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Recently married American living in Canada...Need help with PR and OWP please :)

G

grayzer77

Newbie
Dec 6, 2010
3
0
I was born in Michigan and am currently living with my husband in Ontario. We sent in our application for PR about 3 months ago. I graduate with my Masters Degree in Social Work this April (right about the time the first approval should be made). My question is regarding applying for an open work permit. How do you go about doing this? Am I eligible for this? I want to be able to work as soon as possible after graduating...any suggestions??? Thanks so much for the input!

Also on a side note...if I were to get pregnant would I have access to healthcare and or maternity pay?

Thanks,

Lynn
 
Lynn,

Did you apply inland? If you applied outland, I don't think you can get a open work permit. If you applied inland, perhaps this thread might be helpful on the OWP:

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/-t57557.0.html

About insurance:
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/-t51055.0.html

And this one (which relates to anyone in Canada waiting on PR and needing insurance):
http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/-t56620.0.html

I have not heard of any insurance plans for non-residents that cover pregnancy. I asked several companies, and none I inquired with did. If you hear of something that would cover pregnancy, I'd love to know.

Good luck!
 
grayzer77 said:
I was born in Michigan and am currently living with my husband in Ontario. We sent in our application for PR about 3 months ago. I graduate with my Masters Degree in Social Work this April (right about the time the first approval should be made). My question is regarding applying for an open work permit. How do you go about doing this? Am I eligible for this? I want to be able to work as soon as possible after graduating...any suggestions??? Thanks so much for the input!

Also on a side note...if I were to get pregnant would I have access to healthcare and or maternity pay?

Thanks,

Lynn
Click to expand...

You can also look into getting post graduation work permit if you haven't already looked into that. It is an open work permit. You are eligible for OHIP with the PGWP so that part will be covered. as for maternity leave (EI) pay, you can only get it if you have worked enough insurable hours. I got pregnant right after graduation and took mat leave for 1 year. I had been working for 2 years prior though as well as up to my 9th mth of pregnancy. But if you work full time for at least 6 mths, you would have the 600 hrs (I think that's what it is) that is needed for mat leave (EI).
 
You don't say whether you applied for PR via the inland process, or outland through CPC-Mississauga and Buffalo. If you applied outland, you can expect your application to be finalized pretty close to when you're graduating - so no need after that for a work permit. You'll have authorization to work in Canada as a landed PR.

If you applied inland, your application will not even be looked at until sometime in June. That is when they will assess you for first stage approval. If you did not include an application to change conditions (to an OWP)/extend your temporary status WITH the inland PR, you're going to be messed up because you will likely have lost your temporary status by then (most US citizens are admitted for Canada for a period of up to six months). If that happens, then your inland PR application will be transferred to your local CIC office for assessment, and (depending on how busy your local office is) it could sit for up to two years before they even assess it for first stage approval. So, no work permit.

We really need to know how you applied - and, if you applied inland, what your current status is in Canada, and when it expires. You can PM me directly if you want to.

As far as OHIP - you have to be either a landed immigrant with residency for 3 months, or an inland applicant with first stage approval before you're covered.
 
First off thank you so much for all of your help! Its greatly appreciated...I applied inland and I am here on a visitors visa..it expires in September..they gave me a year.
 
grayzer77 said:
First off thank you so much for all of your help! Its greatly appreciated...I applied inland and I am here on a visitors visa..it expires in September..they gave me a year.
Click to expand...

So you are not doing your masters at a Canadian university, correct? If that's the case, then you are not elgible for a post grad work permit upon completion of your masters.
If you receive first stage approval of your inland application, you can apply for an open work permit.
If you receive an OWP, only then do you become elgible for provincial health insurance. Most provinces have waiting times regarding when benefits go into effect so check with the appropriate province to know for sure.
You only receive maternity employment insurance if you pay into the program for a certain number of hours as suenim said.

