Canada: Immigration Advice

NoelAPM wrote: »

Hey, If you get a chance can you advise on the post i made recently?

Found here; http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056568969

Hi,

You have two questions.

1. Do you send the fee payment with the application?
NO. When applying for the IEC program through the Canadian High Commission in London, there are 2 steps to the process. First, you must be accepted into the IEC program. If you receive an email of acceptance, THEN you pay the application fee. The email will contain the instructions.
The good news is that this fee will be refunded if your work permit application is not approved. The instruction guide you were reading was for the 2nd set of documents that you only submit AFTER you have been accepted into the program.

2. What proof should you provide to show you have legal status in Australia?
As I am unfamiliar with Australian immigration procedures I can only compare it to what would be appropriate for Canada. When you arrived in AUS, did you receive a work permit or a special visa or stamp in your passport that indicated your status under the Working Holiday Visa program? If yes, a copy of any document or stamp pertaining to this is what you should include to prove your legal status in AUS.

I hope that helps.

rjessome

NoelAPM wrote: »

Thank you. Much appreciated!

Required Documents

Set 1 – to be reviewed by the IEC section
Set 2 – to be reviewed by the Visa Section
The Application Package that you send to The High Commission of Canada to the UK in London consists of two sets of documents that have to be submitted together.

It does say you submit them together tho..

Yes, you are right. So much for my first answer! I have to be honest, IEC is something I normally encourage applicants to do themselves, without hiring me. It's pretty straight forward and easy. 99% of my work is the more complicated stuff of permanent residency and dealing with inadmissibility issues.

But I was right about the fee. You only pay it after you receive the email that you've been accepted.

The IEC charges a Participation Fee of $150 CDN (about £90), but you will now pay this fee by electronic bank transfer to the Government of Canada only after you have been notified by email that your application has been accepted.

NoelAPM wrote: »

Yea it is straight forward. But the website Definitely has conflicting info.

Thanks for your time. Hopefully ill be arranging Permanent residency with you in the near future.

I know it's confusing sometimes. I spend a great deal of time at the beginning of every application just educating clients about what this stuff means. The language is ambiguous and their intentions are not always clear.

You're welcome. Good luck in Canada. I hope you like it here!

And just a final piece of advice. Pay attention to the skill level of any job you get here. The higher the skill level, the more options available to apply for permanent residency to Canada. There are also several different provincial programs available depending upon which province you settle in. And the best opportunities are available in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan at the moment.

123bar56 wrote: »

hi travelling to canada 1st of June however i may not have my working visa on time.Is flagpoling the best way to get around this ie enter canada on a holiday visa and once you receive working visa cross boarder into USA then come immediately back thus activating your working visa.Is this method accepted or can it cause you some trouble.thanks in advance

Are you applying in the IEC program or for a regular work permit? In either case, yes, "flagpoling" should work for you. The only danger would be if you had an outstanding warrant in the US because they will look you up on their system. I'm assuming that's not going to be an issue. Just ensure you have the proper documents with you for your program when you flagpole.

The safest bet (and I like to be cautious) is to wait until you have the necessary approvals before entering Canada at all. When you enter as a visitor at the port of entry to Canada, the officer admitting you will ask about your intentions regarding your stay in Canada. If you advise them that you are waiting for approval of some type of work permit, they may limit your visitor permit giving you a time limit to get it done. You can't lie to them because they have access to the same system as the overseas missions and can see that you have an application in process. If you do lie to them they could determine that you have misrepresented yourself and then bar you from entering Canada for up to two years, putting you back on plane home. That's pretty extreme but it would be easier if you just had all of your documents with you at the time of your first entry.

Hope that helps.

rjessome

Niamh84 wrote: »

Hi really appreciate you giving the time to give advice so I dont want to ask too many questions. Myself and my boyfriend are currently in Toronto and applying for second year IEC. But we want to apply for permanent residency in the near future. Ive been looking at both the skilled worker visa and provincial nominee programme. We are both working in administrative jobs. Is it going to be mandatory to get sponsored by an employer for either programme? Are you then locked into that particular job? Im hoping if one of us can get sponsored the other can apply as common law partner. Thanks in advance. I know its probably a detailed question.

