Photo: Adam Melnyk (Shutterstock)
For some reason, the frequency of Google searches for “How to move to Canada” increased by 550% last week. Maybe Justin Trudeau needed to announce a new tourist attraction or something like that?
Below is a guide for novice Americans looking to relocate to the Great White North covering both legal and legally questionable methods. Before you start, however, know that as close to Canada in a geopolitical sense as the United States, no country allows its citizens to move freely. Moving to Canada is much more complicated and costly than moving to Cleveland, and the entire Canadian government judgment process can make you feel extremely inadequate.
Becoming a Canadian permanent resident, or becoming a Canadian citizen?
If your parents or grandparents are Canadian citizens it will be easier but for everyone else you will likely need to become a permanent resident of Canada
become a citizen. One of the biggest criteria for citizenship is to have been legally resident in Canada for three of the last five years, which you usually can’t do unless you have some recognized status in the country, such as a school or work visa. See the article : The United States is the most uneven high -income economy in the world.
As a permanent resident of Canada, you will not be able to vote or hold office in Canada – which is related to nationality – but you will be able to work, study and use the Canada health system.
Are you a good enough person to move to Canadian?
The Canadian government has created an easy-to-use tool for all kinds of visitors visiting the country, from pop-up tourists for a short weekend visit to Montreal to would-be expats looking for a new life. The tool allows you to answer basic questions about who you are, who you are and what exactly you want outside of Canada.
Canada has over 100 immigration and visa programs, but generally the country doesn’t want some old tramp running in and smelling a joint. See the article : China Is Changing Law So It Can Turn Back To Sports Incidents. Like the United States, only certain types of immigrants are welcome / allowed in Canada, so the first step towards a northern escape route is to find out if you are the person Canada wants.
Who is allowed to reside in Canada?
Unfortunately, there is no Canadian immigration program aimed specifically at people dissatisfied with the decaying legality of US institutions. This may interest you : Water Polo and Outdoor Track Add to Growing Sports Roster at UC Merced | Newsroom. Instead, Canada is mostly interested in people who have something to offer Canada. (Selfish!)
If you have a family in Canada, are a skilled worker, want to relocate your business to Canada, are creative or athletic (professional, high-level) person, are a specific type of caregiver or farm worker, or belong to another specific demographic, Canada may want to talk to you. If you’re a Joe Lunchpail looking to quit your job and move to Vancouver, Canada may not be returning your proverbial texts.
Getting into Canada through the Express Entry Program
The most popular immigration path to Canada is the Express Entry program. It targets skilled workers and is probably the most likely route to Canada for most Americans. Qualified, anyway. To see if Canada considers you “qualified”, here is the official list of occupations.
There are three immigration programs under the Canada Express Entry program:
There are many other criteria that can determine your eligibility to stay in Canada, besides experience in a specific profession – it helps if you speak French or English, cannot have an extensive criminal history, need enough money to move, etc. Canada uses a point scale to defining permissions; here’s how the points are distributed. As you can see, getting a job from a Canadian company is worth a lot of points, and that’s where a lot of people start.
If you have done the calculations and believe your skills, background, and employment history are a good fit for Canada, you can create a profile for yourself and submit it to the Canadian government. If you have enough points, you can choose your full name and then you can apply to become a Canadian resident. This requires you to provide documentation of your education, employment and other details.
As you can see, there are some pretty serious hoops to jump over. Becoming a resident of Canada takes a long time, a lot of paperwork, and it’s not cheap.
How much does it cost and how long does it take to become a permanent resident of Canada?
Obtaining Canadian citizenship through the Express Entry program can cost anywhere from $ 1,500 to $ 2,000 and typically takes around six months. But there is no guarantee on the timeframe: a sudden excess of applications for some mysterious reason can slow down your entire system.
Entering Canada through the Provincial Nominee Program
Another potential option for US workers or students looking to become legal Canadian residents is the Provincial Nominee program. Different Canadian provinces have different needs for certain types of workers. They are still generally looking for qualified, educated, experienced people, so it’s probably easier to move to Labrador as a doctor than to British Columbia as a customer service representative.
If you think you wouldn’t fit into any of the many immigration programs in Canada there are other options, but I don’t want to give you false hope here – that doesn’t look good.
Can I enter Canada as a political refugee?
US citizens would have an extremely difficult time entering Canada and applying for political refugee status. Generally speaking, Canada grants asylum to people who have fled their home countries because of “well-founded fear of persecution” or because they need protection from torture or other penalties if they return home.
If you think this may apply to you because current US policy comes down to personal harassment, you will have to climb a steep legal hill. I do not mean to say that it is impossible, but it seems very doubtful that you will be granted such asylum. Refugees, by definition, are people who have been forced to leave their country and would likely be killed, imprisoned or tortured upon their return, and although I don’t know your life, you probably aren’t forced to flee the US (at least not yet.)
Can’t I just move to Canada illegally?
It’s easy to physically cross the border into Canada from the United States – there’s an app for that and you’ll have to prove your citizenship and vaccination status, but once you do, you can drive or fly without any problems – but you will. ” t can legally stay there after the visa has expired.
If you choose to stay after the six months which are most visas and do not apply for asylum, you are likely committing a crime. You can face many bad consequences. You will not be able to find legal work in Canada. You will not be able to buy a house and you will have trouble renting a place without doing it “under the table”. If you are identified by Canadian law enforcement, you will likely end up in jail until you are sent back to the United States. We will probably refuse you entry into Canada in the future, even for a visit, and almost certainly like any other resident.
There are many free border crossings at the US-Canada border: remote areas where nothing stands in the way of just entering the country. If you are going to do this tour – and you shouldn’t – make sure you dress warmly and pack enough food and water for the hike.
How easy it would be to get into Canada, what would you do after you snuck in? Not having any legal basis for staying in the country, and the likelihood of being imprisoned and deported if caught, what would you really gain? You couldn’t work or study. You can’t get any of this sweet, sweet universal healthcare. You would just be an undocumented person, a situation best avoided if possible.
Can I become a resident of Canada by marrying a Canadian?
You can visit Canada, fall in love and get married on an easy-to-obtain tourist visa, but that doesn’t automatically mean you’re a Canadian citizen. If you have a family in Canada, they may sponsor your immigration into the country and the family includes your spouse, but there is still an application process, a waiting period, and an option to decline – especially if you appear to be involved in a ‘green card wedding’.
A married couple because of their immigration status alone can be accused of criminal fraud. To prove that their marriages are real, immigrant couples are expected to provide documentation proving that their marriage is not a means of obtaining a residence permit, which goes well beyond a marriage license. It may include proof of joint bank account, joint mortgage and other formal documents, but may also include pictures of your “relationship”, letters from friends and family telling you how much you love each other, and “relationship narratives” written from you and yours. spouse. If you only plan on getting married for immigration reasons (which, again, you shouldn’t do as it is usually considered a criminal offense), it will require a ton of fabricated evidence.
