Losing the maintained status in Canada | No more implied status

Sometimes temporary residents apply for an extension or change of their status. They must submit the new application before the expiry of their current status. Consequently, they maintain their old status until an officer decides on their new application. We call this situation a maintained status, formerly implied status. However, there are circumstances when you lose your maintained status. Let’s explore them.

What is a maintained status in Canada?

You have a maintained status in Canada if you meet all the following requirements:

  • You are currently inside Canada.
  • When you applied to extend or change your status, your previous status was still valid.
  • An officer has not approved or refused your current application.

IRCC used to call a maintained status an implied status. However, they changed the wording in 2021.

Late submissions

If you submit your request after the expiry of your status, you won’t have a maintained status anymore. Nonetheless, you have 90 days from the date of losing the legal status to file for restoration of status. If the 90-day window passes, you must leave Canada or seek alternative options, such as Temporary Resident Permit (TRP).

Losing a maintained status

You may lose your maintained status under one of the following circumstances:

Consider the following, though:

  • If the officer refuses your new application before the expiry date of your old status, you still have status in Canada. However, you need to take one of the following actions:
  • Sometimes the officer refuses your new application after the expiry date of the previous status. Consequently, you have one of the following options.
  • Approval of your application replaces the old legal status with the new one. Of course, if you request an extension of the status, the new and old status remains the same.

Maintained status when submitting concurrent applications

Sometimes you may submit two applications to extend or change your status. For example, you apply for extending your study permit before its expiry. However, you submit a second application because you have applied for work permit. In these situations, you keep your maintained status until the officers decide on both applications. If they refuse both, you lose your status on the day they refuse the second application (the one they process later).

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    Al Parsai, LLM, MA, DTM, RCIC
    Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant
    Adjunct Professor – Queen’s University – Faculty of Law
    Ashton College Instructor – Immigration Consulting
    Author – 88 Tips on Immigration to Canada

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    Al Parsai

    This article has been expertly crafted by Al Parsai, a distinguished Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (L3 RCIC-IRB – Unrestricted Practice) hailing from vibrant Toronto, Canada. Al's academic achievements include an esteemed role as an adjunct professor at prestigious Queen's University Law School and Ashton College, as well as a Master of Laws (LLM) degree from York University. A respected member of CICC and CAPIC organizations, Al's insights are further enriched by his experience as the dynamic CEO of Parsai Immigration Services. Guiding thousands of applicants from over 55 countries through the immigration process since 2011, Al's articles offer a wealth of invaluable knowledge for readers.