Mark Holthe 0:02
Hello everyone. Welcome back to another episode of the Canadian immigration podcast. I'm your host, Mark Holthe, and I'm here with my guest host, Igor kurliuk, how are you doing? Igor,
Igor Kyryliuk 0:14
I'm doing well. Mark, thank you so much for hosting me on this podcast.
Mark Holthe 0:18
Well, absolutely we had to host you because you are the one that wrote this awesome little blog post in our times up series entitled, my work permit in Canada expire soon. Can I change my status to visitor? So this is an issue that a lot of people are wrestling with. The circumstances when you may consider doing that, what are the consequences? What are their advantages? If any? What are the disadvantages? And so this is the third episode in our time's up series, all related to the crazy insanity that's going on in Canada right now, as we're well aware, Igor the Liberal government recently issued a series of very harsh measures to reduce the number of permanent residents and temporary residents in Canada. And some of these measures are pretty harsh, aren't they?
Igor Kyryliuk 1:08
Yes, they are. And we will see not only reduction of temporary residents and permanent residents, we will see a lot of people who will be desperate trying to figure out, what do they do now? We already had couple of consults with people, literally not understanding what are their options, and we had to be honest with them and say, you don't have many options.
Mark Holthe 1:35
Yeah, and that is a hard discussion to have, but that is one of the things as a firm, our integrity and the advice that we give sometimes is not going to be what people want to hear, but they need to hear it, especially if the options are virtually none, and the better option is to return back to their home country. We do not pull any punches, and we tell people that so that they can actually make good decisions, and sometimes there will be a reason or a rationale to chant transition to visitor status, and sometimes there won't be. And so the purpose of this particular episode is to help demystify that a little bit. But let's just set the stage. Now, if you haven't listened to series, the very first one, what to do, my work permit expires, or, you know, the challenges and why you don't want to let yourself fall out of status and become illegal, which was number two in this series. Let me give you just a little bit of an intro so that you can understand what's happened if you're just tuning in for the first time. So we know that just recently, the Minister of employment and basically the Minister of employment Social Development Canada, ESDC, in an effort to reduce the number of temporary residents in Canada, including workers, instituted some new measures to reduce the number of lmias that are being issued to support these work permits under the temporary foreign worker program. So the first one happened on August the 26th and that basically is where he instituted if the company has more than 10% and it's a low wage occupation, and I won't get into all of those, but if it's a low wage occupation under the temporary foreign worker program, and there are more than 10% foreign workers on LMIA based work permits at that physical location, then the employer can't request more or alternatively, if there is a unemployment rate of 6% or higher, subject to some exceptions. And there are exceptions to these things, but generally speaking, if you're in a they call it a they call it a census metropolitan area. If within the applicable census metropolitan area. If you have an unemployment rate of 6% or higher, then they also can't apply for lmias. So that was step one. Then on October the 21st they basically took the cut off between a high wage and a low wage position and said, okay, whatever it is in the provinces, let's say for Alberta, if it's $29 and change, well, for it to not be processed as a low wage position, the wage being offered actually has to be 20% higher than the median kind of that that deciding cut off wage. So for Alberta, it basically bumps it up to almost $35 or more. And if you're paying anything less than 35 as the prevailing wage, or the wage you're offering your employee, then you're going to be caught by this low wage restriction, which, like I said, more than 10% of your workforce, foreign worker, it's a no go. Or if you're in an area of 6% unemployment or higher, it's a no go. So they anticipate, by doing that, that there's going to be 1000s and 1000s of people that are no longer going to be able to extend their permit. So that's on the temporary side. And then we know, just recently, the government also, on October the 24th issued with their long awaited levels plans, and not just for permanent residents, but for temporary residents. So if we go down here and look. The news release, some of the highlights are that they're going to be reducing from 500,000 overall permanent residents, down to 395,000 is the goal for 2025 and then reducing from 500 which was the previous projection for 2026 they're going to reduce it even further, down to 380 and then they're gonna see the target in 2027 go a little bit further yet down to 365,000 permanent residents. And so those, the fact that those options for permanent residents are going to be reducing will have a significant impact on people. And like Igor said, people that are, you know what's going to happen? My work permits expiring. You know, how do I change to a visitor status? Or should I even change to a visitor status? And then, to take it a little bit further, their goal as well, is to reduce the temporary population in Canada by 445,000 in 2025 and another 445,000 2026 which, of course, we know about