Permanent Residence Card Renewal with H&C

Applying For Permanent Residence Card Renewal with H&C

Have you been admitted to Canada lawfully as a permanent resident? Has 5 years passed since you were admitted as a permanent resident, and now it is time to apply for a renewal of your permanent resident status? If this is the case, you may simply be looking to apply for a permanent residency renewal. If you meet all the requirements of an individual who will be granted a renewal of their permanent residency status, then this is a fairly straightforward task. However, you may realize you do not meet all the requirements necessary to successfully have your permanent residency status renewed. In this case, you may be concerned your chances of living in Canada permanently one day are gone, though; this is not necessarily the case. Depending on your specific circumstances, you could be eligible to apply for a permanent residency renewal by asking for humanitarian and compassionate consideration, also known as H&C. This blog will help you understand the situations individuals often find themselves in, when they decide applying for permanent residency renewal with H&C is the best option available.

Renewing Your Permanent Residency if You Fail to Meet the Residency Requirements

If you fail to meet the residency requirements needed to be eligible to renew your permanent residency status, but you have a compelling reason you were unable to meet these requirements, it is essential you apply for humanitarian and compassionate consideration within 60 days of receiving your removal order (if you are currently in Canada), or being informed you have lost your permanent resident status. Applying for humanitarian and compassionate consideration is not taken lightly by immigration officers, and applications are only approved if the applicant has proved they will face undue hardship by being forced to return to their home country, and they failed to meet the residency requirements due to extenuating circumstances. It is important to understand the responsibility is entirely on the applicant to prove to an immigration officer your wish should be granted, as this is an exceptional application process which is provided to ensure individuals are not subject to undue harm as the result of being removed from Canada. Immigration officers will not request additional information to try to determine if your case has merit; it is your responsibility to illustrate your requests in a clear and compelling way to convince an immigration officer you deserve to keep your status as a permanent resident.

Applying For Humanitarian and Compassionate Consideration to Renew Your Permanent Residency Status

As mentioned, you must have a strong claim to be considered for a renewed permanent resident status under humanitarian and compassionate consideration. First, it is important to establish why you did not meet the residency requirements of a permanent resident. Sometimes, this occurs for individuals who have had to leave the country for financial reasons, or to deal with a family emergency in their country of origin. A family emergency could be the illness of a close relative perhaps, or even the need to support struggling family members in your country of origin if you are the only one available to do so. The reasons an individual may not meet their permanent residency requirements are not limited to these, however, these are common. If you can prove to an immigration officer there is a good reason you could not meet your residency requirements, it is still your responsibility to prove that being forced to return to your country of origin would be unduly harmful to you and your family, and therefore, you should not be denied a renewal of your permanent residency.

Proving Undue Harm

It is very important you demonstrate the situation you would face if you were forced to return to your home country, as it is not enough to prove you had good reasons for not meeting the requirements of a permanent resident. Simply proving you had good reason not to meet these requirements gives an immigration officer no reason to renew your permanent resident status. To prove to an officer you should have your permanent resident status renewed, you must prove you would face undue harm returning to your home country. Immigration officers are legally required to consider circumstances that would cause undue harm to any affected children as compelling reasons to renew a the permanent resident status of someone who fails to meet the requirements. For example, the education which is available in your country of origin would mean it is not in the best interests of the child to return. In addition to this, the state that your country of origin is in could mean returning to your country would cause undue hardship. For example, if your country has very limited medical care, and you or your child requires treatment for a condition you have, it may cause you undue harm to return to you home country where good care is not available. Another example may be that you are expected to face discrimination or harassment in your country of origin, and therefore you cannot return for fear of what you face, or, if you have children, you cannot return to you home in this state because it is not in the best interests of the child.

Other Important Aspects of This Application

To have the best chance of having your application to renew your permanent resident status approved, it is important to demonstrate that you have attempted to establish yourself in Canada, and have built strong ties to the country in an attempt to permanently settle yourself there. To do this, you should mention any owned or consistently rented property you have in Canada. As well, it would help to demonstrate your involvement in your community and the importance of staying close to your relatives, if this applies to your situation. Furthermore, it would help to include any relationships you have established while in Canada, that compels you to return.

Contact Akrami and Associates

It is essential that you have taken all of the aforementioned factors and information into consideration before you attempt to apply to renew your permanent residency with humanitarian and compassionate consideration. This is a very selective application process, as you are trying to prove to an immigration officer that despite not meeting the requirements of a permanent resident, you still deserve to have permanent residency. Though, if you prepare a comprehensive application with strong reasons for why you could not meet the requirements, and compelling evidence your first wish is to become a permanent resident and live permanently in Canada, you have given yourself the best chance of having your application approved. Though, due to the selective process, it is important to note that these are difficult applications to pursue on your own. Please remember, the immigration officer will not ask for additional information. If they are not convinced by the initial application, it will be refused. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you seek out professional and experienced help before attempting to submit the application. Here, at Akrami & Associates, we work and have experience with many different immigration issues. We have helped many of our clients with inadmissibility gain Canadian citizenship. Please feel free to contact Akrami & Associates at 416-477-2545 for more information, or if you would like to book a consultation with an immigration professional for more advise.

With Akrami & Associates, there is always a way!