Renewing your Canadian Permanent Resident Card or Canadian PR Card
Q. My Canadian Permanent Resident Card is expiring. How can I renew it if I do not have the required residency in Canada?
A. As a Canadian Permanent Resident you will be issued Permanent Residence Card or PR Card. PR Cards are valid for 5 years from the date of issue. You must meet the “residency requirements” in order to be able to renew your card and maintain your Permanent Resident status.
How to renew your Canadian Permanent Resident Card
The general requirement for maintaining permanent residence in Canada is that the resident must be physically present in Canada for at least two years (730 days) in the previous five years.
For example, if your Canadian Permanent Resident Card was issued in January 2004 and it valid until January 2009, then to keep your status in Canada, you must reside in Canada for at least 730 days from January 2009 and January 2009. Conversly therefore, you can be outside of Canada for any three years within that five year time frame.
Exceptions when renewing your Canadian Permanent Resident Card
There are certain exceptions to the residency requirement mentioned above for those travelling with a Canadian family or business in certain cases. The exceptions are:
- If the Canadian permanent resident resides abroad with a Canadian citizen spouse, partner or parent, this time abroad will count toward their Canadian residency.
- if the Canadian permanent resident was employed abroad by a Canadian business, or in the public service of Canada, or of a Canadian province, then this will also count toward their residency.
- if the Canadian resident has been residing abroad with a permanent resident spouse, partner or parent employed by a Canadian business or in public service of Canada or a Canadian province, than the permanent resident can also calculate this period as part of their residence.
So depending on how many days you have resided in Canada and whether you qualify under one of the exemptions mentioned above, you can renew your Canadian Permanent Resident Card. And if none of the above applies, then there is always the possibility of making a case for renewal of your Canadian Permanent Resident Card on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds.
Oops! We could not locate your form.
Any information provided here does not constitute legal advice and is intended for general information only. Should you require legal advise, you are encouraged to contact a lawyer directly. All blog postings are public and are not subject to solicitor/client confidentially
Hi Alicia,
I am a Canadian citizen living in Asia. My wife is only a Permanent Resident of Canada. She is here with me in Asia. Can she apply for a renewal while she is in Asia?
Dear Jasmine,
Your wife may apply for her PR renewal while she is in Asia. She does not have to return to Canada in order to make an application for her PR renewal. However, once her PR is approved, she will have to come to Canada to pick up her new card.
Hope this helps.
Hi,
My husband and I moved to Canada as landed immigrants in 1999. We recieved our PR cards in 2004. But, we left Canada in Aug 2007 to travel (with two Canadian born children)and to take care of my sick parent in Ireland. We want to move back to Toronto permanently and renew our PR cards (which expired in August 2009). My question is whether I should go ahead and submit applications to renew. Will it be a complicated process due to the length of my absence?
If you meet the residency obligation (i.e. you have been physically present in Canada for a minimum of 730 days within the past five 5 years), there won’t be a problem. You may apply for a renewal from Ireland.
If you don’t meet the residency obligation, you may still renew your PR based on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds. To maximize your chances of success, you need to provide a credible explanation for your absence from Canada with supporting documentation. You also need to present documentation showing your ties to Canada (i.e. Your Canadian born children may be a strong factor).
As this application involves much discretion on the part of the immigration officer reviewing your files, you need to carefully prepare your submissions.
Thank you.
We got our PR Cards in August, 2008. However, we have not been in Canada since then. Unless we go back to Canada by August 2011, we won’t be able to meet the residency obligation before our PR cards expire in August, 2013.
We run a company in the U.K. Is there any way I can set up a company in Canada and pay my taxes in Canada to meet the residency obligation instead of physically being in Canada?
Hi Alicia,
My PR card expires in March 2012. Can I renew my PR card 6 months before it expires?
Dear Kishore,
You can apply for a renewal as soon as you meet the residency obligation.
Thank you.
Dear Alicia,
My PR card will expire in September, 2012, but I have only spent 72 days in Canada until today. However, I was always with my Canadian wife while I was outside Canada. Can I count these days for my PR renewal?
Thanks,
Samy
Dear Samy,
Yes, you can count those days for your PR renewal. You may count each day that you accompanied a Canadian citizen outside Canada if the person you accompanied is your spouse.
Thank you.
Hello!
I am a PR of Canada but staying and working in Japan. My daughter, also a PR, is a student at McGill University, Montreal, Canada. I regularly invest in her education. Our PR cards will expire in 2013. By that time, my daughter, probably, will get her Canadian citizenship. I wonder if my ties to Canada will be strong enough to apply for a PR renewal on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds?
