US to Canada immigration options? (Family or Work)

[Wexton]

Hello,

I'm a current US citizen and I have a girlfriend who is a Canadian citizen. She is about to start school at the Trent University in Ontario this fall and I'm trying my best to get information about moving to Canada and working there so I can be with her.

I'll give a little more back ground to help. I'm 31 years old and I have Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (undergraduate degree) from the University of North Texas. I have been working in the financial field for over 10 years. (7 years in banking and 4 years in mortgage servicing.) That is my preferred field for a career despite my degree being in psychology. I argue that I use psychology on a daily basis anyway because I'm a manager. LOL!

I will start reading through all the posts here, but if any of you have tips or links to places I need to go to I would really appreciate it. I have already read that I need to try and gain employment before I can apply for a work visa. I've also noticed that several of you here have already sent in applications and the review process is pretty long. Should I go ahead and send in a work visa application now before I have a job offer? Or should my girlfriend and I seriously consider getting married in order to help me get a permanent residency visa?

 

[Sweden]

Hey Wexton,

welcome to the forum!

For work visa, you might want to see if you fit into one of the categories where you can apply. Have a look at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/skilled.asp - you will see that for the moment the "Federal Skilled Worker" program is on hold. If you want to look at a province specifically (Ontario I suppose), then you will find the link on the same page.

If you find an employer willing to do the work process for you, then it could be an option. However, it is sometimes difficult to get, as the employer has to conduct a LMO (Labour Market opinion) to show that there is no canadian with the same qualifications, hence they are required to hire you instead. Time consuming, and costly, so lots of employers are not willing to do it - but you can always ask, if you find an employer with open positions for your skills.

For family sponsorship - you don't have to get married if you have been living with your girlfriend for more than 12 months, then you can apply as common-law. See Leon's first post on this page, it will tell you everything about it. Otherwise you can get married, and live apart, and she can sponsor you. You are currently looking at 3 months for stage 1 approval, and an additional 8 months (I think) for outland US citizen - but lots of cases are done before that, depends on your case, and how much proofs you have of your relationship. You also both need to check if you are eligible ( but for family sponsorship, it's mostly criminal check etc - details are on CIC website).

So - that would be to start! and don't hesitate to come back with more precise questions.

Good luck,
Sweden

 

[Wexton]

For work visa, you might want to see if you fit into one of the categories where you can apply. Have a look at (can not post link at this time) you will see that for the moment the "Federal Skilled Worker" program is on hold. If you want to look at a province specifically (Ontario I suppose), then you will find the link on the same page.

For family sponsorship - you don't have to get married if you have been living with your girlfriend for more than 12 months, then you can apply as common-law. See Leon's first post on this page, it will tell you everything about it. Otherwise you can get married, and live apart, and she can sponsor you. You are currently looking at 3 months for stage 1 approval, and an additional 8 months (I think) for outland US citizen - but lots of cases are done before that, depends on your case, and how much proofs you have of your relationship. You also both need to check if you are eligible ( but for family sponsorship, it's mostly criminal check etc - details are on CIC website).

So - that would be to start! and don't hesitate to come back with more precise questions.

Good luck,
Sweden

Thank you for the quick reply Sweden! I will check out the work link you provided. I think I've used it once before and I was unsuccessful at finding any jobs in the field I'm in. If that is still the case then I will look further into getting married.

My girlfriend and I are living apart, so common law would unfortunately not be the route to go. I'm currently in Texas (US) and she is in Peterborough (Canada). I have a good paying job here in Texas and I'm not able to just move to Canada with out a job and hope to look for one. I have old college school bills and a auto loan to pay for. It looks like we might have to go with the latter option that you suggested where I apply for a PR via outland. It won't be hard for us to show proof of our relationship. We are madly in love and I can give plenty of pictures, letters, emails and other proof that they may require.

Would it be better for me to get the PR first and then just try to find a job once I move to Canada? Or get the job first and then move to Canada? I have enough in reserves to only last me a couple of months and I'm not sure how difficult it is to obtain employment. It isn't out of the question to get a starter job in the mean time if I have to.

 

[Sweden]

Hey,

about getting the job - it's up to you and how long you can be in Canada. Not sure how difficult it is to get a job. You can also do both!

One plan for you could be to start the PR process, and keep on working in the US. Once you have your PR - then go and "land" ( do the process, it takes around 30 min at any border), and then you can return to the US... you don't need to stay once you have landed ( if you want to maintain your status as PR you should stay 3 years out of 5 so you have a margin!), so then you can return to the US, keep on working a bit while looking for a job in Canada.

Or - you can land as a PR, start looking for a job, take anything to start with, and keep on looking at that time. You can't apply for jobs until you have your PR, but you can start looking for jobs, and seeing a bit how is the market for your line of work, in the area where your gf is... it will give you an idea of your options... as you have a good 6 to 9 months as a minimum to get a PR, you have time to plan, prepare, and change plans depending as well how difficult it becomes to be away from each other etc. AS you are from a visa-exempt country, you can also go to Canada as a tourist before getting a PR, settle there, start looking for work, and wait out the remaining time until your PR is granted - a little time to prepare your application until your PR is granted...

