Basics on How to Start an Application in The Permanent Residence Portal
This information is current as of September 15, 2025.
The purpose of this article is to provide a basic introduction to the internet portal used to apply for permanent residence in Canada, as well as to apply to renew permanent resident cards or permanent resident travel documents (for permanent residents who are outside of Canada).
Types of applications:
There are many permanent residence applications that you can start using this portal. Some common applications you can make in this portal are:
- Family sponsorship applications for Canadian citizen and permanent resident sponsors
- Protected Person permanent residence applications for Convention refugees and persons with granted pre-removal risk assessment applications
- permanent resident card renewal for Canadian permanent residents
Before you begin:
Gather records from prior applications for consistency. Common problems leading to refusal arise from giving inconsistent answers from earlier immigration application to later ones.
You must give only truthful and accurate information in your applications, and may be held accountable for them if there are mistakes, even if they are innocent errors.
If you have not saved a copy of your previous immigration applications or cannot get them from your prior representatives, you can get a copy of your immigration file through an Access to Information and Privacy request:
https://atip-aiprp.apps.gc.ca/atip/welcome.do
Consult with a lawyer to get questions answered and troubleshoot problems. It is a good idea to consult with a lawyer before beginning permanent residence applications, to help foresee problems.
Some topics to discuss with a lawyer:
- sponsorship eligibility
- requirement to declare all family members
- difficulties in proving relationship
- atypical family structure
- potential inadmissibility to Canada – e.g., criminal issues, misrepresentation, health
- conditions that are expensive to treat, past non-compliance with immigration rules
What you need:
- Use a computer, rather than a smartphone or tablet when making portal applications, as it may not be possible to access the required forms otherwise, and there may be problems viewing the entire portal page on a smartphone.
- A way to scan documents – either smartphone with camera, preferably using a scanning app, or access to a printer with a scanning function.
Please click here to read the full article in PDF format. It includes a step by step guide with images.
This is legal information and not legal advice. If you require further information or advice, please call our Intake Line at 416-441-1764 ext. 1.