Hi. Your situation does require a detailed response and full assessment. However, I will try to answer as best I can using the general rules. The provincial nominee program DOES require the support of the employer. However, I would be concerned about exactly what positions you are working in as you only describe them as administrative. To be eligible for a PNP (provincial nominee program) your job must be in a skill level 0, A or B as defined by Service Canada's skills Matrix. These generally mean jobs requiring technical/academic education (degree or trade) or training or must be in a supervisory/management role. You also must have a minimum of two years experience in the same position to be eligible to apply in the PNP. The purpose of the PNPs in various provinces is so that the regional government can have a say in the immigration mix, supporting the permanent residence of applicants who bring needed skills and experience. In the General or Strategic Occupation streams the application requires employer support. So YES, the person sponsored by the employer would be required to stay with that employer at least until they become a permanent resident of Canada.

Some provinces have programs that accept people working in lower skilled positions. BUT you would need to be working in those provinces for a minimum amount of time before being eligible to apply. Each program is different because it depends on the needs of that particular province. Google any provinces name along with "Provincial Nominee Program" and you can read about the requirements of each. The beauty of the PNPs is that you are able to extend your work permits to remain working in Canada until permanent residence is approved. That means you bypass Service Canada and the labour market opinion (LMO) process. It's also a direct path to permanent residence and the assessment factors at the federal level are different from that of a regular skilled worker. The downside is they are BIG applications that can be expensive depending upon whether a province charges an application fee and the work required to complete a solid application.

Other options may also be available under the Federal Skilled Worker program but it depends on your backgrounds and whether or not an employer is willing to offer a permanent position in a SKILLED position. A points assessment is involved with a minimum passmark. However, this program does NOT allow you to extend your work permits to remain in Canada until processing is complete. The employer would have to go through the LMO process with Service Canada. And that does tie you to one employer as well.

If permanent residence to Canada is the goal you must do some strategic planning. PNP is wonderful. Really, it is the BEST way to apply if it is available to you. Yes, you may have to commit to an employer for a couple of years BUT you have to look at the end goal. My advice would be to research various PNPs. You may even have to move to a province that has better programs. But keep the end goal in mind.

Hope that helps.

rjessome

token101 wrote: »

What are the odds of getting an LMO in Canada once the IEC expires if you don't have a trade but a degree only? Is it a lot of hassle/expense for employers involved? From what I can gather, most of the 'professional' type jobs are based in Toronto, there seems to no jobs for marketing/business jobs in Calgary/Edmonton/Ottawa or even Saskatoon.

Thanks for answering the questions, no harm in a bit of free advertising if you're giving something for nothing either

Hi. This is a question I get asked all the time. But put the focus on yourself, your skills and abilities. The wonderful thing about IEC is it gives you a chance to PROVE your worth to employers. It's an open permit so you are free to find a job and employer that suits you. You are also free to be promoted and moved around within a company. Employers are often intimidated by the LMO process especially for untested workers. BUT what I see is that once they "fall in love" with an employee who has shown their worth, they will bend over backwards to keep them, including doing LMOs, PNPs, etc. So look at it like YOUR opportunity to show them how valuable you are to their business. No company wants to lose a key employee.

All the professional jobs are NOT in Toronto! While it is Canada's largest city it is by no means the only place to find professional employment! Cities all across Canada employ professionals and there are plenty of opportunities in ANY Canadian city. Think about it. All companies, no matter what their end product or service, require skilled administrative, financial and sales management. Sorry but I get really annoyed when I hear people say "all the jobs are in Toronto". Cities like Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, etc. ALSO need professionals.

Hope that helps.

rjessome

retalivity wrote: »

In my experience, difficult if you are working for a large company. Its the whole 'prove there isnt a canadian who can do the same job as you' argument. Depending on your skill level & experience, you might be fine, but for most people working for large companies, there is no chance (myself included: I work for one of the banks) - easier to get a canadian in than go through all the paperwork.
I think if you're working with a smaller employer, and are on more personal terms with the owner/managers, you'd have a far better chance. I know a coupld of people who are getting their boss to sort out the LMO for them in a roundabout way.

