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Got your ITA and PCC while still in India, but landed in Canada before submitting documents? What happens to your Indian PCC

Canada • Express Entry • immigration 0 views
By VisaBuddies Communityvia community — compiled from public visa forums

Documents Needed

  • Police Certificate (PCC)

    If your Indian PCC risks being treated as invalid due to timing/location after landing, a new PCC can be initiated via BLS while you're in Canada.

  • Letter of Explanation (LOE)

    Attach when submitting documents, or when uploading a new/updated PCC via webform, to explain the timing situation to IRCC.

Step-by-Step

A member asked what happens if someone gets their ITA and completes their Police Certificate (PCC) while still in India, but ends up landing in Canada and only submitting their ITA documents about 10 days after arrival — specifically, whether a Canadian PCC becomes mandatory in that scenario.

What the thread suggested:
  1. You will not get an automatic, straightforward rejection just because you submitted from Canada. IRCC may simply request a new PCC rather than reject the application outright.

  2. The key factor is how long you've been in Canada, and on what status. If you were in Canada on a tourist visa for less than 6 months when you submitted, there's generally nothing to worry about; if you'd been there longer, there's a real risk IRCC could reject the application on this basis.

  3. The recommended fix is proactive: submit your documents along with a Letter of Explanation (LOE), and separately initiate a new PCC through BLS (the visa application center), uploading the receipt with an LOE while waiting for the new PCC to arrive. Once you receive the new PCC, upload it via webform to complete the record.


The practical takeaway: don't assume landing in Canada before submitting documents automatically invalidates your original PCC — but if you've been in Canada for an extended period, proactively start a new PCC via BLS, submit an LOE explaining the situation, and follow up with the new PCC once issued.

Dos, Don'ts & Tips

  • Tip: IRCC is more likely to request a new PCC than to outright reject your application over this timing issue, especially if you were in Canada under 6 months when you submitted.
  • Do: Proactively initiate a new PCC via BLS and submit a Letter of Explanation (LOE) with your documents rather than waiting for IRCC to flag the issue.

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