Just food for thoughts - good luck with your decisions!
Sweden

 

[OhCanadiana]

Hello and welcome Wexton

In addition to Sweden's suggestions, consider exploring the NAFTA program. If you are eligible and find a job, it's a pretty fast way for an American to get a work permit for Canada (and vice versa) - you can apply at the border point of entry.

Based on what you describe of your job, you may have a few options including inter-company transferee (described page 182 of [color]blue]http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/manuals/fw/fw01-eng.pdf) if your company has offices in Canada in the area you want to be. In the pages just prior to that there's also a list of professions that you could get a visa (again at the point-of-entry) with a job offer at in a new (to you) company. Depends on the specifics of your role (management consulting is on there, as is psychology so you have some options).

Going back to your initial post, if you do decide to get married, then family class sponsorship would be the easiest / most straight-forward way to get a PR visa. Expect it to take somewhere between 6 months and a year if you apply outland (faster than inland) so plan for that.

Canada doesn't have a fiance visa, so you either need to qualify under family class (spouse, common-law, or conjugal partners) or get a work permit (unless you want to go back to school).

 

[Wexton]

Hello and welcome Wexton

In addition to Sweden's suggestions, consider exploring the NAFTA program. If you are eligible and find a job, it's a pretty fast way for an American to get a work permit for Canada (and vice versa) - you can apply at the border point of entry.

Based on what you describe of your job, you may have a few options including inter-company transferee (described page 182 of [couldn't post link] if your company has offices in Canada in the area you want to be. In the pages just prior to that there's also a list of professions that you could get a visa (again at the point-of-entry) with a job offer at in a new (to you) company. Depends on the specifics of your role (management consulting is on there, as is psychology so you have some options).

Going back to your initial post, if you do decide to get married, then family class sponsorship would be the easiest / most straight-forward way to get a PR visa. Expect it to take somewhere between 6 months and a year if you apply outland (faster than inland) so plan for that.

Canada doesn't have a fiance visa, so you either need to qualify under family class (spouse, common-law, or conjugal partners) or get a work permit (unless you want to go back to school).

Thank you OhCanadiana! That link is a ton of reading, but I fully expected to do some major home work for this. I will look into the NAFTA program. That's a really good idea. There are plenty of companies who have offices in the US and Canada. I'm currently in mortgage servicing management so the options may be limited, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't consider other job options. I'll start putting in a request for a work visa this week in hopes to get that process going. If it fails then my girlfriend and I have talked about getting married. I'll also start looking for jobs closer to the Canadian border as well so it will be easier on us during the waiting process. As you can imagine, having a relationship between a Texan and a Canadian is not easy.

 

[OhCanadiana]

Thank you OhCanadiana! That link is a ton of reading, but I fully expected to do some major home work for this. I will look into the NAFTA program. That's a really good idea. There are plenty of companies who have offices in the US and Canada. I'm currently in mortgage servicing management so the options may be limited, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't consider other job options. I'll start putting in a request for a work visa this week in hopes to get that process going. If it fails then my girlfriend and I have talked about getting married. I'll also start looking for jobs closer to the Canadian border as well so it will be easier on us during the waiting process. As you can imagine, having a relationship between a Texan and a Canadian is not easy.

Oh, Wexton! Don't read the whole thing (there's other manuals that can be worth it once you decide on a path ... but this one really isn't necessary). Just look at the appendices I mentioned around page 182. Just before page 182 is the list of professions so you can see which seem attractive and which you are qualified for and go from there. Starting on page 182 it describes the inter-company transferee option.

Don't get married 'just' for immigration purposes. But, since it sounds you are planning to get married, spousal sponsorship really is the fastest, easiest application path to a PR. And, for working permits, NAFTA is super-fast (can't beat applying at the point of entry)

 

[Wexton]

Oh, Wexton! Don't read the whole thing (there's other manuals that can be worth it once you decide on a path ... but this one really isn't necessary). Just look at the appendices I mentioned around page 182. Just before page 182 is the list of professions so you can see which seem attractive and which you are qualified for and go from there. Starting on page 182 it describes the inter-company transferee option.

Don't get married 'just' for immigration purposes. But, since it sounds you are planning to get married, spousal sponsorship really is the fastest, easiest application path to a PR. And, for working permits, NAFTA is super-fast (can't beat applying at the point of entry)

LOL, I won't read the whole thing I promise. I'll check out the section you pointed me to. I've found the documents I need to fill out in order to apply for a Temporary Work Visa. I plan to complete that packet and send it in this week just to get a head start. If that doesn't work then it will give us time to deeply consider getting married. My girlfriend and I are very much in love, but we don't want to take away the romantic part of getting married just by forcing it early so I can live with her. Then it just becomes a legal arrangement, which we might have to do, but I'd prefer to do it the right way and go through the steps of proposal, being fiances and what not.

