Possibly moving to Canada - what to do?

[Peacock]

Hi everyone,

I hope someone can answer all my questions.

I've known my boyfriend for almost two years know and we've been living together for one year. The topic 'marriage' has not been on our agenda yet.
However, he just got a job offer from Canada (Quebec province). He has Indian citizenship but due to his job offer he should get a visa. I am a EU citizen and still studying (distance learning so relocating won't be a problem). I know I can stay in Canada for six months but after that I would have to leave for some time. As this would be quite annoying and probably expensive (my boyfriend won't earn that much and I won't be able to work without a visa) we started thinking of getting a marriage certificate. Hence, I'll get an Open Work Permit and could do some part-time work which would make life a bit easier for us, I guess.
Now my question is do we have to get married before we go to Canada? Or can we do it in Canada as well? Or should I find a job in Canada and then apply for a work visa? I also read that you can get a work visa if you're doing volunteer work. How does that work exactly? Is it easier to find volunteer work than a paid job? (considering I am still studying and hence not that qualified)
I don't think a hasty, "forced" marriage is a good idea. (Don't get me wrong here, I love my boyfriend it's just that I'm not very fond of the whole concept of marriage.) However, we don't have much time left as my boyfriend's visa for Germany will expire in the end of August. Another problem is we don't speak any French (He doesn't need it for work but maybe I will if I start job hunting).

Does anyone have some suggestions?
Many thanks.

 

[amira_mais]

A few things to keep in mind:

1. You can get an open work permit only if your BF's job is high skilled – falls under NOC 0, A or B. If successful, you would get it for the same duration as his own work permit.

2. If you're not married at the time of application, you need to be able to prove that you're at least common law – have lived together for 12 months – in order to be considered a spouse and hence eligible for an open work permit.

3. It will be very difficult for you to find a job BEFORE you get to Canada. So don't count on that.

4. If you're not eligible for an SOWP, you could try to find a job on your own, but would need the potential employer to obtain a Labour Market Opinion to support your work permit application. An LMO will only be issued if the employer offering the job can prove that no Canadians could be trained or hired for the position. As you said you're still a student and not very qualified yet, this route isn't very feasible.

5. If you're going to be based in Quebec and don't speak French, it could be challenging for you to find a job. Maybe if you're in Montreal it won't present as much of a difficulty but I'm not sure.