After permanent residence
Citizenship physical-presence calculator
You need 1095 days of physical presence in Canada within the five years before you apply. Time here before you became a permanent resident counts as half a day, up to 365 days of credit.
When would you apply?
Your time in Canada
Add each continuous period you were physically in Canada. Leave out the time you spent abroad. The day you arrive and the day you leave both count as days present.
The two things people get wrong
The five-year window moves. It is the five years immediately before the day you apply, not five calendar years. A long trip that sits inside your window today can fall out of it next month, which is why waiting does not always help as much as people expect — and occasionally hurts.
The pre-PR credit is capped at 365 days of credit, meaning 730 actual days. Students and workers who spent four years here before landing often assume all of it counts at half rate. It does not — only the first two years’ worth.
What this does not check
Physical presence is one requirement among several. You also need to have filed income tax for three of the five years where required, meet language and knowledge requirements if you are between 18 and 54, and not be under a removal order or subject to a prohibition. This tool counts days; it does not assess eligibility.
Source: IRCC — Citizenship eligibility requirements. Data current as of 2026-08-10. Implements the Citizenship Act requirement as amended in 2017. IRCC’s own physical presence calculator is the authoritative one.