I'm also going to start looking for work around the Buffalo, NY area so that I can move closer to her while we wait. That might help me find a company who is participating in NAFTA as well. Thank you both for your advice. I'm glad I found a forum like this with such helpful participants. I'll come back to this thread again if I have questions while I fill out the docs for the TWV.

 

[Wexton]

I am filling out the application to work form #1295 and it has a question under the Details of Intended Work in Canada. "What type of work permit are you applying for?" The options are:

International Experience Canada Program
Live-in Caregiver Program
Open Work Permit
Other
Seasonal Agricultural Work Program

My question is, if I'm not a live-in caregiver or seasonal agricultural worker which choice should I select? I do not have a job offer from a Canadian employer either. Is that an absolute necessity? Or can I apply for the work permit first and then go looking for a job?

 

[OhCanadiana]

I am filling out the application to work form #1295 and it has a question under the Details of Intended Work in Canada. "What type of work permit are you applying for?" The options are:

International Experience Canada Program
Live-in Caregiver Program
Open Work Permit
Other
Seasonal Agricultural Work Program

My question is, if I'm not a live-in caregiver or seasonal agricultural worker which choice should I select? I do not have a job offer from a Canadian employer either. Is that an absolute necessity? Or can I apply for the work permit first and then go looking for a job?

Yes, you need to have a reason to apply for the work permit.

You used to be able to apply for PR as a foreign skilled worker without a job offer, but the program is on hold right now.

As far as I know, your choices now are to apply for a work permit under one of the specific programs, like NAFTA (which also require job offers) or to apply for PR under the skilled worker program (once you have a job offer and once that potential employer has gotten a positive LMO - labor market opinion showing lack of sufficient Canadian talent to take the job).

 

[Wexton]

Yes, you need to have a reason to apply for the work permit.

You used to be able to apply for PR as a foreign skilled worker without a job offer, but the program is on hold right now.

As far as I know, your choices now are to apply for a work permit under one of the specific programs, like NAFTA (which also require job offers) or to apply for PR under the skilled worker program (once you have a job offer and once that potential employer has gotten a positive LMO - labor market opinion showing lack of sufficient Canadian talent to take the job).

Ok it looks like I'll need to just work on getting a job near the border for now. Then I can still go see her on the weekends. I've always thought about going back to school to obtain a Masters, so this might be a good motivator. From what I've read it looks like it's easier to get a student visa then a work permit. Either way as long as our relationship continues to grow we will end up getting married in the future and I'll apply for my PR at that time.

Thank you for all your help and feedback. I'll continue to look for NAFTA jobs as well!

 

[OhCanadiana]

Ok it looks like I'll need to just work on getting a job near the border for now. Then I can still go see her on the weekends. I've always thought about going back to school to obtain a Masters, so this might be a good motivator. From what I've read it looks like it's easier to get a student visa then a work permit. Either way as long as our relationship continues to grow we will end up getting married in the future and I'll apply for my PR at that time.

Thank you for all your help and feedback. I'll continue to look for NAFTA jobs as well!

Good luck - enjoy the journey

 

[AnaMaria]

Ok it looks like I'll need to just work on getting a job near the border for now. Then I can still go see her on the weekends. I've always thought about going back to school to obtain a Masters, so this might be a good motivator. From what I've read it looks like it's easier to get a student visa then a work permit. Either way as long as our relationship continues to grow we will end up getting married in the future and I'll apply for my PR at that time.

Thank you for all your help and feedback. I'll continue to look for NAFTA jobs as well!

Just to be aware that you will need to pay international student fees, which is VERY expensive if you want to pursue study permit option. Other than that though it is not a bad option. You will gain Canadian experience that way, and besides, you will be with her! It may not be applicable to US citizens but Canadian experience is a huge barrier to immigrants in Canada.

 

[Wexton]

Just to be aware that you will need to pay international student fees, which is VERY expensive if you want to pursue study permit option. Other than that though it is not a bad option. You will gain Canadian experience that way, and besides, you will be with her! It may not be applicable to US citizens but Canadian experience is a huge barrier to immigrants in Canada.

Thank you for the extra info AnaMaria! I figured there would be an added student expense. I still have to research more about going for a graduate degree because so far I've read that you have to be a full time student and most graduate level students are not full time. At least not here in the States. We generally work a full time job and obtain graduate degrees on a part time basis.

I'm actually very surprised at how much is involved in trying to become a Canadian. Or maybe it's just my ignorance of taking my current citizenship for granted. In any case I do love my girlfriend very much and I'm willing to work hard to be with her. I won't take it lightly or expect things to happen over night. All the help that has been provided to me on this forum has been outstanding. Thank you all again. I'll keep coming back here as questions arise.