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Immigration and Refugee Protection Act

s. 21 Permanent resident

  • PART 1: Immigration to Canada
  • DIVISION 3: Entering and Remaining in Canada
  • Admissibility
  • Permanent Residents

Last verified: June 2026 · Source: justice.gc.ca

The law says

IRPA s. 21
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(1)A foreign national becomes a permanent resident if an officer is satisfied that the foreign national has applied for that status, has met the obligations set out in paragraph 20(1)(a) and subsection 20(2) and is not inadmissible.

Protected person

(2)Except in the case of a person described in subsection 112(3) or a person who is a member of a prescribed class of persons, a person whose application for protection has been finally determined by the Board to be a Convention refugee or to be a person in need of protection, or a person whose application for protection has been allowed by the Minister, becomes, subject to any federal-provincial agreement referred to in subsection 9(1), a permanent resident if the officer is satisfied that they have made their application in accordance with the regulations and that they are not inadmissible on any ground referred to in section 34, 35 or 35.1, subsection 36(1) or section 37 or 38.

Pending application — subsection 108(2)

(3)A person in respect of whom the Minister has made an application under subsection 108(2) may not become a permanent resident under subsection (2) while the application is pending.

Amendment History (3)
  • 2001, c. 27, s. 21
  • 2012, c. 17, s. 11
  • 2023, c. 19, s. 2

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Guides on this part of the Act

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