True! And to add to this, SMALLER cities/towns struggle more with attracting Canadians. You have to be strategic in your thinking and planning. Every town in Canada has a bank. But that doesn't mean that there are plenty of QUALIFIED Canadians in every town willing to work at them. Success in immigration is all about long term planning.

m.j.w wrote: »

Hi rjessome, thanks for taking the time out to do this. Im in the last year of my apprenticeship as an industrial electrician. Im finished in December and im hoping to travel to canada in ealry 2013 (earlier the better). My question is could I apply for an IEC visa now and then travel in December or is there a certain time limit to when you must use the visa by. Also is this the best visa for me to apply for or should I go for the skilled worker visa. Cheers

You can apply for the IEC now. They typically give you one year from the date of approval to travel. If you meet the requirements of the IEC, I might apply for that. Who knows if you will like it in Canada? You might not! Test the waters first if you can, find an employer willing to sponsor you through a PNP or with Arranged Employment Opinion (AEO). That will support any permanent residence application. And IEC permits are OPEN meaning you can work for whomever you want wherever you want. LMO based work permits (skilled or not) are CLOSED meaning you can only work for 1 employer at their location as approved.

Just want to clarify some terms. VISA is a travel document required to enter Canada. Citizens of Ireland (and the UK) are visa exempt, meaning that they do not require this travel document to board a plane and enter Canada. What you are issued when you arrive in Canada is a PERMIT (study, work, visit). So the VISA allows you to enter (if you need one) and the PERMIT says what you can do when you get here. Citizens of Ireland and the UK are applying for PERMITS.

Dub-girl88 wrote: »

At the moment I'm in Australia on a one year working holiday visa. It says when applying for a working holiday visa to Canada that you must have lived in Ireland for the past 3 years. Does this mean I wont get the visa?

No. Read the frequently asked questions regarding the IEC program.

Residency Requirements
What does “3 years habitual residency requirement” mean?
This means that that a candidate’s habitual residence (i.e. physically residing/living) must be in the UK for a period of at least three years full-time directly prior to applying to the IEC. An exception can be made if the candidate has temporarily resided in a foreign country for studies or short-term work, but the time spent outside the UK must not exceed 18 months cumulative over the three previous years.

rjessome

GamesDontSuck wrote: »

Hi guys,
Didnt want to start a new thread as my question is advice about getting a job in Canada. So why not ask here

I am late 20's and just a regular joe. No college. No trade. No skills. Just the "other guy" I guess. Whats my chances of getting a job in Canada?

You state that you have no skills. Does that mean you have never worked at anything? Come on. Employers here are no different than employers in Ireland. They look for at least some experience and a positive attitude. If you don't have that, then your chances are almost nil of getting a job in Canada.

rjessome

token101 wrote: »

I do have one other question actually if you don't mind answering if you know. There's a programme called Career Bridge that's for recent immigrants to Canada looking for Canadian experience:

https://www.careerbridge.ca/en/home

It's mostly internships as far as I know, but would you know if it is open to IEC applicants? I've sent emails and even asked on Twitter but got no response, which makes me think the answer is no! I know there are other placement type programmes that are only open to Federal Skilled Workers, but it doesn't say anywhere on this that IEC applicants are excluded. And even in the little questionnaire IEC applicants would seem to tick the boxes.

If you have any info I'd be grateful, thanks

Hi,

I looked at this website and I think I found your answer in their FAQs.

Who is eligible for Career Edge Organization’s paid internship programs?

• recent graduates from accredited Canadian colleges and universities who do not have significant work experience in their chosen field, and are looking for a paid internship within a non-regulated business function including Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Business, Information Technology, Engineering, Operations and Sales.
• graduates with self-declared disabilities from accredited Canadian colleges and universities who do not have significant work experience in their chosen field, and are looking for a paid internship within a non-regulated business function including Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Business, Information Technology, Engineering, Operations and Sales.
• internationally qualified professionals who have been in Canada for less than three years, are legally able to work in Canada, have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree with Canadian equivalency assessment and do not have Canadian work experience in their chosen professional field.

So it seems to me that a person arriving with an IEC permit might be eligible but there is no guaranteed placement AND you MUST have your credentials professionally assessed through one of the approved assessment organizations. But the key is that you must be IN Canada to apply.