the previous restrictions on international students, and the numbers that they're going to allow in each year, coupled with the changes to the LMIA, and they're even making changes to the international mobility program for traditional work permits, such as the C I think, 4647 the inter company transfers used to be Our old C 12 or for non US citizens and Mexico citizens. So these are citizens that are of all other countries. They're making it more difficult to get those and and so this is kind of the world that we're in right now. Igor, and as a result of all of these changes, we are going to see a real pinch on people having the ability to transition to permanent residence, or, in some cases, even extend their work permits. And I had a consult just today with someone who's working who has a rural renewal stream nomination from a community in Alberta, and they've submitted their permanent resident application through the PR portal, but they can't get a bridging open work permit until they get the acknowledgement of receipt. Well, the application was submitted in September. Their work permit, which is LMIA based, is going to be expiring in, I think about March. But they're in an area Igor where the unemployment rate is 6% and so the employer, unless they bump their wage, which is currently at $24 up to about $35 or more, they're not going to be able to extend their permit. Now there's a faint hope that the PR portal will be processed and that well, at least to the point where they will get that acknowledgement of receipt and then they can apply for a bridging work permit. But there's going to be many people in this situation who don't even have a PR application in the queue that are literally going to be facing the expiry of their work permit. So let's transition now to the actual world of visitors, and there's a lot of confusion about the difference between a visitor record and a temporary resident visa or a visitor visa. Maybe you can help to clarify that a little bit for the for the listeners,
Igor Kyryliuk 8:01
yeah, so we had a couple of clients in the past who fell out of status because they did not understand the difference between the TRV and the visitor record. And to make things simple, a TRV is a travel document, so it's a sticker that you get in your passport, and that allows you to appear at the border before the officer, and then the officer makes their own assessments to decide whether to let you into country or not. So having a valid temporary resident visa, the actual sticker in your passport, does not guarantee that you have status in Canada. So even if your temporary resident visa is issued, let's say until 2030 doesn't mean that you can remain in Canada until 2030 every time you are admitted to Canada on a temporary resident visa, you are, by default, admitted to for six months. And if the officer wants to extend or limit your stay, then they would either put a stamp in your passport that limits your stay, or would issue you the visitor record that extends your stay. And so here comes the difference between the TRV and a visitor record. So a visitor record is not a travel document, but it's a document that gives you status in Canada. So if you end up in a situation where you need to extend your stay, it is very important that you don't apply for the TRV, but you apply for the visitor record, and it's very easy to make a mistake and submit a wrong kind of the application, even though they are exactly the same applications, in essence, the matter comes down to really what portal you use and how you answer some of the questions
Mark Holthe 9:49
you bet. So, in summary, you guys, a TRV allows you to board the plane and travel to Canada. So it's your entry visa. It allows you to get on the plane if you're coming from. TRV required country, and one thing we don't talk a lot about is the is the eta. So some countries, you are exempt from needing a TRV. Any electronic travel authorization that you apply for takes a couple minutes to get it authorizes you to be able to board the plane and travel. If you do not have one of those, either the TRV or the eta, the airline is going to refuse to board you. So even if you have, as an example, a visitor record in your passport, and you decide, hey, I'm going to leave Canada and I'm all good because I have my visitor record, which Igor has clarified, is the document that indicates how long you can stay in Canada once you're there that does not it's not an entry visa. It's not a travel visa that does not authorize you to board a plane. So if you're coming from a country and you are leaving Canada, well, you're leaving Canada to go back to your home country, and it's a country that requires a visa, you will need to have a TRV to be able to get on the plane and return to Canada. So TRV, entry, visit, a record documents how long you can stay and
Igor Kyryliuk 11:03
Mark maybe I can also add here, please, you can actually use visitor record to cross the border, but in only very narrow set of circumstances, if you are traveling to a small archipelago, A set of islands, I think it's the south of Newfoundland or Prince, yeah, St Pierre Michelin, so that is a French territory. They have French flags, they have euros, they they look European, yeah, in terms of how, how, how the restaurants are even designed. So, so culturally that part of the world belongs to French, right? And so, because it's located so close to Canada, and because it's so dependent economically on Canada, they have a different set of rules for those people who live in St pier and michelon, or for those who travel to St Peter Mac one and another area of the world that is also covered by this, what so called contiguous territory rule is the United States. So you can have a short jump trip to the United States and then attempt to return back through the land, sea or rail to the Canada. Having a visitor record, if you want to fly into Canada, visitor record will not help you, even if you travel to states or to St Pierre maclen for air to travel, it's only the TRV or an ETA,
