One difference I find amusing is the calculation of physical presence. For example, an absence of 3 days on a PR renewal application may count as 4 days on a citizenship application. Of course, the online calculator will do the math for you in both cases, but why they are not as strict with PR renewals I have no idea.
There should be no difference in the calculation of presence for citizenship compared to the calculation for the PR Residency Obligation.
There
was a difference in calculating days under the old 3/4 Residency requirement for citizenship, which in effect counted midnights or, as CIC information described it: either the day of arrival or the day of exit from Canada, but not both, counted as a day in Canada. Of course the online Residency Calculator did the calculation and all the applicant needed to do was input dates of exit and entry accurately into it.
For applications made since June 11, 2015, the date a physical presence requirement replaced the prior residency requirement, the calculation of days in Canada works the same as it does for the PR Residency Obligation. Both the day of entry and the day of exit count as a day in Canada.
My question is: how different is the citizenship application from the PR counterpart? What exactly will the officers be checking, other than the number of days spent in Canada? I am hoping I won't get RQ, so I am wondering how to prepare my application, what I should do, etc.
see
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/adults.asp and peruse the application form, checklist, and instruction guide.
The instructions describe what is required and what constitutes prohibitions generally, and that is pretty much what IRCC processing agents do, that is they examine the details in the application and the applicant's records to verify the applicant meets those requirements and is not subject to any of the prohibitions.
Keys to successful application:
-- wait to have a solid margin over and above the minimum presence requirement
-- pay extra attention to following the instructions
-- be sure to accurately and completely report all dates of travel
-- be sure to review application carefully before sending it off, including checking the forms online to make sure you are sending the current form
It may seem trite to remind prospective applicants to read and follow the instructions, but it is readily apparent that the failure to follow the instructions is the most frequent cause of processing problems for qualified applicants. We all know the importance of this. Most of us need to be reminded and to remind ourselves to actually do this.
There is no guaranteed way to avoid RQ. But, most indicators suggest rather few applicants are issued RQ these days. Qualified applicants with a margin, who followed the instructions, and who made minimal mistakes in the application, should have little or no reason to worry about getting RQ.
As far as we can discern, some of the more obvious and common reasons why applicants get RQ include:
-- mistakes or inconsistencies, especially in reporting travel dates, and especially omissions
-- there are apparent reasons for looking into applicant's life in Canada more thoroughly, such as unexplained lack of work or school history in Canada, or immediate family (spouse, minor children) living abroad, or other indications of continuing strong ties abroad (including work visas or residency permits for example)
-- failure to present all potentially relevant passports/travel documents at the documents check interview
-- FOSS notes or alerts related to concerns about PR Residency Obligation compliance
-- anything in the application or the applicant's immigration history which could potentially raise concern about the applicant's credibility
