Amercian retiree wants to live in Canada

[laurelle]

I was wondering if there is a way a retired American can buy a home and live in Canada without being sponsored by someone?

 

[PMM]

Hi

I was wondering if there is a way a retired American can buy a home and live in Canada without being sponsored by someone?

1. You can as a visitor, but eventually CBSA/CIC will decide you are staying permanently and refuse to extend your status.
2. There is no retirement visa in Canada.

 

[frege]

You can visit Canada for six months a year without a problem.

If you want to stay permanently, you need to apply to become a permanent resident. If you have children in Canada, you may be able to be sponsored. There is no special retirement category, so you'll need to qualify in some category intended primarily for people of working age. There are various categories in which you can apply: skilled worker, investor, etc. Some provinces also have their own immigration programs. The criteria for these will vary from province to province. Some programs require you to live in that province for a period of time (such as if you promise to start a business), while others only require you to intend live there, and you can actually leave for another province after a few months.

Usually being older will count against you. However, under some programs, you may be able to make up for this through education, work experience, etc.

If you have $800,000 to invest and a net worth of at least $1,600,000, you may well qualify under some provincial or federal investor program.

Here are some pages with details of business/investor programs:

http://www.canadavisa.com/quebec-business-immigration-investor.html
http://www.canadavisa.com/pnp-business-immigration.html

Here's some additional information:

http://www.livingabroadincanada.com/getting-started/retirement/#.UhAvlNAfLWU
http://www.coalharbourcondos.info/non-residents.html (See the comments by the immigration lawyer.)

 

[Leon]

There is a member here name of needleartist who was in this situation and ended up finding a college in BC with a high rate of seniors. With a study permit, you can legally live in Canada and even have access to health care. However you would have to pay your tuition and pass your courses to keep your permit. If you can get a skilled job for a year full time, you would qualify to apply for permanent residency under Canadian experience class. Full time is 30 hrs. a week or more. Getting a work permit can be difficult but easier if your occupation falls under NAFTA. Otherwise, a study permit and graduation can lead to an open work permit.