Mark Holthe 12:36
right. And just to clarify so this contiguous country, when you're admitted. This is where it applies most commonly, when you're admitted on your TRV. And the TRV is maybe a single entry, which is very rare these days, or it's expired. You can travel, like Igor said, down to the US or st pyramid alone and circle around, spend some time there and drive back. But that is if you're ever planning on doing that, we're just pointing out some of the legal possibilities. But don't listen to us. Don't just go and make any plans to travel, because there are a whole list of other complications that potentially can be triggered. So we recommend you book a consult if you're ever planning on doing that. But just to lay out the legalities, yes, there are some circumstances where you can return to Canada when you do not have a valid TRV, but these are very exceptional cases, like the contiguous country provision. And ultimately, when it comes to deciding whether or not to leave, make sure you seek legal advice on that. All right, so let's talk about the steps for applying for a visitor record, and remember, this is really what we're focusing on, is all of you who are in Canada on a work permit that is expiring, and for whatever reason, you've made a determination that it's in your best interest to apply to extend your stay as a visitor because you don't have an option for a work permit. Igor, how do we do this? Take it away? Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 14:04
so the first thing is timing. Timing is the most important question. It is extremely important that you submit your application before your work permit expires. And though IRCC says on their website that you must apply at least 30 days before the expiry of your work permit. Technically, you can submit an application even on the last day. And once you submit your application before your work permit expires during the processing of this application, you will remain in maintained or implied status, and that is the most basic starting point. So timing Second you need to apply through a correct portal. Yes. So as we know, there's a myriad of different portals that RCC has created over the last couple of years. We have the RCC secure account. We have the RSC port. Portal. We have PR portal, PR landing portal, Representative portal, and I can go on forever and ever. But it is important to point out that if you want to apply for a visitor record, you would be submitting your application through the RCC secure account. I cannot help but remind about one of the clients that we worked with maybe three or four months ago. In that case, it was a citizen of Mexico, and she was remaining here in Canada, waiting for the acknowledgement of receipt on the spousal sponsorship application. But she also had to travel back and forth to Canada, and the same time, she also wanted to stay a little longer in Canada, and it coincided with the change of visa requirements for Mexican nationals. So in her situation, we needed to apply for the TRV and for the visitor record, and because we had to think strategically about how do we submit those two applications? Essentially at the same time, it was important to identify, Okay, so for the visitor record, we would submit an application through the RCC secure account, and for the TRV we'll submit an application through the RCC portal. If we were to submit the first TRV application through the RCC secure account, then we would not be able to submit a visitor record application for the RCC portal. So it's also important that you think strategically. What exactly do we do we need the TRV or just the visitor record? So that's the second consideration. And then third consideration is again, you will have to think about the time that it takes to collect the documents, write the compelling letter of intent and explain the officer that, yes, indeed, your status in Canada was worker. You want to transition to visitor, but you still will comply with the requirements of the really RCC requirements and essentially leave Canada before the end of your authorized day, because you always want to put yourself in the issues of the officer. Would you really be confident that the person would want to leave Canada after the end of their stay if they spent, let's say, three years in Canada as workers, how essential their ties to their country of origin. And the more time you spend in Canada, the more difficult it becomes to satisfy the officer that, yes, I'm just going to stay another six months and leave and no, I'm not going to renew my visitor record for eternity. So there are a lot of things to keep in mind, and I think those are the three primary considerations. Mark, yeah, in terms of steps,
Mark Holthe 17:52
