Government of Canada improves “permanent resident card” application process.

Permanent residents of Canada who have to apply for a replacement card for the card that is close to expiry date, now, will not have to send their currently valid card along with a written application for the same.

This was the announcement by the minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Diane Finley. The process has been made easier and the person seeking a new card will have to submit the old one and collect the new one in person at the local Citizenship and Immigration Canada office. Also, he would not be required to get a signature of any guarantor.

Minister Finley said that these changes are introduced to provide the most convenient services to the newcomers and that, this shows the commitment of the government towards them. She said that since a newcomer faces difficulties in finding a guarantor, the new process would benefit them a lot. Now, since people will be able to keep their valid cards with them and don’t have to send it earlier, would enable them to travel while the new card is processed.

The earlier method was very inconvenient for the permanent residents because they had to live without a card while their applications were processed. Now, eliminating the need of a guarantor not only make it easier for the permanent residents to process the card replacement application, it will also be security wise intact. Now, while traveling, permanent residents who travel outside for some purpose have to show their PR card before any getting into any commercial transportation, whatever it might be, in order to return to Canada. This is a mandatory process since the permanent resident (PR) card shows the current status of the person in Canada. Therefore, without a valid PR card the person will not be allowed to board in.

It is for this reason that it would be really beneficial for people who have any plan for traveling outside Canada, to check their expiry date on their permanent resident card. Now, in case it is on the verge of expiry, apply well before the plan of travel. The PR card was brought in public in the year 2002, and has a validity of five years in most of the cases.

Therefore, the introduction of the new process in the PR processing is really a good outcome for the permanent residents, and shows that the government thinks favorably for their benefits as well.