Canadian Immigration Questions and Answers with Attorney David Cohen

Every month, Attorney David Cohen will answer a few general Canadian immigration questions submitted by our readers. These questions cover immigration programs, eligibility, processing, language requirements, investing in Canada, landing, admissibility, studying in Canada, working in Canada, and much more.

Here are this month’s questions and answers.

1. I am a Canadian citizen and I am working in USA under a working permit. I have married a Chinese woman and she just got her Canadian immigration visa. Can she come to live with me in the USA having her confirmation of permanent residence (COPR) and her permanent resident visa?

Your spouse must first physically land in Canada in order to activate her permanent resident status. Being granted Canadian permanent resident status does not alter an individual’s right to live and work in the United States, which operates an immigration system that is independent of the Canadian system. Moreover, new permanent residents of Canada who wish to retain their permanent resident status over the long term should note that they must meet certain residency obligations or they may lose their permanent resident status. Additionally, if a permanent resident ultimately wishes to make an application for Canadian citizenship, he or she must also satisfy certain residency criteria.

2. My daughter has received an Invitation to Apply for permanent residence under the Express Entry system. She is yet to submit the papers. In India she is working as Pharmacovigilance Analyst in a reputed company. Now while submitting papers she wants to change her NOC code. Our query is will it affect her chance of being granted permanent resident status in Canada in any way.

Applicants for Canadian immigration through the Express Entry system should be cautious of discrepancies between their profile and their e-application. Certain discrepancies may be viewed as misrepresentation, which may result in a ban on applying to immigrate to or enter Canada for a period of five years. If the NOC code chosen initially does not accurately reflect the nature of the work performed for a given position and another NOC code is more appropriate, any change from one NOC code to another will likely need to be explained thoroughly, and some new supporting documents may need to be required in order to reflect the change. Ultimately, any decision is at the discretion of the Visa Officer reviewing the file.

3. I overstayed a visa in the UK for two years. Does this fact make me ineligible to apply for immigration to Canada?

How an overstay in another country affects any application for immigration to Canada will depend on the nature of the particular situation. For example, some individuals end their overstay voluntarily, while other individuals may have been issued a departure order by the authorities. Other factors, such as the length of the overstay, whether or not the individual worked illegally, or humanitarian or compassionate factors, may also be taken into account. In some cases, the preparation of a legal opinion letter outlining the specifics of the case in question may assist an application for immigration to Canada.