let's dig Igor a little bit deeper into this whole concept of I intend to leave. I have temporary intent, even though I've been here, and in some cases, people could even have permanent resident applications in the queue, and they don't have an ability to extend a work permit, and they're trying to maintain status long enough for the permanent resident application to be finalized. All of these factors play a role in an officer trying to determine if temporary intent actually exists. And we want to remind everyone that Canada does have the concept of dual intent. And so it is possible for someone to be seeking permanent residence in the long term, but still demonstrate an intention to remain in Canada temporarily. But when it comes to proving this temporary intent, some people just kind of gloss over it when they're already in Canada. And in fairness, the standard isn't as high for proving temporary intent when you're already here and you're extending a document or changing conditions on your temporary stay as it would be if you're applying for a TRV from outside of Canada. But with all of these changes that I've just talked about with everything that the Liberal government has done and the mandates that they have pushed forward to reduce the number of temporary residents. Guys. If you're on a work permit and it's expiring, you are the exact person that IRCC expects to leave. So when you are no longer have options for permanent residents and you're transitioning to a visitor status, you better really be clear in why you're doing that, and one of the most important components is proving your temporary intent. So Igor, how does someone do this? What do they focus on? Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 19:37
so recently we had, we have been working with two clients, and they both submitted temporary resident visas applications. One of them actually submitted with the use of our firm, and then the other client applied with the with the help of an immigration consultant, they both had their TRVs refused. They were outside Canada. Yeah, and when we did, we assisted the clients to traditionally review their refusals. So we had successfully settled both cases. They were reopened just to be refused again. And what I see happening right now is it looks like RCC has turned on the beast mode, refusing everything. And sometimes they just refuse the application because they reasonably conclude that, okay, I don't believe that this person will leave Canada. Sometimes they refuse it because, okay, I don't think the justification for this person to remain in Canada. Let's say you're applying for a visitor. Record is not sufficient, like, you don't have family members who would require your presence in Canada, and so on and so on. But sometimes the refusals are unreasonable, and like, they don't provide many explanation as to why they decided to refuse. Sometimes they do provide explanations, but the explanation isn't reasonable in one of these two cases, the application, the second application, was refused because of socio economic and political environment in the country of origin, conditions in the country. Yeah. So, so, and again, we're talking about the TRV application. So the context is a little bit different, but you can also apply it, even to visitor record applications. So if the officer really does not believe you, or they, I don't know, maybe they did not invest as much time as needed into analyzing your application, or there's some any other element that would impact the decision making process for the officer, like some bias towards the country. Where are you coming from? The officer can refuse, and it is the honest is always on the applicant to satisfy the officer that you will actually comply with the requirements. And there is no recipe for this, for this letter of intent, for this strategy that you will use with every application. So for some people, maybe there's significant property ties to your country of origin. Maybe you left your family behind. Maybe your family has already departed, and you just remain here in Canada to finish some of the affairs. Maybe you have any other religious or political or work affiliations that require your return back to your country of origin. It's important with the visitor record applications, not only to show that, look, I have so many things that pull me back to my country. It's important to also demonstrate the officer why you actually want to extend your stay here in Canada as well. So it's the second component which probably makes this visitor record application a little more complicated, because you have to look for in Canada reasons for your stay, and then ties that will still demand your return
Mark Holthe 23:00
bond factors that are going to return you back to make you want to return back to your home and and when you've worked here and you've spent a lot of time, you've studied, you've worked, it can be a challenge. And this is, like you said, Igor, we're seeing these really harsh decisions at the overseas visa offices, but there is no way that we are not going to start seeing the same types of things in Canada. So one of the factors as well Igor, that they look at is, okay, you want to stay for six months, but you don't have a job anymore. How are you going to support yourself financially? So this is something that people absolutely have to focus on, right? Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 23:41
yeah, I actually it reminded me about one of the consultations that I had about a month ago. It wasn't directly related to visitor record, but it's still important, as we talked about ability to financially sustain yourself in Canada. So in that particular scenario, a client who reached out for the consult was crossing the border, and he was a truck driver, and his work permit got expired. Somehow he extended his status, and then he decided to get his work permit after the LMA was approved at the border. So he decided to flag pole, get the work permit at the border. And when he appeared before the officer, the officer obviously asked him, okay, so your work permit expired about three months ago. How did you sustain yourself in Canada financially during this time? And his response was, I had my own savings. He's like, Okay, can you show me your bank account? So they looked at the savings account, and apparently the client told that he had about 20,000 in savings, when in reality, he had only about 5000 the officer got concerned with that, and then the client explained that all the money was borrowed to. His friend. And this didn't, didn't sound right to the officer, like, if you're like your auto job
