Instruction as of July 2025
The Canada–Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET) program, launched in 2022, was a special instrument of the Government of Canada aimed at ensuring urgent and safe evacuation of citizens of Ukraine in connection with the war. It allowed tens of thousands of Ukrainians to obtain temporary resident visas and simplified access to work and study permits. In the first two years of the program, participants were able to obtain documents valid for up to three years and, in fact, integrate into Canadian society. However, as of 2024–2025, the situation has become significantly more complicated. Thousands of Ukrainians who used the program left Canada, and later faced the problem of expiring visas or permits and the lack of a clear understanding of how to proceed.
This material contains a comprehensive analysis of the legal norms governing the procedure for submitting applications for extension or obtaining new documents in such a situation, and also explains the practical consequences for each group of applicants.
Impossibility of extending a work/study permit from outside Canada
The main legal obstacle is the requirement of section 199 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR), according to which a foreign national has the right to apply for an extension of a work or study permit only if they are physically present in Canada. Moreover, such a person must have valid temporary status, that is, be in Canada as a worker, student, or visitor. It follows from this that no application for extension submitted from abroad, regardless of the country of stay, complies with the requirements of the IRPR and will inevitably be refused.
It is important to emphasize that the CUAET program itself did not create an exception to this rule. Thus, even those persons who previously obtained a work or study permit under CUAET, but left Canada, can no longer apply for “extension” of their documents. The only possible way for them is to submit a new application under the rules that apply to all other categories of foreign nationals. This means that returning to Canada in the status of worker or student is possible only after reapplying as for an initial permit.
Termination of CUAET for applicants outside Canada
Another key point is the termination of the external phase of CUAET. Beginning on July 15, 2023, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) officially closed the intake of applications for CUAET visas and associated permits from abroad. Since then, new applications under this program are possible only inside Canada. This means that a citizen of Ukraine who left Canada and tries to submit a new application for a CUAET permit from the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, or Ukraine, in fact, has no legal basis for doing so. Even if he or she previously used the program and had a valid work permit, IRCC will not consider such an application and will refuse it due to the absence of legal grounds.
Thus, since July 2023, CUAET has been transformed into a mechanism available only to those who are physically present in Canada. For those who have left the country, the application of the program in its original form has become impossible.
Situation with a valid TRV and expired work/study permit
Special attention should be paid to situations where the applicant still has a valid Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) obtained under CUAET, but the validity period of the work or study permit has already expired. The legal regime in such a case is favorable. TRV is the document that confirms the right of entry into Canada, and even if the work permit itself is no longer valid, the presence of a valid TRV opens the possibility of returning to the country.
After arrival in Canada, the person may immediately submit a new application for a work permit under the “in-Canada applications” procedure. In certain cases, border officers are authorized to issue a new permit directly at the port of entry. Usually, such a permit is issued for up to three years or until the expiry of the passport, depending on which date comes first. Practice shows that with compliance with the conditions of CUAET and the presence of a valid TRV, refusals in such cases are unlikely.
Valid Work Permit without TRV: why applications for a tourist visa are refused
Another common situation is when the applicant has a valid work permit, which, for example, is valid until 2026, but the temporary resident visa has expired. It seems logical to apply for a new TRV as a tourist. However, in practice such applications usually end in refusal.
The reason lies in section 179(b) IRPR, which provides that an officer cannot issue a temporary visa if they are not satisfied that the applicant will leave Canada at the end of the authorized stay. In the case where a person already has a valid work permit, the officer reasonably doubts that he or she is traveling as a tourist. The true purpose of the trip is considered to be work, which makes the application for a tourist TRV incongruent. Accordingly, such a strategy almost always leads to refusal.
The only correct path: TRV for Returning Worker
The legally balanced and practically justified option for persons with a valid work permit but an expired TRV is to submit an application for a temporary resident visa in the Returning Worker category. In this case, the applicant clearly declares that the purpose of the trip is not tourism or new studies, but returning to Canada to continue working on the basis of an already valid permit.
In the process of application, it is necessary to indicate the actual place of stay abroad and upload all the required documents: the valid work permit, a copy of the passport, previous confirmations of legal stay in Canada. Particular importance is attached to the Letter of Explanation, in which the applicant should set out in detail the circumstances: legality of previous employment, temporary nature of departure from Canada, intention to return to the workplace, and correspondence of the current status to the declared purpose. Such argumentation significantly increases the likelihood of a positive decision.
Further actions after obtaining TRV
If TRV is obtained in the Returning Worker category, the person has the right to freely enter Canada. If their work permit is still valid, they may continue to work until the end of its validity. If the term is expiring, the applicant, being on the territory of Canada, has the right to submit an application for extension of the work permit in the general procedure provided by IRPR. Thus, the possibility of legally remaining in the country and carrying out labor activity without risk of loss of status is restored.
Generalization
The legal logic in cases of expiring CUAET documents is as follows. First, extension of work or study permits from abroad is impossible — this is directly prohibited by section 199 IRPR. Second, the CUAET program in its external part ended in July 2023, which makes submission from abroad impossible even for former participants. Third, the key document for return is a valid TRV: if it is still valid, even after the expiry of the work permit, the person has a high chance of obtaining a new permit directly at the border. Fourth, applications for a tourist TRV with a valid work permit almost always end in refusal because of doubts about the temporariness of intentions. Finally, the only legally correct way to return to Canada is the issuance of a TRV in the Returning Worker category with the appropriate package of documents and a letter of explanation.
It is precisely this path that makes it possible to ensure continuity of legal status and avoid negative consequences in the future.
