Permanent residence pathways for Hong Kong residents: Get your documents ready

From Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

Before you apply for permanent residence, you should gather all the documents you need. Your application may be delayed if you’re missing anything. You can find a full list of the documents you need to submit in your document checklist.

On this page:

• Language test
• Intent to live in a province or territory other than Quebec
• Post-secondary education (stream A only)
• Canadian work experience (stream B only)

Language test

You must provide a copy of your language test results that shows you have a level 5 score in all 4 skills (reading, writing, listening and speaking) on one of the following scales:

• Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB)
• Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC)

If you haven’t already completed a language test, make sure you book one early. It takes time to book the test and get your results.

Intent to live in a province or territory other than Quebec

If you currently live in Quebec, you must prove that you intend to live in a province or territory other than Quebec.

To prove this, you can provide one or more of the following:

• a statutory declaration explaining where you plan to live and why
• documents showing any ties you have to the province or territory (outside Quebec) where you plan to live, including
  • proof of employment
  • job offers
  • job applications you’ve submitted
  • job interviews you have scheduled
  • proof you have family living in the area
  • lease agreements or mortgages

Post-secondary education (stream A only)

You must provide

• a copy of your diploma or degree
• your final transcripts

They must show that you graduated

• from a designated learning institution in Canada
• in the last 3 years

If you have a diploma or certificate from a graduate or post-graduate program, you must also include both of the following:

• proof that this program required you to have a post-secondary diploma or degree as a prerequisite, such as a
  • copy of the school’s website showing all the prerequisites
  • letter from the school that lists the prerequisites you needed
• a copy of your post-secondary diploma or degree and final transcripts showing that you graduated no more than 5 years before the start of your graduate or post-graduate program

Canadian work experience (stream B only)

You must provide proof for each job you list in your application. This could be

• a letter from your employer, on company letterhead, that includes
  • your name
  • your job title
  • the dates you worked for the company
  • the number of hours you worked each week
  • your annual salary and any benefits you received
  • the company contact information (address, phone number and email address)
  • your supervisor’s name, title and signature (or those of the company’s human resources officer)
• a copy of the T4 tax information slips and notices of assessment the Canada Revenue Agency issued to you
• copies of your records of employment
• pay stubs
• copies of bank deposits showing salary payments