Mark Holthe 25:06
20, just to clarify. So what Igor is saying is, I had 20,000 but I had to loan 15,000 to my friend. That's why there's only five in my account. Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 25:16
I always the officer was obviously concerned. So you just lost your job three months ago. You have only 20 1000s to live. You are in a very questionable legal status right now. You cannot work, and then you lend 15,000 to your friend. So then they looked at a client checking account just to see that he had ETF, not ETF interact transfers every two weeks, and it was for about the same amount, just paying them back. And the Interact was coming from a business account of his friend, and so when asked the client, responded, I think the client, the transfers were coming from my friend, and he was just repaying the loan. So the officer didn't buy that, and the client was given 30 days to leave Canada, and it was too late for us to intervene and advise the client that, look, you first, you don't have you must not work illegally if your work permit expires, and then when you change your status to visitor, it's important that you comply with all conditions, that you are truthful and that you understand that while you're waiting here in Canada for something in a visitor status, you cannot work, and there are some consequences that come with your decision Not to be truthful with the officer?
Mark Holthe 26:41
Yeah, absolutely. And that's, you know, it's interesting, and I'll bring this up. It's not directly on this topic, but I want to remind everyone, the ports of entry are slowly closing off. So we're going to have future episodes within our times up as to what you can and can't do at the border. But the reality is, when you get there, for sure you're going to get a quick decision, but you may not like the decision that you get, so you need to be extremely well prepared with all the documentation, everything you need, but shifting back Igor to this whole concept of temporary intent and proving it. So we've got demonstrating your ties. We've got the importance of establishing that you have sufficient financial ability to support yourself while you're here and not having to work. But another key key component is clearly establishing that you have a plan for departure, and you know, any supporting documents that you might have, or you know, sometimes people say, Well, I've got a job that's going to be starting back home in four months or three months, and so I'm going to just take this last bit of time to enjoy Canada before I'm taking off. And I've got the money in my account, I've I've got, like I said, I've got place where I'm going to be returned returning to and where I'm going to live. Like, those types of things are pretty easy, but for people that are actually thinking about sticking around and maybe they have a PR application, they're just waiting. Like, how would you advise someone in that circumstance, Igor, if they have a PR application in the queue, let's say it's a CEC where we know you don't have to necessarily remain in Canada for it to be processed. You know, as long as you don't have, like, a job offer associated with it, or something that would require you to continue being employed. Well, how do you advise clients on this clear plans for departure when maybe they're waiting for PR? Put you on the spot here, because this is a difficult concept. Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 28:37
we've mentioned briefly the dual intent so that first thing that comes to mind, you can have a dual intent of staying in Canada temporarily and complying with your conditions and leaving Canada if needed, at the same time Having the permanent residency application in process. Second, it's it is really hard to to to advise exactly, how do you prove that? Because, again, the situation will be really key, specific for some people. The reasonable explanation would be, look, I've been working my tail off for the past three years now. I want to travel. I have this unique opportunity where I don't have to work, and I want to explore this country, and I couldn't do it because I was on a closed, let's say, work permit, and my employer would just not let me travel for three months. Now that I've worked for three years, I've saved some money now I can travel. For some people actually mark it's also important to mention, and I'm sure you've talked about it in one of the previous episodes of the podcast. For some people, it makes sense to actually leave Canada and continue working from abroad and waiting for the pro. Thing of their application from outside Canada and working for Canadian employer from outside Canada counts as foreign work experience. That's also important. Maybe your employer sends you off to work in a different branch somewhere outside Canada. Maybe that will be helpful. But again, if you plan to return from that business trip, you would need to have a valid TRV to cross the border. Yeah,
Mark Holthe 30:30
and that's a good point. So one thing I want to point out here, I'm just flipping back to the YouTube channel. So one thing that Igor just mentioned in passing, and we've talked a little bit about this previously. I'm just going to see if I can find it. Let's see if I can find the actual video.
