A Canadian permanent resident is someone who has been granted permanent resident status by immigrating to Canada. A permanent resident is not a Canadian citizen; somewhat, all permanent residents are citizens of other countries. In order to maintain permanent resident status, permanent residents must meet certain requirements like the residency obligation.                                         

Residency Obligations

In order to maintain permanent residence in Canada, a person must meet a residency obligation. The residency obligation refers to a person's physical presence inside of Canada for a set amount of time.

Canada's residency obligation for permanent residents requires a person to be physically present inside of Canada for at least 730 days within a five-year period, or to meet one of the following situations:

• The person is outside of Canada accompanying a Canadian citizen who is their spouse or common-law partner, or the person is a child accompanying their parent.
• The person is outside of Canada employed on a full-time basis by a Canadian business or in the public service of Canada or of a Canadian province.
• The person is an accompanying spouse, common-law partner, or child of a permanent resident who is outside Canada and is employed on a full-time basis by a Canadian business or in the public service of Canada or of a Canadian province.

Usually, whether a permanent resident has met their residency obligations is assessed when they are applying for a permanent resident card renewal, Permanent Resident Travel Document (PRTD), or Canadian citizenship. Please note that if a person has Canadian permanent residence for more than five years, the residency obligation will be calculated based on the five years prior to the date an application was received by the visa office.

If a person has been a Canadian permanent resident for less than five years, they may be eligible to apply for a permanent resident card renewal or PRTD provided they can demonstrate that they will be able to meet the 730 days physical presence day within the five year period.