Dear all
When does the 5 year PR clock start ticking
Is it from the point you land in Canada to trigger the PR as part of the initial landing formalities as I understand PR is not enacted till this takes place or is it from the point of PR card issuance ie from the moment you receive the card you need to spend 2 years out of 5 in Canada.
I am not based in Canada so just factoring in time that could eat into the 5 years whilst potentially getting all my affairs in order eg schooling / house sale etc IF I get PR.
Thanks all
David.
Thanks how long do you have in order to land in Canada to activate the PR status after being issued with PR cards. Is there a finite period ?
Others have answered the particular questions asked.
However, it appears some further clarification may be useful.
For clarification, the longer explanation:
The PR card is a status card which will only be issued to a person who has PR status.
A PR card can be issued to any person with PR status at any time
AFTER that individual became a PR. That can be soon after the formality of becoming a PR is completed (often referred to as the date of "landing"). Or that could be the next year or years later.
Thus, the date a PR card is issued has NOTHING to do with the date of landing, except it can only be some date
AFTER the date of landing, after the date the individual actually obtains the status of PR.
The date of landing is typically shown on the PR card. But that is NOT the date it was issued. That is NOT the date the PR card expires.
The date the PR card was issued is NOT relevant when calculating a PR's compliance with the Residency Obligation.
The date the PR card will expire is NOT relevant when calculating a PR's compliance with the Residency Obligation.
A Permanent Resident has an ongoing obligation to comply with the PR Residency Obligation. The RO requires the PR to be IN Canada at least 730 days within the relevant five year time period; the relevant five year time period is --
-- the FIRST five years the person is a PR, up to the fifth anniversary of the date that individual LANDED and became a PR, or
-- the preceding five years (for any PR after the fifth year anniversary of the date that individual landed)
So, to be clear, the RO is applicable as of the DAY the PR lands and becomes a Permanent Resident. Of course, as of that day there are more than enough days left in the first five years to meet the RO, so the PR is in compliance with the RO. This remains true for the next THREE years, that is up to three years, because up to the THIRD year anniversary of landing, there are still at least 730 days left in the relevant five years, enough time left in the first five years, for the PR to meet the RO.
After the third year anniversary of landing, up to the fifth year anniversary of landing, calculating compliance with the RO involves counting the number of days IN Canada so far PLUS the number of days left on the calendar until the fifth year anniversary of landing. As long as that total, the total number of days IN Canada PLUS the number of days left in the first five years, adds up to 730, the PR is in compliance with the RO.
To my view it is easier to count days outside Canada. As long as the new PR has not been outside Canada more than 1096 days (factoring in leap years) during the first five years, the total number of days IN Canada plus days left will be at least 730.
In particular, if at any time after landing, and before the fifth year anniversary of that day, the PR has been outside Canada for more than 1096 days, the PR has breached the PR RO.
Note Regarding Date of Landing:
Sometimes it appears there is a bit of confusion about the process of becoming a PR. The issuance of a PR visa, or the CoPR (Confirmation of Permanent Resident document), does NOT mean the individual is a PR. The person issued the PR visa or CoPR must still complete the process of landing. The person issued the PR visa or CoPR does not become a PR until the formality of landing is completed.
Thus, for example, the CoPR is not formally completed until the process of landing. The PR is then given a copy (actually the landing officer takes all the copies but one, and returns one copy of the CoPR to the newly landed PR).
The landing formality usually, almost always (except for inland PR applications), takes place when the person granted the PR visa arrives at a PoE in Canada. Persons issued a PR visa ordinarily have a limited time within which they must come to Canada and complete the formality of landing (there may some variations in this currently due to Covid-19).
The new PR does not need to fully settle in Canada at that time. Many do what is called a "soft landing," which means they come to Canada, do the landing formalities at the PoE upon arrival, and soon leave Canada (can be that day even), planning to return to Canada in the near future . . . some taking up to two or almost three years to settle affairs before making the move to Canada to stay.
"Soft landing" is not a technical term. Technically there is simply a landing. And the date of the landing is the date the individual becomes a Permanent Resident, and that is the date which establishes the first five year time period in which the new PR must spend at least 730 days in Canada.