I'm not even sure if I can find it. We've got so many Oh, here it is. Okay. I'm just going to share with the the viewers here. So this one here, express entry 1024, surprising strategy to increase CRS. But why? No, why is no one talking about it essentially, I think, is what it is. Yeah, talking about it. So this one right here is, is like one of the things Igor pointed out, you may not have enough CRS points right now, and you may not have any foreign work experience, but I would recommend that, you know, as you're trying to figure out, do I stay? Do I extend my stay as a visitor? You know, I don't have an ita yet, do I consider going home? Well, in some cases, if you assess your CRS and just just add in one year of foreign work experience, make sure to calculate for an age increase, like you'll have a birthday. But if you were to go back and work for one year, in some instances, you might just be surprised at how many extra CRS points you can get with that one year of foreign work experience. So I just point that out as a factor, and just to expand on what Igor was was talking about. So sometimes it's better to go home then even, even if you have a peer application, you know, and like an express entry profile in the queue, sometimes it's better to go home and gain more Canadian work experience. And often, you know, it is when you've run out of options, and essentially, time's up. So yeah, Igor, when people are submitting these applications. Often they do it as a last thought. So right now, when you think about the processing times for, you know, for a visitor record, let's just, let's just pull it up here. I'll slide the screen over for those who are watching. So if you go to processing times often, what happens is people's work permits are expiring, they're trying to figure out what the options are to be able to stay. And in the end, they realize that, you know, their employer can't get an LMIA, there's no other option to extend their their work permit in Canada. So if we look right now, the processing of a visitor record or visitor extension, whatever it might be, is 120 days in Canada. So that's like 3069 that's like over four months. And so often, when people submit these applications, they are doing it at the very tail end of their work permit, so they're not getting a decision. So let's talk a little bit about the legal framework for what we call now is maintain status, which is this new term that was coined through the pandemic number of different reasons, but for those of you old schoolers, it was basically implied status, which was built into the legislation. Why don't you just talk a little bit about this legal framework so people can understand what it means when you filed a visitor extension? Are you still legal? Or, you know, how does it impact your status? Yeah,
Igor Kyryliuk 33:46
so it was previously known as implied status, but the term was a little confusing. And again, I keep coming back to our previous clients because we had so many different scenarios. One of our clients was in implied status because of the agency application that he submitted, and I think he was trying to get his children enrolled into a kindergarten or he wanted to take a new car loan. I don't recall exactly what was happening, but he came back to us asking for a letter confirming that he was in legal status during specific, like, a certain period of time. And we gave the letter and mentioned that, yes, this guy was in implied status, and the clerk had no idea what are we talking about? Like, yes, we explained it in plain language, but, like, the terminology was really confusing, and I think maybe that resulted in the renaming of implied status into maintain status. So the concept is pretty simple, but it can also be also confusing, right? So when you submit an application while you're still in legal status, you. Extend your status until the decision is made on your application. And if, if you submit a renewal application of your existing status, let's say you have a work permit and you submit another work permit application, that means that you can continue working in between while the application is being processed. If you submit an application for the change of status, let's say from worker to visitor. It's important that you understand you cannot work because you essentially not extending your status as worker. You extend your status somewhere in between like worker and visitor, like you don't have the worker work permit anymore, a valid one, and you don't have the visitor record at this time, so you can remain in Canada legally, but your rights to work will be limited, so you will not be able to work. And so similarly, like, if you extend from study permit to visitor record. That doesn't mean that you you can take another study program in between, and if the processing time was not 120 days, but let's say 300 days, it doesn't mean that you can complete another decree while they process the application.
