PR Card Renewal through H&C

What is Residency Obligation?

If you have landed on this page, almost certainly you or someone you care for holds a Canadian PR card. And I assume you already know that you have an obligation to live in Canada at least two years or 730 days within the 5 year validity period of your card. If you have not met your residency obligation and you were not exempt from physical presence in Canada, You still may stand a chance through what’s called the Humanitarian and compassionate grounds.  

Exemptions

If you were not able to live in Canada and fulfill your residency obligation of 730 days and you do not have the luxury of falling under one of the exemptions to the physical presence requirement, for example Accompanying a Canadian Spouse, Be Outside Canada While Working For a Canadian Business or Government, or if you were a minor accompanying a Canadian Parents, still there might be a chance for you to renew your card.

See, if you can show that enough H&C considerations are involved in your case, Canadian immigration regulations offer special consideration for situations of this nature, allowing you to renew your PR card even if you haven’t met the residency requirement.

I don’t wanna bore you with technicalities but for those interested, I am referring to the S. 25.1 (1), S. 28 (2) (b) (ii) and S. 28 (2) (c) of the Immigration Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) that is for the H& C grounds relating to a foreign national that does not meet the residency requirements of IRPA.

Who is eligible for H&C?

Examples of circumstances that could warrant humanitarian and compassionate consideration include:

• Your inability to return to Canada due to travel restrictions, such as those imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic
• or it might be your illness while abroad
• it could also be the illness, incapacity, or death of a family member residing outside Canada
• it can be Legal proceedings or financial matters hindering you to come back to Canada 

They will also consider, did you travel to Canada or tried to travel at the first possibility you had or not? 

Amongst other factors determining factors for H&C consideration in a PR card renewal application include:

1. The duration and reasons for your absence from Canada
2. Your family ties within and outside the country,
3. Your social and economic status abroad

Facts to Consider when Submitting your File

While preparing an H&C application, you must calculate exactly how many days you were absent. The fewer the number of absent days, the higher chance of approval. If you are highly educated, or you have great skills that will contribute to Canada’s economy, or you have transferred your assets to Canada, that will have a positive effect on the case. In addition, if you have a spouse or children who lived in Canada during your absence that is also beneficial to the application.  

Best Interest of the Child

Best interest of the Child is another crucial factor in H&C considerations. As per sections. 25(1) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA), the best interests of a child who is directly affected, must be taken into consideration in determining whether permanent residence should be granted on H&C grounds.

Child’s relationship with the applicant, their age, level of dependency, medical needs etc. have a great impact on your application. What will happen to children if they are forced to go back to your home country? Will they face hardship? You need to consider their physical, psychological, and emotional safety, security and well-being as well. 

Another factor may be a serious illness of yourself or an immediate family member who did not have anyone to take care of them except you. I have had many successful cases where a parent was ill and the applicant could not leave them alone and had to stay to take care of them. Remember for a case like this, you need enough medical records and documentation to support your claim.

Do not Generalize!

Please note that just like your fingerprint, each case is unique and preparing an application for PR card renewal under H&C grounds requires extensive documentation and needs a lengthier processing time, often over a year. 

If you feel any of the H&C reasons apply to you, reach out to us to explore the possibilities. Our office has a proven track record of success in such applications, providing personalized attention and crafting compelling legal arguments tailored to each applicant’s unique circumstances.