Resettlement from outside Canada: Arriving
Arriving in Canada
When you arrive in Canada, you will be met by an officer from the Canada
Border Services Agency (CBSA). The CBSA secures the borders and points of
entry to Canada. You can find more information about the CBSA in the Related
Links section at the bottom of this page.
You must have a valid passport or a travel document issued by the Government
of Canada and a Canadian permanent resident visa with you.
The officer will ask to see your passport from your home country and other
travel documents. Make sure they are not packed in your luggage and
you have them with you. This will help speed up your entry into Canada.
The officer will check that your permanent resident visa has not expired.
The expiry date is shown on the visa. You cannot use it after it expires.
Permanent resident visas cannot be extended, so make sure you use it within
the time limit.
You will also have to show the officer your Confirmation of Permanent
Residence (COPR), unless you fall under the Urgent Protection Program
(UPP).
The officer will ask you a few questions. The questions will be similar
to the ones you answered on your Application for Permanent Residence
in Canada. The officer will confirm that you are eligible to enter
Canada. This will take only a few minutes.
You may not be allowed to enter Canada if you give false or incomplete
information at the point of entry, or if you do not satisfy the officer
that you are eligible to enter Canada.
If there are no problems at the point of entry, the officer will authorize
you to enter Canada as a permanent resident. Your permanent resident card
will be sent to your new address in Canada by regular mail. You should verify
that the Canadian address on your COPR card is correct because your permanent
resident card will be sent to that address. If you plan to change your address
in the future, or if you do not have a permanent address yet, be sure to
provide the correct address to Citizenship and Immigration Canada as soon as you can.
Disclosure of funds
If you arrive in Canada with more than C$10,000, you
must tell the CBSA officer. If you do not tell the officer, you could be
fined or put in prison. These funds could be in the form of:
- cash
- securities that belong to you (for example, stocks, bonds, debentures
or treasury bills) or
- transferable papers that belong to you (for example, bankers’ drafts,
cheques, traveller’s cheques, or money orders).
What you can bring to Canada
You can find customs and border information on the CBSA website. You can
also find more information in the Related Links section at the
bottom of this page.
Help after you arrive
After you have been admitted to Canada, you will be met at the airport
by someone from a settlement agency or sponsorship group. They will bring
you to the place where you will stay for the first few days, and they will
also help you to find a permanent place to live.
Canada has several programs to help refugees resettle in Canada.