Us Citizen Visitor want to stay in Canada ! Help please ...

[Alfetra]

Hello.

I am originally from the United States and have been in Montreal for a little over 3 weeks.
I have fallen in love with the city and would really love to live and work here.

I understand that I need a work permit in order to legally work here but I know that the first step in order to get a work permit is to receive a job offer.

However, i´ve already had 2 potential job offers but they have turned me down once they found out that I do not have a work permit and say that they are not willing to help me get one.

I have a feeling that most jobs will tell me the same thing and I do not understand how someone is supposed to get a work permit here.


To sum things up, I need a work permit in order to get a job but in order to get a work permit I need a job offer but no one will offer me a job without a work permit. What do I do??

Other Question please : How long im Allowed To stay in Canada ?

I would really appreciate it if someone who knows more on the subject could help me out with this one....

 

[scylla]

You're allowed to stay in Canada as a visitor for six months. If you wish to stay longer, you will need to apply for an extension.

In order to obtain a work permit, you first need to find an employer who is willing to offer you a job. That employer will then need to obtain an approved LMO (labour market opinion) which gives that employer permission to hire a foreign worker. As part of this process, the employer must prove they advertised the job and were unable to find a Canadian to hire for the role. As you've already discovered, most employers only want to deal with people who are already legally allowed to work in Canada. You will have to keep looking until you find an employer who is willing to offer a job to you and then work to obtain an approved LMO. Once the employer obtains an approved LMO, you can then apply for a work permit.

 

[amikety]

In order to better your chances, you need to research what skilled trades Montreal needs. In Alberta, we need trades like welders, so the government is recruiting them. If you're a skilled worker, you could get a job without nearly as much headache.

If you hold a bachelor's degree or better, you could apply as Federal Skilled Worker - but processing times are long. You won't see Montreal for some time.

http://www.canadavisa.com/quebec-skilled-worker-immigration.html (this is a lawyer's site)
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/quebec/index.asp (this is CIC... thanks Captain Obvious )

One thing you can do is look at www.kijiji.ca and select Montreal for local results. Search jobs under the keyword "LMO." It will give you an idea of the job market in the area - and I bet you'll see a lot more ads begging an employer with a LMO to give a job than jobs offering open LMOs.

If you're interested, you could research universities and come to Canada as a student. It's an obtuse way of getting here, but can work in the long run.

One thing to consider too, is out the provinces, Quebec has one of the worst economies. There aren't a lot of jobs there to begin with. The praires are where it's 'at' right now. What few jobs are available, citizens and PRs will take. They're a lot cheaper to hire than a TFW.

If by any chance, you qualify for the Live-in Caregiver program (1 year full time experience in last 5 years or at least 6 months formal training), you have a much better chance of finding a job in Montreal...