I'm American and my girlfriend is Canadian. We are going to get married at some point but don't want to rush it just to help the immigration process. Her parents aren't on great health so the option right now is for me to move to Canada. I'm trying my best to figure out the best way for this to happen should I look for work on Canada? Or continue my education? Any help wou
To get a study permit to live in Canada as a student you'd need to enroll in a Canadian school, paying expensive international student fees. Also I've heard you need approx $20K in savings to handle all your expected expenses. If this is doable then by all means a study permit is a viable option.
In order for a US citizen to work in Canada, there are only a few options:
- If a recent US graduate, apply for 1 year working holiday/SWAP program
- if you get a job offer for a skilled job qualifying under NAFTA, then with appropriate education/work experience that aligns with it you can apply for Open Work Permit at the border
- if an employer wants to hire you AND goes though long/expensive LMIA process, you can then get a closed work permit to work for them. Typically only possible if you have skills in high demand.
- after you become common-law (live together 12 months) or get married, your spouse can sponsor you for PR while inside Canada and you'd also get an open work permit as part of the application
If none of this is possible, then you can come to Canada as a visitor only, but can't work here. As a visitor you'd be expected to show ties back to the US since you couldn't technically live here permanently.
