There has at time been confusion about what period of time spent in a country after the age of 18 will necessitate the obtainment of a police clearance certificate for the purposes of a Canadian permanent residence application. Though the period has often been referred to as six months, it was not clear if that was a consecutive or cumulative six months.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”) has now clarified that applicants for permanent residence must provide police clearance certificates for any country in which they have resided for six months or more in a row since the age of 18.
It may be also important to note that police clearances for a country where residing at the time of an application must be no more than six months old. Police clearances for countries where someone has previously lived must post-date their residency there (if the clearance shows as ‘expired’, it may still be accepted, and IRCC would advise if for any reason a new one must be secured).
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.