Landing Questions

[mzansi]

Dear All,

I will be landing in Canada as a PR later this year. My PR is through the Family Class sponsorship and has arrived much quicker than anticipated, making us re-adjust our plans.

My spouse and daughter are Canadian citizens. Do they all need to come with me for my landing or can I do it myself? Our daughter is still a baby and it would be an unnecessary hardship for her to take a transatlantic flight…

I plan to land, spend a week or so setting up a bank account, transferring our funds, obtaining a SIN card etc. and then heading back. As far as I know, spending time abroad with my Canadian spouse counts towards my PR status. We hope to slowly relocate to Canada, i.e. have frequent visits until we can find a decent property to purchase in TO as well as decent job for myself through the contacts/networks I plan to establish. Do I tell the landing authorities about this?

Basically:
a.) will there be a problem if I land by myself or only with my spouse, while our daughter stays behind with her nanny?

b.) will my PR residency be OK since I live with my Canadian wife abroad?

c.) are there any other must-haves you would suggest apart from opening a bank account and obtaining SIN number?

d.) do I inform the landing authorities about our plan? are there any documents they may request to see once I land apart from my passport/COPR?

Thanks in advance

[Klaus]

Hi,

a.) you don’t need to bring your sponsor, your spouse or anyone else, you can land by yourself.

b.) the ENF 23 Loss of Permanent Resident Status states:

A28(2)(a)(i) and A28(2)(a)(iv)provide that each day a permanent resident is outside Canada, accompanying a Canadian Citizen spouse, common-law partner, or in the case of a child, a parent with whom they ordinarily reside, is deemed a day of physical presence in Canada.

and

In the case of a permanent resident outside of Canada accompanying a Canadian Citizen, it is not necessary to determine who is accompanying whom, nor is it necessary to determine for what purpose.

So the short answer to your question is yes.

c.) not even the bank account and the SIN are essential at this time. You may as well open a bank account and get a SIN when you permanently settle in Canada. I got my SIN and my bank account the same day I applied for them.

d.) answer truthfully to each question, but don’t tell them anything they are not asking for. This is not to hide information from them, it’s just that they know exactly what they need, so there is no point in telling them about your plans unless they ask.

Also, the section Crossing the border: documents you need from the CIC website might be interesting for you:

Before you arrive, you should prepare two copies of a list (preferably typed) of all the goods you intend to bring into Canada as settler’s effects, showing the value, make, model and serial number, if the item has one. Divide the list into two sections: the goods you are bringing with you and the goods to follow.

Present this list to the border services officer on your first point of arrival in Canada, even if you are not bringing in any goods at that time.

You can make the process easier by completing a B4 form in advance and presenting it to the officer when you arrive. Visit the Canada Border Services Agency website to download a copy of the Form B4, Personal Effects Accounting Documents (PDF, 1.95 MB).

Don’t worry, you have already come this far, now the final step to land and officially become a PR is really nothing to worry about. When I landed almost three years ago there were no problems at all, the officer was relaxed and everything went smooth.

[mzansi]

Thank you so very much. I know that the hard part of the procedure is behind us but I am still worried over the fact that we plan to move ‘slowly’, i.e. once we get everything ready in Canada. We just want to ensure that we use the time to secure work in Canada in our professions (me at least, the spouse should be fine) so that we can avoid one of those endless cycles of volunteering/part-time work that so many new arrivals experience.

Will the border officers ask about my return ticket and how I plan to pick up my PR card?

As for the personal effects forms, since my initial visit will be short and my final move in the future, what happens if I update my equipments (laptops etc.) and they are not on the original forms? Can I bring the forms with me later or are they mandatory right now?

Thanks again.

[Klaus]

It’s actually not uncommon for new immigrants to land and then fly back to their home country to finish whatever needs to be done.

It’s rather unlikely that the officer wants to see a return ticket. You’re free to stay or leave anyway, so it really doesn’t make any difference whether or not you have one. As for your PR card, will you have an address in Canada where they can send it? CIC will not send it to an address outside Canada.

As for the B4 form, I’m not quite sure if you actually need it if you don’t intend to stay in Canada right away. The CBSA site Immigrating or Returning to Live in Canada states

Before you leave for Canada, you should prepare two copies of a list (preferably typewritten) of all the goods you intend to bring into Canada as part of your personal effects. The list should indicate the value, make, model and serial number (when applicable) of all the goods.

[…]

Divide the list into two sections. In the first section, list the goods you are bringing with you; in the second, list the goods to follow. Goods that arrive later will only qualify for duty- and tax-free importation under your entitlement as a settler or former resident if they are on your original list.

Then again, it also states:

Under customs legislation, Settlers mean all individuals who enter Canada with the intention of establishing, for the first time, a residence for a period of not less than 12 months.

Since you do not yet intend to establish a residence for at least 12 months, it appears that you don’t need to bring the list right away. This is just a wild guess though, maybe a moderator or someone else who is more familiar with these details than I am (PMM? MeIM?) can shed some light on it.