ARCHIVED - Notice – Canada’s postal service is on strike. Find out how this affects you
How the Canada Post strike will affect you
Update as of June 16, 2011
Effective Wednesday June 15, 2011, the Canada Post Corporation suspended all postal operations. This affects all postal services across Canada.
This will affect you if:
- you are submitting an application for temporary residence or wish to extend your status
- you are submitting a new application (permanent residence or citizenship) or missing documents
- your status is about to expire and you have not yet submitted an application to extend your status
- your status expires during the suspension of postal services
- you are now out of status
- you have already sent your application but it might not have arrived before the suspension of postal services
- you need a form or a kit
If you are applying from overseas and you have not already sent your application, you can send it by courier or wait until the end of the suspension of postal services.
Find out more about how the suspension of postal services is affecting processing times, your application status and fee payments or contact us.
Submitting an application for temporary residence or extending your status
If you are already in Canada and wish to apply for a Study Permit, a Work Permit, an Off-Campus Work Permit or a Post-Graduation Work Permit, or you wish to Extend Your Stay as a Visitor, you are strongly encouraged to submit your application online.
Submitting a new application (permanent residence or citizenship) or missing documents
All application forms and guides can be downloaded and most forms will need to be couriered to us.
If you choose to use a courier, please make sure to submit your completed application to the address provided in the application package, ensuring that you include the fee receipt and all the necessary documents.
Ensure you provide an e-mail address when you fill out your application form so that Citizenship and Immigration (CIC) may communicate with you by e-mail.
Your status is about to expire during the suspension of postal services
If your temporary resident status (e.g., as a worker, student or visitor) is about to expire, you should ensure that your application to extend your status is received by CIC before your status expires as shown on your immigration document. If you do this, your period of authorized stay as a temporary resident will be extended by law until a decision is made and you are notified. In this case, you are considered to have implied status as a temporary resident during that time, as long as you stay in Canada.
Note: “Implied status” only applies if your conditions do not change. For example, if you apply to renew your study permit and the permit expires before you receive an answer, you can continue to study in Canada until you receive a decision. If you hold a work permit, you may continue working under the same conditions as your previous work permit while on implied status if you have applied to extend your stay in Canada as a worker.
As a temporary measure, if your status is about to expire during the suspension of postal services and you cannot use online applications or courier services to extend your status as a temporary resident, CIC will grant you an implied status for the length of time that postal services are suspended. In that case, you will be given a one-month grace period, commencing the date on which postal services resume, to submit an application to extend your status without having to restore your status.
You have lost your status
You may apply to restore your status only if you have not been out of status for more than 90 days.
After you apply to restore your status, you may stay in Canada until a decision is made on your application, but you are not allowed to work or study until your status has been restored. There is no guarantee that your application will be approved.
Applications to restore status must be made from within Canada – restoration cannot be granted at ports of entry. If you leave Canada, you will be deemed to be seeking a new entry on your return and will not be eligible for status restoration.
Restoration period
If you cannot use online applications or courier services to restore your status in Canada, as a temporary measure, CIC may grant you more time to submit the application as described below.
| If … | Then … | Example |
|---|---|---|
| your 90-day restoration period falls over the period of postal service interruption, | the restoration period may be extended by the same number of days for which there is an interruption of postal services. | If the postal service interruption lasts for 10 days, you will be given an extra 10 days immediately thereafter, from the date on which postal services resume |
| your 90-day restoration period ends during the period of postal service interruption, | the restoration period may be extended after the resumption of postal services, by the balance of days remaining in your 90-day period, calculated from the start of complete postal service interruption | If you had 5 days left in your restoration period when the complete postal service interruption began, you will be given an extra 5 days immediately after the resumption of postal services to submit your application. |
You have already sent your application but it might not have arrived before the suspension of postal services
If you have submitted an application and you are concerned that it might not be received because of the suspension of postal services, you should keep all of your receipts, which will be an indication that your application is in process. If the application is urgent and it meets CIC’s criteria for urgent processing, you are advised to re-send your application via courier and request a refund on your original payment once postal services are resumed.
Processing times and application status
Please note that the estimated application processing times in Canada available on the website may be longer than expected given the interruption in mail services. You may be able to view your application status online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please be aware that our automated voice response system at the CIC National Call Centre may also be able to provide you with information about the status of your application.
Fee payment
For your application to be considered complete, you must include the correct fee payment. Due to the unpredictability of the suspension of postal services, you are encouraged to pay the fees online. This service is available for most immigration and citizenship applications.
You may also pay fees at a Canadian financial institution. If you cannot or do not want to pay online, you must get an original receipt of payment form IMM 5401 so that you can pay at a financial institution (such as a bank or Western Union). You must include a copy of this receipt when you apply. At this time, you may still request an HPM receipt through the CIC Call Centre, which will be mailed to you. Due to the unpredictability of the suspension of postal services strike, you may go to your local CIC office and request the IMM 5401 in person. You may consult the CIC website for information on offices open to the public and their operating hours.
Please note that application fees will not be accepted at local offices.
Incorrect or missing fee payments or incomplete applications may result in additional delays in processing your application.
You need a form or a kit
During the suspension of postal services, kit/form orders are not being accepted. Applicants are encouraged to download required kits or forms on the CIC Website whenever possible. You can either print the forms at home or at your local library.
Contact us
You may contact the Call Centre at 1-888-242-2100 Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time, except for statutory holidays.
Please note that the Case Processing Centres in Vegreville (Alberta), Mississauga (Ontario) and Sydney (Nova Scotia), and the Centralized Intake Office in Sydney are not open to the public.
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