2.2 Non-Permanent Residents According to the definition provided by Statistics Canada, non-permanent residents are nationals from other countries who are allowed to study or work in Canada, as well as asylum seekers and their family members.38 2.2.1 Temporary Residents Stateless persons can enter Canada temporarily through visitor, student or work permits. Temporary residents may remain in Canada for the period during which their permit is valid and may apply for a work and/or study permit extension. Persons who are granted temporary resident status in Canada, including stateless persons, may not have access to provincial or territorial health care or Canadian travel documents. Access to certain services, including health care, are provincially and territorially regulated, resulting in unequal access for stateless persons across the country. If relevant residency and language requirements are fulfilled, however, these stateless migrants may apply for permanent residency39 and ultimately citizenship in Canada.40 Between 2012 and July, 2017, a total of 6,716 stateless persons were issued temporary resident status in Canada. This includes student permits, work permits, visitor’s visas, and their extensions. In the same timeframe, 825 of them became permanent residents.41 Similar to permanent resident applications, requirements for work and study permits may be challenging to meet for stateless persons. Farah is of Palestinian descent, and was born in Kuwait. After the Gulf War broke out in 1990, her family moved to Jordan. Since her father was granted a Jordanian citizenship, Farah was also granted Jordanian citizenship, and she and her family lived in Syria on a Jordanian citizenship and passport for 23 years. In 1988, Jordan relinquished its claim to the territory of the West Bank to the Palestine Liberation Organization, and consequently began revoking the Jordanian citizenship of millions of Palestinians.42 In 2005, Farah’s Jordanian citizenship was revoked and replaced with a temporary travel document, on which she continued living in Syria, however, now as a stateless person. Because of this, Farah was required to obtain a residency permit in Syria, which she had to renew annually. When the Syrian war broke out, her family was forced to leave Syria. Her family fled to Germany, and then Turkey. While residing in Turkey, Farah applied for a Canadian student visa and was accepted within the year. Upon arrival to Canada, she enrolled in an English language program. Because of Farah’s temporary status, she is not entitled to health care or Canadian travel documents. 38 Statistics Canada. Dictionary, Census of Population, 2016: Figure 5.1 Immigrants, non-immigrants and non-permanent residents, by place of birth and generation status. (3 January 2019). 39 Section 10.1. Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, S.C. 2001, c. 27. 40 Section 5(1). Citizenship Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. C-29. 41 This statistic may be an overestimate, as these numbers may include more than one type of permit issued over a given period of time for one person. 42 Human Rights Watch. Stateless Again: Palestinian-Origin Jordanians Deprived of their Nationality. (2010), 10. 9