Canada Permanent Residence

A Canadian permanent resident is someone who has been granted permanent resident status by immigrating to Canada. A permanent resident is not a Canadian citizen; rather, all permanent residents are citizens of other countries. In order to maintain permanent resident status, permanent residents must meet certain requirements like the residency obligation.

As a permanent resident, a person receives a significant number of benefits:

• Access to Canadian healthcare and social services.
• The right to live, work, and study anywhere within Canada.
• Protection under Canadian law and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
• The ability to leave and enter Canada’s borders using their Canadian permanent resident card, or permanent resident travel documents (PRTD).
• The ability to apply for Canadian citizenship after requirements are met.

There are many immigration pathways which will enable a person to become a Canadian permanent resident. Economic immigration, business immigration, sponsorship, and refugee/humanitarian programs offer different options for becoming a permanent resident in Canada.

Permanent Residence Cards

Once a person is approved for Canadian permanent residence, they are eligible to apply for a Canadian permanent resident card (PR card). This card indicates a person’s PR status in Canada and can be used to travel in and out of the country. Applications for permanent resident cards are submitted to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

Permanent Residence Card Renewal

The PR card is valid for only five years and, although not mandatory, should be renewed, especially if the permanent resident wishes to travel and re-enter Canada. Permanent residents outside Canada cannot apply to renew their PR cards; instead, they must apply for a Permanent resident travel document and show that they have met the requirements to remain a permanent resident, then apply for a PR card after they return to Canada.

Permanent Resident Travel Document

If a permanent resident is outside of Canada and wishing to enter Canada, they may apply for a permanent resident travel document (PRTD) if they do not have a valid PR card. The PRTD is usually valid for a single entry to Canada, allowing the permanent resident to enter the country before applying for a PR card, or PR card renewal.

Residency Requirements

A person can lose permanent resident status by failing to fulfill residency obligations. So, in order to maintain permanent resident status in Canada, a person must meet a residency obligation. The residency obligation refers to a person’s physical presence inside of Canada for a set amount of time. Canada’s residency obligation for permanent residents requires a person to be physically present inside of Canada for at least 730 days within a five-year period, or to fall under one of several exceptions. Subsequently, you need to meet the 730-day residency obligation every five-year interval. Nonetheless, residency obligation means you are either physically inside Canada or meet one of the following options:
• You are outside Canada, but you are a minor child, and you are accompanying your parent, who is a Canadian Citizen,
• your spouse is a Canadian citizen, and you are accompanying them outside Canada,
• a Canadian business or government has hired you on a full-time basis but deployed you outside Canada, or
• you are the spouse or child of the person I mentioned in the previous bullet point.

Canadian Citizenship

A person who becomes a Canadian citizen is no longer a permanent resident. Citizenship includes all the rights of permanent residence, plus additional rights and obligations. Permanent resident wishing to become Canadian citizens must meet several requirements, including having valid permanent resident status in Canada and requires them to be a legal resident of Canada for at least three years (1,095 days) in the past Five years.

Loss of Permanent Resident status

Generally speaking, the term permanent resident gives us the impression that you will never lose your Canada PR. However, a permanent resident of Canada remains a PR only if none of the following happens:

• They become Canadian Citizens,
• Renounce (give up) their Permanent residency,
• the immigration authorities cease or vacate their refugee claim,
• become inadmissible to Canada, or
• do not meet the residency obligations [practitioners see A46].

Renouncing Permanent Resident Status

A person can apply to renounce his permanent residence as long as he is a citizen of another country or has legal permanent resident status in another country. A person who is under the age of 18 must have his legal guardian’s consent to the renunciation in writing. A separate application must be made for each family member who would like to renounce their permanent resident status. When an officer approves the application to renounce permanent resident status the applicant becomes a temporary resident for a period of six months, unless he makes an application to renounce his permanent resident status at a POE or is not physically present in Canada on the day on which his application is approved.

If you need more information about this program, please do not hesitate to get in touch today at info@dhunnaimmigration.ca