Interpretation of entry when Maple Leaf Card expires

Entering the country with an expired Maple Leaf Card may not directly lead to being detained by CBSA. The factors that can really trigger a second review include the following aspects: The system detects that you do not meet the 730-day residence requirement, can you provide corresponding reasonable reasons for returning to Canada, and whether you have sufficient proof of residence.

▍ 1. Official view

The expiration of the Maple Leaf Card only means that the "travel document" function is useless, but the holder's permanent resident or PR status will not become different due to this. For border officials, they cannot deny entry to the holder of the Maple Leaf Card just because it expired on that day. In actual operation, as long as the validity period of the Maple Leaf Card has not completely expired, even if there is only one hour left, the airline will still allow the holder to board the plane. When the cardholder enters the country, the system will prompt "Card /" after swiping the CBSA card, but this is just a "reminder" red light and does not mean that the cardholder will have to be sent back.

▍ 2. Situations that trigger secondary review

The main factors that may trigger a secondary review include:

If the residence obligation does not meet the standard, that is, if you have not lived in Canada for 730 days in the past five years, the system will automatically generate the "s.44 report" task, and the border officer will invite you to enter the secondary review area to record the record.

In terms of leaving the country, there is an abnormality in the length of time: if you leave the country continuously for more than 183 days, or within a time range of close to five years, the cumulative time you leave the country far exceeds the time you live in the country, then your record will be marked as abnormal.

Supplementary information or overdue records about historical situations: If you have ever received a notice like " ", or were asked to provide additional information (RFE) when you last renewed your Maple Leaf card, the system will retain your red flag record.

▍ 3. Secondary review process and results

After entering the secondary review stage, officials will check the number of days of residence and evidence. If it is confirmed that the number of days of residence is less than 730 days, one of the following measures may be taken:

a) You are allowed to enter the country, but a 30-day notice of departure (also known as the A44 report) is issued, and you have to file an appeal within these 30 days.

b) You are required to sign a "Consent Form to Voluntarily Give Up PR Status".

(c) For humanitarian reasons, you are subject to the condition of "no re-exit" for two years. If you feel that your residence days are sufficient, but there are errors in the system data, you can request to obtain the CBSA on site and submit supporting evidence, such as boarding passes, pay stubs, tax records, etc. Generally, this will disarm the alarm on site.

Risk response and strategy

▍ 1. Risk Mitigation Strategy

Before the plane takes off, use GCKey to check CBSA's entry and exit records, and calculate the number of days of residence by yourself. At the same time, prepare a printout covering the past six months of Canadian bank transactions, T4/NOA, rental contract and mobile phone payment bill and take it with you at any time. In this way, when the next review is conducted, you can quickly submit the information to the officials, thus significantly reducing the time spent answering questions. If you find that the period of residence is less than 730 days, it is recommended to prepare in advance the exemption information related to Humanity and Compassion (H&C) or a series of special circumstances such as work assignments and accompanying Canadian spouses. Information in written form is generally more convincing than information explained orally. In addition, try to avoid arranging "one-day return" or "extremely short-term entry" situations. The reason is that such itineraries are likely to be suspected by the system just to "clear borders" to extend the validity period, which in turn increases the possibility of being randomly inspected.

▍ 2. Summary

Even if your Maple Leaf Card expires and you want to enter the country, there is no need to panic. The key is to have the accumulated 730 days of data and the rebuttal evidence that can be obtained. Just entering the country on the "expiration day" does not mean that you will enter the "little dark room". CBSA will not detain or deport you just because your card is about to expire. However, what really affects your fate is the accumulation of "730 days of data" and the rebuttal evidence or explanations you can provide. Therefore, checking the records yourself in advance and carrying enough evidence of residence with you is the best strategy to prevent being reviewed twice or even receiving an order.