Mark Holthe 36:16
Yeah, all right, let's address Let's wrap it up here, Igor, by addressing some of the kind of common questions that people often ask. And so one of the things, obviously, and you've kind of addressed it already, is the ability to continue working post work permit expiration with a visitor record application in process. So just to clarify, some people are under you know this misconception that this implied status or maintain maintain status allows them to continue working, but once that work permit expires, and you if you've applied for a visitor record extension or change of conditions to a visitor, that is the end date of your work. Like you are not to continue working. And so the thing that follows from that Igor is if someone transitions to a visitor status, and then their employer is able to get a Labor Market Impact Assessment for them, there was a lot of confusion that was created through the pandemic because there were opportunities for people to apply in land and transition from a visitor in Canada to a worker as a result of certain public policies that were in place. But the general rule, maybe you can just talk about that briefly when it comes to someone who transitions from a visitor record, can they apply for a new work permit from within Canada, through the in Canada process, if you've transitioned to a visitor and you have new visitor status,
Igor Kyryliuk 37:52
so since recently, no you can't. So you must submit a work permit application from outside Canada if you are on a visitor status. There is actually a list of exceptions who can submit a work permit from inside Canada, but that would be, if I'm not mistaken, the spouses of certain workers in Canada. Status, Yep, yeah. So there is a list, and we can maybe even post a link to the list in the description under this video and in the podcast notes. But as a rule of thumb, no, you must submit an application from outside Canada. And in part, this is why we've mentioned that for some people, it makes sense to move out and continue working for that employer who's waiting for the LMIA from outside Canada, if you cherish the relationship with the employer, if you have a clear pathway to career growth, maybe that is something that you want to consider. Because essentially, if you change it, to change your status to visitor from inside Canada, do you get any benefits out of it, other than you can continue remaining in Canada, not many, right? But for some people, it still makes sense. Let's say you have a, I don't know. Maybe you starting relationship with someone, and you are waiting for the LMIA, and maybe you are going through a treatment right now, and maybe you are traveling fulfilling your dream of your life. So so there are so many different scenarios that can play out with like, this is life. Life is unpredictable, and it takes unexpected turns in everyone's life. So it's always important that you consider all options, and don't exclude switching to visitor record, because it doesn't allow you to work. It's just one of the it's the tip of the iceberg. There are so many other reasons why people do that.
