Legal Question in Immigration Law in California

Re: Citizenship

The Minister shall grant citizenship to any person

who

(1) has been lawfully admitted to Canada for

permanent residence,

(2) and who, since such admission, has not ceased

to be a permanent resident by reason of intending

to abandon Canada as the place of permanent

residence, nor by reason of being outside Canada

for more than 183 days in any one 12-month period,

(3) and who has, within 4 years immediately before

the application for citizenship, accumulated 3

years of residence in Canada calculated in the

following manner:

(i) for every day during which the person was

resident in Canada before becomming a

permanent resident, the person shall be deemed to

have accumulated one half day of residence, and

(ii) for every day of residence in Canada after

becoming a permanent resident, the person shall be

deemed to have accumulated one day of residence.

The law might change soon. It will probably read

something like....has lived in Canada as a

permanent resident for 3 years out of the six

years immediately preceeding the application for

citizenship....

You are misinformed about any 5 year period. As

you can see, the 3 year period goes faster after

you become a permanent resident. Permanent

residence is more than ordinary living here. An

immigrant makes application for permanent

residence. When the application succeeds the

person gets landing, that is lawful permission to

establish permanent residence in Canada. An

immigrant is a person who seeks landing.

There is a way to shorten the 3 year requirement.

There must be involved some sort of special and

hardship or Canada's need to reward a service of

exceptional value to Canada. Examples of reward

include Olympic atheletes.