My Canadian Status

[Trish30 0]

Hi All.

I seriously need some advise., I Lived in Canada for 6 years and am a Permanent Resident , and I moved to the US on IR1 visa around November 2009, applied

for Canadian citizenship before I received my US Visa. Am very much keen on getting Canadian citizenship.

My question is do I have to travel to Canada every 6 months to keep my PR active ??? or is there any other way ???

Any suggestions ?????

[Malrothien 6]

You have to spend a minimum of 2 years out of every 5 in Canada to maintain permanent residency.

[brocku00 1]

If you are a CDN PR you must remain 'physically' in Canada for 2 out of 5 years, unless you yourself work outside of Canada for the Canadian Government. Or, if you are married to a Canadian citizen you can live anywhere in the world for as long as you would like....and still maintain your residency obligation. I'm guessing though that since you have an IR1 Visa that your spouse is American.

If you applied for your Canadian Citizenship before you left you should be fine since you have been in Canada for 6 years as a PR....which A) qualifies you to apply to become a citz and B) even if you left in November....you can remain outside for a while since they take the past 5 years as of the day they receive application.

[Trish30 0]

If you are a CDN PR you must remain 'physically' in Canada for 2 out of 5 years, unless you yourself work outside of Canada for the Canadian Government. Or, if you are married to a Canadian citizen you can live anywhere in the world for as long as you would like....and still maintain your residency obligation. I'm guessing though that since you have an IR1 Visa that your spouse is American.

If you applied for your Canadian Citizenship before you left you should be fine since you have been in Canada for 6 years as a PR....which A) qualifies you to apply to become a citz and B) even if you left in November....you can remain outside for a while since they take the past 5 years as of the day they receive application.

Thanks brocku I was traveling most of the time, physically I lived in canada for 2years 8 months, what do you suggest I do now ? do

I need to go back to Canada for sometime to maintain my PR ?

[Trish30 0]

You have to spend a minimum of 2 years out of every 5 in Canada to maintain permanent residency.

Thanks Malrothein, I received mail from Citizenship canada saying that the process will take 12/15 months, so

I don't need to go to Canada right ?

[Rustbelt 0]

Thanks brocku I was traveling most of the time, physically I lived in canada for 2years 8 months, what do you suggest I do now ? do

I need to go back to Canada for sometime to maintain my PR ?

You need at least 1095 days (3 years) physical presence in Canada to be eligible for citizenship in the past five years on the date of your application. Two years 8 months is not enough to qualify you for citizenship. You can maintain your PR by being physically present in Canada for 2 years in five as mentioned, but you will almost certainly have to prove that you were there when you renew your PR card in Canada by completing a Residency Questionnaire for CIC.

The RQ looks at your ties to Canada as well as your physical presence. Things like, do you have any of the following in Canada: a bank account, a permanent home, a job, where your car is registered, where your driver's license is, location of family. Being a LPR in the US is not going to help your case with CIC, I'm afraid.

The other thing to bear in mind is that you can't leave the US for more than 6 months without putting your LPR status in the US at serious risk. You can apply for a "returning resident" permit in the US, but you need to be able to demonstrate your intent to return to the US after, say 9 months or a year. They'll be looking for ownership of property, family ties, etc., just like the CIC is looking for with the Residency Questionnaire. It is very difficult to maintain PR status in both countries, although I know of someone who has managed it for 10 years through maintaining a business and residences on both sides of the border.

- Steve's wife.

[Trish30 0]

You need at least 1095 days (3 years) physical presence in Canada to be eligible for citizenship in the past five years on the date of your application. Two years 8 months is not enough to qualify you for citizenship. You can maintain your PR by being physically present in Canada for 2 years in five as mentioned, but you will almost certainly have to prove that you were there when you renew your PR card in Canada by completing a Residency Questionnaire for CIC.

The RQ looks at your ties to Canada as well as your physical presence. Things like, do you have any of the following in Canada: a bank account, a permanent home, a job, where your car is registered, where your driver's license is, location of family. Being a LPR in the US is not going to help your case with CIC, I'm afraid.

The other thing to bear in mind is that you can't leave the US for more than 6 months without putting your LPR status in the US at serious risk. You can apply for a "returning resident" permit in the US, but you need to be able to demonstrate your intent to return to the US after, say 9 months or a year. They'll be looking for ownership of property, family ties, etc., just like the CIC is looking for with the Residency Questionnaire. It is very difficult to maintain PR status in both countries, although I know of someone who has managed it for 10 years through maintaining a business and residences on both sides of the border.

- Steve's wife.

Thanks a lot Steve's wife, have some serious thinking to do now.

[trailmix 77]

You know, I thought it was 3 years in the last 5 as well, however it looks like they have changed it - it now has to be 3 years of the last 4.

Time lived in Canada link

To become Canadian citizens, adults must have lived in Canada for at least three years (1,095 days) in the past four years before applying. Children do not need to meet this requirement.

You may be able to count time you spent in Canada before you became a permanent resident if that time falls within the four-year period.

Regardless, Trish, it looks like you don't qualify.

Edited March 9, 2010 by trailmix