A Canadian Visitor Visa is purposefully meant for short and temporary stay in Canada. There is an existing agreement between Canada and some countries, and these ones are exempted from this requirement. The main reason people come to us about visitors’ visas is because they have been denied in previous times.

I’VE BEEN REFUSED A VISITORS VISA:

That you are denied a tourist visa or some other temporary visa to Canada doesn't mean you are no longer eligible for the Canadian Permanent Residence (PR) visa.
This seems a bit strange because you feel Canada doesn't want you and that was why they denied you a temporary visa. But that is totally incorrect.
Like a tourist visa, applying for a temporary visa to Canada is temporal in nature. You have to satisfy the terms and guarantee the immigration authorities that you will LEAVE or EXIT Canada immediately your permit expires. Unlike the Canadian Permanent Residence which is permanent in nature, and once granted, gives you the opportunity of STAYING in Canada once you have satisfied the immigration authorities requirements; the opposite is the temporary visa.
You can be denied a temporary visa to Canada because of:
  • Medical or criminal inadmissibility
  • Previous overstaying of a temporary visa in Canada or some other country
  • Insufficient ties to your country of citizenship/residence
  • Lack of travel history
  • Incorrectly filled out paperwork.
Why not then give Canada another trial by completing our free online assessment - so we help discover your immigration options.

DUAL INTENT:

You are likely to run into some problems if you already have an ongoing application for Canadian Permanent Residence and wish to get a visitor's visa. This is because:
The requirements of being granted a Canadian Permanent Residence (PR) are the direct opposite of that of a temporary visa. The temporary visa requires that you leave at the end of your allotted time in the country, while a permanent residence visa's major requirement is that you have an overall intention of living permanently in Canada.
If you therefore have an ongoing application for Canadian PR, but would also like to come to Canada on a temporary basis, it would seem as if you have two different intentions which are contradictory- one to stay permanently and the other, to stay temporarily.
It's okay to have two different intentions when it comes to Canadian Immigration plans, if and only if your intention is to meet the requirements of the temporary visa. Outlined below are the two scenarios; one meets the requirement while the other does not.

APPLICANT HAS DUAL INTENT:

The processing time of some types of Canadian PR applications can extend beyond 12 months. It is therefore reasonable that someone who submitted an application for Canadian PR with 12 months of processing ahead of them might desire to visit their potential future country while waiting, if just to search for employment prospects or find locations they would like to live or stay when they get to Canada. This is acceptable, provided your intention is to leave the country when your temporary visa expires, and return when you are granted the PR visa.

APPLICANT DOES NOT HAVE DUAL INTENT:

Conversely, if perhaps you received an indication that you are making progress with your Canadian PR application, but is yet to be approved, say for example, you have gotten your CSQ or a nomination certificate for a provincial nominee program, and you desire coming to Canada to set up your life at least, while you wait for the completion of the application- this would be a problem. The reason is because you have just an intention, which is to stay in Canada permanently.
If the visa officer has a feeling your sole intention was to stay in Canada on your temporary resident visa until the approval of your PR application, they would then with their rights refuse your temporary status. The reason is because you are considered not giving enough respect to the conditions of Canada's temporary visa. Kindly remember that being denied a temporary visa does not depict being refused a PR visa.
You must also note that all visa applications- permanent and temporary are evaluated democratically. The only special considerations are for certain types of temporary permits like a bridging open work permit, which are meant to allow for continuous status in Canada while you transit from the temporal nature to a permanent status during your stay.
The ProICC Law Firm and team would love to lend a helping hand in getting you a temporary or permanent visa to Canada. If you want to find out what options you have, we invite you to complete our free online assessment on our website. Or you can send us an email on Support@proicc.com if you have specific inquiry.