out.

Thanks everyone for being so helpful.

 

[jes_ON]

Also, I did include an additional application for an open work permit, separate from my PR application. I was advised to submit them all together in separate envelopes. Thank you for pointing that out.

OK, so to be clear, if you submitted your application for the open work permit before your old work permit expired, you are on implied status.

You can renew your your OHIP card when you receive your new work permit. It's probably a good thing you submitted the applications separately, but it might still take ~ 4 months or more for the new work permit to be processed.

you might have to show that there was no break in employment to avoid OHIP's 3 month waiting period a second time.

 

[SenoritaBella]

It's strange that the rules for extending coverage is not consistent in all provinces and unfair to those who have to go without coverage. Some provinces will extend coverage for 90 days while on implied status provided you have proof(fee receipt) that you've submitted the work permit application.

 

[scylla]

You can renew your your OHIP card when you receive your new work permit. It's probably a good thing you submitted the applications separately, but it might still take ~ 4 months or more for the new work permit to be processed.

The new work permit will arrived once first stage approval has been received. First stage approval processing for inland spousal applications takes 11 months (assuming their are no complications with the file).