On May 28, 2025, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) published updated instructions for its staff on maintained status during processing. The new guidelines tighten the rules for maintained status for temporary residents.
Background
A temporary resident may apply to extend their period of authorized stay before it ends. If they have done so, their period of authorized stay as a temporary resident is extended by law until a decision is made. Such a person is considered to have legal status as a temporary resident during the processing period only as long as the person remains in Canada. This is referred to as maintained status.
A holder of a work or study permit can continue to work until a decision is made on their extension of stay application.
If an extension application is submitted before the original expiry date but is rejected as incomplete, the application is to be returned to the applicant, it is as if the application was never submitted, and they do not benefit from maintained status.
The applicant can submit a subsequent extension application if their circumstances change during processing of the initial extension application.
The new guidelines update the rules for when an extension application is refused:
- If the applicant has submitted a subsequent extension application before the expiry of their original status, the applicant maintains their status during the processing period of the subsequent application.
- If the applicant submits a subsequent extension application after the expiry of their original status, they don’t have maintained status during the processing period of the subsequent application, and this subsequent application will be refused. The applicant can apply for restoration of status.
Prior to the rule change, in the second situation above, the applicant would have been granted maintained status, but not work or study rights, during the processing of the subsequent extension application.
In the updated instructions, references to port-of-entry applications by applicants with maintained status have been removed, following the recent ban on “flagpoling” (temporary residents leaving Canada and immediately re-entering to access immigration services at a port of entry).
Erickson Insights & Analysis
Erickson Immigration Group will continue monitoring developments and sharing updates as more news is available. Please contact your employer or EIG attorney if you have questions about anything we’re reporting above or if you have case-specific questions.