Urgent:Have to leave Canada for two weeks, don't have a PR card, Indian passport

[tyrionLannister]

Hello folks,

I am a Canadian (Indian) citizen and my wife is Indian Passport holder.

We have a 2 week vacation planned (12 - 18th July) to Italy and France departing from Edmonton via Iceland as the 1st port of entry to Schengan zone. The following are the issues:

My wife arrived in Canada on 26th April via Edmonton airport and was told that she would get the PR card by mail within 6-8 weeks (59 days officially) but after lot of calling to CIC call center (after processing time had passed) we got to know that it has been dispatched on 24th of June (59 days exactly). It has been 13 days today (including weekends since then), today being 7th of July and we have still not got the PR for my wife.

My wife has a 10 year multiple entry visa as well is a new PR.

Before booking this ticket in May, I wanted to take some advise so I called Vancouver , Edmonton and CIC to know if it was ok to book a ticket. CIC and Vancouver both said I need to pursue a PRTD application at either Italian or French Canadian consulates at the destination, not in Canada. The Edmonton officer said that as long as my wife has a valid permit she would be fine, in this case its the Visitor Visa.

< I booked the tickets and got the Schengan visa from the Italian consulate >

Now the issue is that I don't know how long does a PRTD application take at Paris. We are in Paris only for 2 days and are returning from there via Iceland back to Edmonton. I had called the Vancouver and Edmonton airport second time to get more insight; now they say that I require PRTD application for my wife and the Visitor Visa is internally converted to a PR and she can't have both the statuses. She wont be allowed to board the aircraft back to Canada without the PR Card.

The PR TD application in Italy takes 4 weeks, we are only there in Europe for 16 days. I currently don't know if its viable to wait and see it arrives
I don't know what is the fastest way to get the PRTD from any other Schengan country either. I need something like a 1 day processing time to get in out of a consulate and on my way back if I can survive without changing the flight booking.

Side note:
PR Card are not trackable so if anyone is thinking they can find where it is, its impossible. I have tried talking to multiple Canada post supervisors and all they said that if they find the letter in Edmonton sorting facility, they would give me a call. Otherwise there is no way to locate how far it has reached or if its lost.

My flight is withing 3 days of this post.

 

[ttrajan]

If the visit visa in not cancelled on the passport then she can travel. Otherwise PRTD is required.

 

[zardoz]

You should note that the visit visa IS VOID already, as soon as PR status was granted. You would effectively be misrepresenting your true status to the sirline in order to board the aircraft.

 

[ttrajan]

It is like visa exempt PR people are travelling without PRTD. In Canada you need to show COPR with your passport.

 

[tyrionLannister]

If the visit visa in not cancelled on the passport then she can travel. Otherwise PRTD is required.

No the Visit visa isn't cancelled. I don't know why it isnt. But the IM-1 single entry visa to for PR entry is cancelled. They are two pages with similar looking Visa's one being the PR and other the Visitors.

 

[tyrionLannister]

It is like visa exempt PR people are travelling without PRTD. In Canada you need to show COPR with your passport.

Do have the COPR, it has bold print "Cannot be used for travel" across it. :/

 

[tyrionLannister]

You should note that the visit visa IS VOID already, as soon as PR status was granted. You would effectively be misrepresenting your true status to the sirline in order to board the aircraft.

Absolutely, I am not denying that. I don't want to misrepresent, but if now I have limited choices and I dont know who to get a PR quickly.

 

[tyrionLannister]

Here is an update,

SO, the Canada post tard's are doing there lockout on and off again, on and off.

My wife had a Visitor Visa stamp along with the PR Stamp + COPR. The officer told me not to show the COPR and as long as the Visit visa is valid, I won't be denied re-entry into Canada.

Further Vienna is the only location where because there is no VAC / VFS office you can take appointment and get your PRTD within the same day. But for others like the consulate of Paris or Rome, you have a VAC office. I was told by the border agent that if you have an urgent requirement , something similar to a passport being lost or stolen, you can approach the EMBASSY directly on request bypassing the VAC / VFS office. Provided you have a valid ticket booked showing the urgency.

I have contacted Paris, Rome and Vienna and they all have so-so reply except Vienna mentioned that take an appointment and come and it should be fine.

