Pointers for a Newbie to Canada Immigration

[o_o]

Hi All,

I am interested in Immigrating to Canada, and I know I need to do my homework. As there has been a lot of changes in the past few years, I'd be grateful to receive any pointers from some of you with more experience on this topic.

My Background:
About 10 years ago, I was interested in immigrating to Canada. I had not even completed high school, had no job and obviously no college degree. My research at that time told me that I needed to have a year's worth of work experience, and a degree that would allow me to apply. Then I would have to wait for about 5 years before getting my immigration visa. (I'm an Indian, with an MS in Engg, and working as a programmer. The 5 years waiting time was specific to India at that time.) I now read that there have been a lot of changes to the immigration process, and most of the information I find seems to be stale. I hope you guys can help me.

I am now working as a programmer in the US. While my company is doing my US immigration, I am also thinking about Canada. The US has a big backlog for immigration visas so I don't have much hope. For the following questions, I have 5 years of work experience and a Masters degree from the US.

Questions:
1. Previously (about 10 years ago), it seemed to be possible to apply to Canada without a job offer, and find a job when you got there. Does such a process still exist? (Here, I am inquiring about the Federal process).
2. If no Federal process exists, does any Provincial Nomination Process exist, where I can apply without having a job offer in advance?
3. If yes, what are the wait times (i.e. processing times) involved?


I know I have to do my homework. I am only look for pointer's here. I'd be grateful for any help.

Thank you,
O. O.

 

[scylla]

1. Yes. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/skilled/apply-who.asp
2. Someone else will have to let you know.
3. Go to the following link and click on "check processing times": http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index-int.asp

 

[o_o]

Thank you very much Scylla. This was an eye opener esp. since it is official. So it seems that I can get to Canada without a job offer - at least in principle.

However, they have changed the program since I last saw it years ago. First, they have introduced caps per occupation. I am a programmer/developer. Since my cap has already been reached, I think this would not work.

I am curious if anyone knows if they consider applications for the cap by random, or is it on a first come first serve basis? Also if I miss the cap this year, would I then have to apply again?

Thank you,
O. O.

 

[scylla]

It's first come first serve. If you applied this year but missed the cap, your application will be returned to you unprocessed.

 

[o_o]

Thank you very much Scylla. I am trying to find out more information regarding how this "cap" system works. I'd appreciate any URLs/Links.

One of the important things I found was: canadavisa.com/total-number-of-federal-skilled-worker-applications-received-by-cic.html This says that the Cap is applicable from the beginning of May to the end of April the next/following year. That means if I have to target the next cap, I would have to prepare my application by the end of the coming April.

If you have more Links/info on how this Cap system works, I'd be grateful. (For e.g. If the next start date of the Cap is May 4th, 2014, and my application along with 1000 other Computer programmers arrives on the same date. How would they apply the first-come-first-serve? Would this be a lottery to select the 300, or would they only select those that came in at 9 AM and reject others that came in at 10 AM on May 4th 2014.)

In the processing times link in your previous message i.e. cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm/skilled-fed.asp They group the applications after June 26, 2010 as one body. So if I make it into the cap/lottery on May 4th 2014, how long would they take to process my application? Would they consider people who applied between June 26, 2010 and May 4th 2014 before me, or would they process my visa right away? I know that the visa process takes a few months at the least. However if they have to process the backlog before me, even if I made the cap, then this process would carry on for a few years. Hence my question.

Scylla, I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge here. Thanks again.
O. O.

P. S. Sorry I cannot post links. Please add the usual HTTP prefix to the above URLs.

 

[scylla]

If you have more Links/info on how this Cap system works, I'd be grateful. (For e.g. If the next start date of the Cap is May 4th, 2014, and my application along with 1000 other Computer programmers arrives on the same date. How would they apply the first-come-first-serve? Would this be a lottery to select the 300, or would they only select those that came in at 9 AM and reject others that came in at 10 AM on May 4th 2014.)

As I said before, it's first come first serve. CIC dates and time stamps applications as they arrive. If the cap for a NOC is reached part way through a day, then all applications received before this time are accepted and all received after this time are returned unprocessed.

I can't answer your question regarding processing time.

 

[o_o]

Thank you very much Scylla. I asked this question because I faced a similar issue with getting an H1B in the US.

Just before the Great Recession in 2007, the quota for H1B's used to expire on the very day it was made available i.e. they would get the required number of applications on the very first day. These entities like the CIC have bulk mail deliveries, and have no clue about the exact timestamp when a piece of mail arrives (though they know the date). So, at least in case of the H1Bs they used to take all applications that came in on the very first day, and then randomly select the required number from that pool.

Anyway, I understand what you are saying. Because of this uncertainity, I might consider hiring a lawyer to do this.

Thank you for all the help.
O. O.