Just a word of caution about getting pregnant before getting Approval In Principal (first stage). AIP is NOT a guaranteed thing. There are hundreds of people on this forum who did NOT get AIP and have had to wait years for processing of their applications. If you don't get AIP, you will not be eligible to apply for an open work permit or for any provincial health insurance and will have to cover the medical costs for having a baby yourself (several thousands dollars) and since you are not supposed to leave Canada during the processing of an inland application to have the baby in your home country where you may be insured, it could cause you a great deal of financial stress not to mention stress on your relationship.

God! I feel like the voice of doom and gloom!!! Sorry, I just want you to be careful and know the potential pitfalls if you are unaware of certain things.
 
rjessome said:
God! I feel like the voice of doom and gloom!!! Sorry, I just want you to be careful and know the potential pitfalls if you are unaware of certain things.
Click to expand...

We all wear that T shirt :D, it's always better to know in advance.
 
Baloo said:
We all wear that T shirt :D, it's always better to know in advance.
Click to expand...

LOL! Thanks! :)

I feel like a broken record stuck on "don't do this", "don't do that", "be careful about this", blah, blah, blah! But I suppose if it were easy, this forum wouldn't exist!
 
Many people have no problem, but sometimes people take it that the posts are too negative.
They return later, AFTER they see reality was as described.

I bet you wish that you received a dollar for every web search you did for someone that was too lazy :)
 
rjessome thanks for the advice! I know this has been a super stressful thing for both my husband and I. We want to start a family more than anything but wanted to wait until I recieved my degree and a good job but this process seems to take longer than we expected. I appreciate your honesty..we want to make sure everythings in place before we bring a little one into this world. And yes I did not go to university in Canada, Im at Wayne State in Michigan.

So I am just unclear on the open work permit and when to apply. I have heard to apply now and just write on the application that I am intending the request after I recieve AIP and I also have been told to wait until after I had recieved AIP?? I would like to start work here in Canada as soon as possible...Any thoughts? Thanks again so much everyone for you advice and information! You make such a difficult and confusing time a little less hectic! Thanks again
 
grayzer77 said:
First off thank you so much for all of your help! Its greatly appreciated...I applied inland and I am here on a visitors visa..it expires in September..they gave me a year.
Click to expand...

Did you get that at the border? Or before coming here?
 
You can apply for an open work permit now. Use a change of status form and write as a reason that you are applying for an open work permit to be granted to you at the time of your first stage approval. That way you get it at the same time as your first stage approval instead of getting the first stage approval and then have to apply and wait for them to process the work permit.

Apart from that, what others have said. First stage approval is now about 9 months if all goes well. You do not qualify for health care before that although I remember a guy who claimed he got his pregnant wife covered by AB health who was also waiting for sponsorship but I don't know their exact situation plus AB health may be nicer about things like that than health are programs in other provinces.

You can not get mat benefits until you have worked the min. number of hours which is 600 so takes 15 weeks (3.5 months) with a regular 40 hr. work week.
 
Leon said:
You can apply for an open work permit now. Use a change of status form and write as a reason that you are applying for an open work permit to be granted to you at the time of your first stage approval. That way you get it at the same time as your first stage approval instead of getting the first stage approval and then have to apply and wait for them to process the work permit.
Click to expand...

No Leon, it will get refused. For inland applicants, if they don't send the OWP request with the sponsorship application, they must wait until they get AIP before they can apply for the OWP.
 
Rjessome is correct. I know from personal experience. We had first applied inland and tried to attach a open work permit after the fact, we asked for it to be processed after AIP with a nice cover letter but nonetheless it was processed right away and refused.
 
kelKel said:
Rjessome is correct. I know from personal experience. We had first applied inland and tried to attach a open work permit after the fact, we asked for it to be processed after AIP with a nice cover letter but nonetheless it was processed right away and refused.
Click to expand...

exactly the same with my experience. my OWP was refused too
so, the only thing i can do is wait, wait, and wait until i get AIP
(and maintain my status)
 
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