Alternatively I am going to tell a neighbor to check my mailbox and tell me if it came, and if it did they would send it over to an address oversea's. This is worst case scenario.

The problem for many travelling without PR card in Europe is, that Trains and Flights need identification and if you submit your only identification to a Visa office for PRTD (the passport) you can get into trouble. Not recommended.

 

[Tri-Cities]

Hate to say it but it doesn't make sense to book a flight for vacation when in some way the PR process isn't finished = meaning, your wife hasn't got her (first) PR card!

No officer can tell you exactly how long it will take to get a PR card. They can't do that because they simply don't know about things like if a Canada Post strike is coming up etc pp. Lot's of things can happen....mail can get lost and so on. So when they said 4-6 or 6-8 weeks it's nothing but a ballpark!

As soon as she became a PR she is no visitor to Canada anymore. She is a PR and therefor she needs a PR card to travel = not really for crossing the border but to get on board of a plane. At the border she would be fine with just the CoPR.
Since the PR card hasn't arrived yet she might have to apply for a PRTD in Vienna...

Good luck folks!

 

[tyrionLannister]

Hate to say it but it doesn't make sense to book a flight for vacation when in some way the PR process isn't finished = meaning, your wife hasn't got her (first) PR card!

No officer can tell you exactly how long it will take to get a PR card. They can't do that because they simply don't know about things like if a Canada Post strike is coming up etc pp. Lot's of things can happen....mail can get lost and so on. So when they said 4-6 or 6-8 weeks it's nothing but a ballpark!

As soon as she became a PR she is no visitor to Canada anymore. She is a PR and therefor she needs a PR card to travel = not really for crossing the border but to get on board of a plane. At the border she would be fine with just the CoPR.
Since the PR card hasn't arrived yet she might have to apply for a PRTD in Vienna...

Good luck folks!

Not correct, if there is an emergency situation where some one needs to travel, waiting for a PR cards' arrival is quite stupid and low on priority. We have a back up plan of PRTD now but will never use Canada post ever again for anything. I am hoping they go out of business soon.

 

[scylla]

will never use Canada post ever again for anything. I am hoping they go out of business soon.

It's impossible for Canada Post to go out of business. It's a crown corporation. If you want to mail anything by regular post in Canada - you have no choice but to use Canada Post. Otherwise you must use a courier which is much more expensive.

 

[Tri-Cities]

Not correct, if there is an emergency situation where some one needs to travel, waiting for a PR cards' arrival is quite stupid and low on priority. We have a back up plan of PRTD now but will never use Canada post ever again for anything. I am hoping they go out of business soon.

Emergency? What emergency? Going on vacation is not an emergency. Canada Post doesn't need you to exist...so whatever.
Lol

 

[tyrionLannister]

Emergency? What emergency? Going on vacation is not an emergency. Canada Post doesn't need you to exist...so whatever.
Lol

You should read other posts before replying, its not a life-death emergency for me but for many others. Also our vacation planning was ruined because of this delay. I hope you get into a situation like this, then you will know.

 

[Tri-Cities]

Well, we're not talking about other situations but yours. And your case is no emergency, simple as that.

You can blame everyone around you if that makes you feel better. That's okay with me. It just doesn't change your situation. btw I have been in a stupid situation BUT that was MY fault and I didn't blame anyone else but MYSELF.

Huge difference!

Lool

 

[dpenabill]

Observations:

Major transitions in life are often disruptive. In contrast, international travel is always prone to complications. Sure, people can travel scores and scores of times without significant problems, but the risk otherwise is always looming. Combining a major life transition, like immigrating and becoming a Permanent Resident of a country, with other international travel plans, is literally inviting complications. Sometimes such travel cannot be avoided -- particularly for certain business contexts or family health issues. If it can be avoided, better to do that, to put off traveling until the transition is relatively settled.

That is, the take-away here, the lesson-to-be-learned, is to avoid making international travel plans during a period of transition, like that involved in landing and becoming a Permanent Resident, if at all possible. Once a person lands and becomes a Canadian PR, any visitor visa for Canada is automatically cancelled, of no authority. Unless and until the new PR has a PR card in hand it can be risky to go abroad except in circumstances which will facilitate obtaining a PR Travel Document during the trip. That is the lesson-to-be-learned here, and one that warrants being taken into consideration by new PRs who might be contemplating international travel soon after landing.