Hope that helps.

Roxanne

fonzy72 wrote: »

Hi rjessome ,

I hope you have a trick up your sleeve for this one and thanks for all the great advice thus far.
My partner and I are heading to Calgary in a few months. I have the IEC visa she has no visa as she is over 35 and does not qualify for the federal skilled worker visa. I know she can come with me and not work, which we can financially afford but my fear is that she'll go crazy with nothing to do everyday.

So the questions I have are many, if you wouldn't mind answering any of them I'd really appreciate it.

Do we need to apply for the temporary resident visa from this side for her.?

If she applies for the open work permit from this side, what are her chances of getting it on grounds of stir crazy ness?!

She used to work for a multinational here for many years, is it a good idea to apply with them from this side? If she is not successful, is she gonna get stopped crossing the border and sent home?

She would also qualify for the PNP as do I but you need to work in that trade first, is there anyway around that for her or should I switch my visa as soon as I have worked the appropriate number of months.

We are registered as common law partners, if that's of any help. I just want to be as transparent as possible as we do want to stay long term but I don't want either of us to get stopped from the initial experience.

Sorry for all the questions, as I said any help is better than no help.

Thanks

Hi,

I will do my best to answer.

First of all, as I've explained in a previous post, people from the UK and Ireland are visa exempt for Canada. A visa is a travel document confirming that you will be allowed entry into a country. It is used mainly to board airplanes. If you are no visa exempt to Canada, no airline will let you board a flight to Canada because they will have to return you to your point of origin at THEIR cost.

1. As soon as your partner tries to enter Canada as a visitor, that act itself is an "application" to become a temporary resident. Assuming she is an Irish or UK citizen, she does not require a visa to travel to Canada.

2. No chance whatsoever for her to be able to get an open work permit if you are on an IEC permit.

3. If the company in Ireland has an office in Calgary that requires someone with her skill set AND they are not able to find a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who can fit the requirements for the job, they could apply for an LMO (Labour Market Opinion) to hire her. If she is still working for this company in a management position and they want to transfer her to the office in Calgary, she "may" be eligible to come and work as an intra-company transferee. That would require further study that I cannot provide on an internet forum for general information.

4. Part of qualifying for the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP) is that she must have an employer in Alberta willing to support her application by offering her a full-time, permanent job in a skill level 0, A or B position. Unless she has that (and you too) she does NOT qualify for AINP. There is no way around that. However, if you are supported by an employer for AINP and approved, then you can change your work permit to a closed permit (only work for one employer) and she would be eligible to apply for an open work permit as your dependent common-law partner.

5. Being registered as common-law partners does not help. But it doesn't hurt either. The requirement to be considered common-law in Canada is residing together in a conjugal (marriage like) relationship for 12 consecutive months with the intent to remain together in this relationship.

Overall, in order for your partner to be eligible to work in Canada, she requires an employer with an LMO who is willing to hire her or you would need to switch your permit to one that is LMO based or AINP based. She can volunteer BUT there are specific requirements for that. She can ONLY volunteer at a company or organization where the work is done mainly by unpaid volunteers. An example would be a food bank or homeless shelter. She cannot volunteer to do work that would normally be paid. So she could not volunteer as an accountant for a company that doesn't normally have volunteers doing that work. I hope you understand what I mean.

Best of luck.

Roxanne

ppink wrote: »

Roxanne can I just ask you what percentage of LMO's get turned down? I was offered a job by a company who have applied for an LMO for me. The lawyers gave me a timeline of May/June but I am wondering what are the chances of it being negative?

Hi,

I'm sure there are statistsics somewhere about that but I don't have them. But the easy answer is 100% approval if there is a genuine need for the worker and the employer meets or exceeds the criteria. And 100% refusal if there is not a genuine need or the employer doesn't meet the criteria.

I don't mean to be cheeky (well maybe a little) but each application is considered on it's own merits. So statistics of approval/refusal rates are a lot of junk because they can't factor this into the numbers.

If the application is well prepared AND there is a genuine need AND the employer meets the criteria, the application should be approved. If any of these fall short, then it will be refused.

Good luck.

Roxanne