Thank you,
Vladimir
Dear Vladimir,
Presence of immediate family members who are permanent residents or citizens in Canada is one of the strongest indications of your establishment in Canada. Other indications typically include tax payments, ownership of property, mortgages, bank accounts, membership in social groups or RRSPs in Canada. The goal is to demonstrate that you have established yourself in Canada. Thus, the more connections you have, the more likely it is that your application will get approved.
If you wish to better assess your situation, I suggest that you contact a qualified immigration lawyer with more detailed information regarding the circumstances you are in.
Thank you.
Please let me know the conditions and requirements to apply for a PR card. Thanks, BIG JOHN
Dear Big John,
You are eligible for a Permanent Resident Card only if you have entered Canada through the immigration process and have been granted permanent resident status.
If you are asking about how to become a Permanent Resident of Canada, you have a few different options: 1) You may apply under the Skilled Worker program or Canadian Experience Class; 2) You may apply under the Business Immigration Program (Investors, Entrepreneur, Self-employed); 3) You may apply for a Provincial Nominee Program; or 4) You may be sponsored by your family members who are Canadian Permanent Residents or Citizens. To better assess your situation, I suggest you contact an immigration lawyer with your background information.
Thank you.
Thank you, Alicia for your reply.I am an Indian student who wishes to study Engineering in Canada. But I cannot afford four year university tuitions in Canada. So, my plan is first to enroll in the least expensive school for one year course in Canada and after this apply for the PR card. Can I apply for a PR card during this time?
Dear Big John,
It is not very clear to me what you are asking. If you wish to study Engineering in a Canadian university, you need to apply for a Study Permit. Applying for a Study Permit and applying for permanent residency are two separate routes. If you wish to apply for Permanent Residence in Canada, it is better to find employment in Canada rather than studying at a Canadian university.
Hope this clarifies your confusion.
Dear Alicia,
I know that applying for a study permit and for PR are different. What I want to do is that I want to apply for a Study Permit then, after one year, apply for PR. Once I become a PR, my tuition fee will be lower. How many days does an international student have to stay in Canada in order to become eligible to apply for PR?
Dear Big John,
You cannot apply for PR directly from your international student status.
In order to be eligible to become a PR, you would have to either find a job in Canada based on your experience in your home country (under the Skilled Worker category) or graudate from a Canadian post secondary institution with at least one year of full-time skilled work experience in Canada (under the Canadian Experience Class category).
Should you wish to explore your options in more detail, I suggest you consult with an immigration lawyer.
Thank you.
My wife and I got Canadian PR visa. My wife landed in April this year and got her PR card. As I am doing MD in India, I have not yet landed in Canada. Now in October my PR visa will be expire. How can I renew my Canadian PR visa?
Hi,
I am a Canadian PR since Dec 2007. My PR card is expiring in Jan 2013 and I am going to apply for the Canadian citizenship in May 2012. The processing time for citizenship application is about 19 months now. Do I have to apply for a renewal of my PR Card? Or can I let it expire? Thanks for your help.
Dear Mojo,
Please note that your PR Card is a status document that provides secure proof of permanent resident status and you need your PR Card when you re-enter Canada after traveling outside of Canada. Unless you intend to travel outside of Canada, you do not need to have a valid PR Card while your citizenship application is in process. You can use your Record of Landing or Confirmation of Permanent Residence as proof of your permanent residency.
Thank you.
Thank you. But I might need to travel after it expires while not having the citizenship yet. So my question again , am I able to apply for the PR card renewal after submitting my citizenship application?
Dear Mojo,
Yes, you may apply for a PR Card Renewal after you submit your citizenship application.
Thank you.
Hi sir,
I have completed my residency obligation and would like to renew my PR Card. Can I renew my PR Card while I am outside of Canada?
Thank you.
Dear Mai,
You do not have to be physically present in Canada to renew your PR card. You may renew your PR Card while you are outside Canada.
Please note that you need to prove that you have valid permanent resident status when you return to Canada and a valid PR card is the best proof of your status. So, should your PR card expire while you are outside Canada, you would have to apply for a Travel Document at the visa office responsible for your area.
Approval of a Travel Document application is not automatic. If you have met your residency obligation, it will be more likely that your travel document application will be approved. However, if you have not met the residency requirement you may make humanitarian and compassionate arguments. The decision whether to grant you a Travel Document in this scenario will depend on the immigration officer reviewing your file.
For these reasons, it is important to keep your PR card valid especially when you need to travel outside Canada.
Thank you.