Mark Holthe 39:52
Yes, well, as we transition here to the close of our podcast, I do want to point out a couple resources. That are available now on our Canadian immigration Institute platform, and so when you click on the link below, you'll see that one of the new videos, new courses that we've created is a TRV course. Now the topic of this is really extending visitor records, but a lot of the same principles involved in applying for a temporary resident visa also apply when it comes to temporary intent and financials and those kinds of things that really are going to come more into play than they ever have in the past, prior to this massive reduction that the Liberal government is pushing on temporary residents, I wouldn't be too fussed about applying for another visitor record if you're at the end of your work permit and you want to stick around for a little bit. Little bit longer, I'll be honest, my whole history of practice, I never saw someone get refused as long as they completed everything and answered all the questions. Usually, they were willing to give people the benefit of the doubt to stay for another six months to wrap up their affairs or tour travel or whatever before they headed home. But that has changed now, and I will never submit a visitor record for an individual to change conditions from a worker to a visitor without having a very comprehensive set of supporting documents to establish all of the things that we've talked about today. And I'll also you know you can see here right now, if you go in and you subscribe, you can learn more about the course when you connect in and follow the link and it has just a whole bunch of there's over four hours of content available through a series of videos and supporting documents and templates and lots of things. There's even a little, a little custom GPT, I think, Igor, that you've set up, to some extent, to help people with putting together some of the supporting documents. So this is definitely worth it. There's a there's because we just launched this, just released it. Those who are early subscribers to it, for limited time only, it's, it's got, it's over 66% off. It's $100 right now Canadian. So definitely slide in. Take a look at it if you're looking at extended even within Canada, because it's a tool that's available for you. And as always, remember that, yeah, go ahead. Igor, yeah. While
Igor Kyryliuk 42:09
you sharing the screen, we can also mention that if you're not ready to commit for the whole course, we also offer the PDF Letter of Intent guide so it does not include access to the custom GPT that we've developed, but it will give you a list of questions that will guide you through the process of writing your own letter of intent. And again, it's important you will submit a very similar application. Regardless of whether you apply for the TRV, or for the visitor records, you still need to prove the same things. But in addition, with the visitor record, you need to prove why do you actually want to stay in Canada longer? So it maybe even complicates the application a little bit better, a little bit more. But this letter of intent guide, I think it has like 13 bullet points that that walk you step by step, you will see the header. How do you address the letter to the officer? How do you explain your family ties, property ties, economic ties, finding like any, any, anything that you need to actually put in the letter. So I will not even go through all of the bullet points. It's super helpful. And for those who are non native English speaker, sometimes it's hard to lay out your thoughts in writing on a piece of paper, and that's why we have this custom trained GPT. And if IRCC uses artificial intelligence, why can't applicants use it and frame their thoughts a little bit better? We made it very clear in the GPT instructions that it does not hallucinate and create information for you. It does not put worth in your mouth, and it works only with the information that you provide. So it is trained just to be your best assistant, best friend in outlining your ideas and thoughts and and making the pitch to the officer,
Mark Holthe 44:02
yeah, and remember that that Igor spent quite a bit of time turning up that custom GPT and, and remember that that is only available when you subscribe to the the entire course. All right, that's great. Okay, so as we wrap things up, we'll also want to point out that anytime anyone wants to connect with us. Like, remember, go to our site. The Blog Post section right here is just chock full of content. So there's our time's up series. Every one of these videos has, to a large extent, a corresponding blog post associated with it. So if you haven't listened to the episode one, go back to the beginning. Listen to the very initial one time's up, which is a very good overview of all the issues that people are dealing with. And then, you know, how long can I stay in Canada after my work permit expires? And then, of course, can I change my status to a visitor? So stay tuned, because we'll be the next one that we're going to be covering is directed at all you post grad work permit holders and the. Issues that you specifically are facing. And of all of the people most negatively impacted by these decisions, it is You by far. So I we want to extend, you know, for me, at least, when I think about all of this, I just, it's just tremendous compassion, and I'm just so, you know, I'm so sad for all the people who've spent so much time, they've, you know, invested so much in having an opportunity to come to Canada and to transition to permanent residents. And the reality is many, many of you, will not have an opportunity. So it becomes very, very important to get the right advice, to seek the guidance that you need, to get the support and help to strategically plan your future. And when you go to our website as well, remember that there's always the ability for you to book a consultation with us, and we can help develop a strategic plan for you to find whatever options that might be available to stay or at the very least, you can confirm in your mind that you have exhausted all your options, and the best decision for you is to return back to your home country and keep all of your options available, which go back and listen to the previous podcast episode, because we've covered all of the issues and the dangers of staying without authorization in great detail. All right, thank you so much for joining us today. Igor, any last parting words before we wrap this one up?
Igor Kyryliuk 46:24
Yeah, just wish everyone best of luck. You will need a lot of luck right now to navigate this world of Canadian migration safely.
Mark Holthe 46:35
Yeah, it's a crazy one. All right, guys, take care. You.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
