Emotions can influence online teaching and learning, according to existing studies. PERMA theory enjoys great fame in both positive psychology field and English foreign language context since it was proposed by Seligman, which includes five domains, namely positive emotions, engagement, relationship, meaning, and achievement. Although there is a wealth of knowledge about the impact of positive emotion on teaching and learning, there is little research on the PERMA model within positive psychology and online EFL teaching and learning, particularly examining the specific framework that can effectively guide online teaching and learning. In this article, based on the community of inquiry theoretical framework, we provide empirical evidence that emotional presence (PERMA) may exist as an essential and distinct part of online critical inquiry. Results also supported PERMA mediated the linear relationship between social presence and cognitive presence; also, mediated the linear relationship between teaching presence and cognitive presence. The current research provides evidence for the association between the PERMA model in positive psychology and online critical inquiry; as well as contributes to uncovering the underlying mechanisms of the relationship between the PERMA model and community of inquiry theoretical framework.