A practical guide to preparing and submitting restoration of status applications under Canadian immigration laws and regulations.
Included with our Passes – Learn more
Adrienne Smith
December 3, 2026 at 12:00pm EST
$90
3 hours
Attend Live Online and On-Demand Recording
This advanced, practice-focused course provides immigration practitioners with a comprehensive framework for handling restoration of status applications in Canada. Participants will learn how and when restoration is available, how to assess eligibility across visitor, worker, and student categories, and how to navigate the strict 90-day statutory window and discretionary decision-making involved in these cases. The course examines the interaction between restoration, maintained (implied) status, enforcement risk, and permanent residence strategies, including spousal sponsorships and humanitarian considerations. Through detailed case studies, procedural guidance, and drafting tips, this session equips practitioners to advise clients confidently, manage risk, and advance restoration strategies effectively in complex, real-world scenarios.
• Temporary resident status vs. authorization to work or study
• Common triggers:
o Expired permits
o Refused extensions
o Unauthorized work or study
o Non-compliance with permit conditions
• Distinguishing:
o Loss of status
o Out-of-status but restoration-eligible
o No status with enforcement risk
• When maintained status applies
• Common misconceptions (e.g. working after refusal)
• Impact of late filings and incomplete applications
• Practical timelines and red flags
• Questions every lawyer should ask at the first meeting
• Document review checklist
• Spotting issues that change legal strategy early
• Statutory 90-day restoration window
• Who can restore (and who cannot)
• Visitors vs. workers vs. students
• Effect of multiple violations
• Forms and procedural requirements
• Fees and timelines
• What restoration does not do (no work/study authorization)
• Practical filing tips to avoid refusal
• Explaining non-compliance credibly
• Demonstrating temporary intent and future compliance
• Addressing unauthorized work or study
• Using discretion effectively
• Late work permit extension + continued employment
• Student who stopped studying due to mental health issues
• Visitor overstayed while awaiting spousal sponsorship
• Worker with restoration window missed by days
• Leaving Canada and re-applying
• Risks of re-entry and prior non-compliance
• Border discretion considerations
• Out-of-status spousal sponsorships
• H&C considerations linked to loss of status
• When PR pathways are preferable to restoration
• CBSA exposure and reporting obligations
• Advising clients on risk tolerance
• Ethical considerations and documentation
• When refusals raise procedural fairness issues
• Reconsideration requests
• Role of judicial review in restoration-adjacent cases
• Restoration eligibility checklist
• Intake screening flowchart
• Common refusal reasons and how to pre-empt them
• Drafting best practices
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B.A., M.A., J.D.
Principal Lawyer, Smith Immigration Law
Adrienne has a full-service legal practice with expertise in litigation and administrative appeals. Adrienne’s firm website can be found here. Her legal experience is concentrated in matters before Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the Federal Court and the Immigration and Refugee Board.
She regularly represents clients with all types of permanent and temporary applications to Canada, including medical and criminal inadmissibility issues, sponsorship applications and appeals, refugee claims and appeals, Federal Court applications, humanitarian and compassionate applications, study and visitor visas, and detention reviews.
Adrienne has been invited as an expert to speak on medical inadmissibility before Canada’s House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, which monitor’s federal immigration policies.
She is an Instructor with Ryerson’s Faculty of Law and the University of British Columbia’s Continuing Education Program. Adrienne has been invited to speak as a guest lecturer at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law and York University’s Centre for Refugee Studies.
Have questions? We’re here to help. Check out our FAQs to learn more about this Course.
Absolutely. Every LPEN course is recorded, and the recording is added to your account within a few business days. You can log in anytime to watch it on demand and still receive your digital certificate of completion.
LPEN seeks accreditation for each course from the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants (CICC) and the Law Society of Ontario (LSO),the Law Society of BC (LSBC) when applicable. Accreditation details and approved CPD hours are listed in the CPD Credits section on each course page, so you can easily confirm how the course qualifies toward your professional development requirements.
A digital certificate of completion will be available once the course recording has been uploaded. After that, you can follow the steps at the top of your My Courses page—where you’ll also find a short video explaining how to download your certificate. Be sure to save it as part of your documentation for your CPD hours.
This course may be included in one or several LPEN Passes. Passes offer discounted rates and access to multiple courses, making CPD compliance simpler. Check out our Passes page to see where it is included.
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