Permanent resident cards

Overview

Permanent resident cards

A PR card is evidence of permanent-resident status and the usual document a permanent resident uses to board commercial transportation to Canada. It is not the status itself, and its expiry does not automatically end that status.

Separate the card from the legal status

Permanent residence continues until it is formally lost through a final determination, renunciation or another legal process. An expired card can create travel and identification problems without changing that conclusion.

Do not describe yourself as a visitor simply because the card expired.

Use the card for commercial return travel

Airlines and other commercial carriers normally require a valid PR card or permanent resident travel document before transporting a permanent resident to Canada. A passport alone does not prove the right to board as a PR.

Different practical rules can apply at a land border in a private vehicle.

Apply only from inside Canada

PR cards are delivered to Canadian addresses. Renewal and replacement applications require identity, photographs and travel-history information, and some applicants are asked to collect the card or attend an interview.

Being abroad during processing can complicate delivery and return travel.

A card application can trigger residency review

IRCC assesses whether the permanent resident has met the 730-day obligation in the relevant five-year period or, for a new PR, can still meet it. Time outside Canada needs exact dates and proof for any credit claimed.

Humanitarian factors should be documented where compliance is disputed.