Usmaan.W

Hi All,

As the title suggests I've made the decision to move to Canada. I would really appreciate you reading my post and giving any advice/direction to help make the process as smooth as possible.

OK - so firstly about me; I am currently 25 years of age, graduated as a Chemical Engineer but have ended up in IT currently working as a Senior Software Test Consultant. Next year (Aug 2018) I get married to a lovely lady who happens to be a pre-school teacher for children with special needs. We have decided we both want to have a go at moving to Canada and settling on a permanent basis.

Due to my job I have shortlisted 'Ottawa' as my number one place to relocate to as it's regarded as the Silicon Valley of North America. Upon moving we plan to take with us about £50k to help us start off.

So my questions are (apologies in advance if these have been asked many times before!):

1) Is there anyone who works in tech especially in QA/Software Testing who can give me an insight into the market in Ottawa or surrounding areas?

2) I have completed the online eligibility calculator and the score came back as over 450... what are the realistic chances of getting selected in the pool?

3) Is there any other Visa that we would be eligible for? From what I have read the IEC Visa is for those without dependents. I have no children but my wife would be my dependent I think?

4) I understand having a job offer is like a diamond! How is it possible to apply for jobs online etc whilst being in the UK - would I need to specify I have no Visa and not in the country? Or is it best to make a trip and attend interviews? I just don't see a company employing if I don't have the Visa already.

5) Is Ottawa a good choice? I understand some remote locations find it hard to fill jobs so could it be best to move to one of these locations first and then relocate once I have PR?

Any additional advice would be so much appreciated! Thank you all in Advance!

Uzzy

christmasoompa

Hi, and welcome to BE.

1. Not a clue! But others will be able to advise you on that I'm sure.

2. At 450, very good. The CIC website has the minimum points level of every draw ever done, the lowest it's gone to is 415 for a FSW application iirc, but most are around the 450-480 mark.

3. No, you've misunderstood. IEC can take dependents (even children), so you could take your spouse. Once you've got a 'skilled' job, she could get an open work permit for the same duration as your IEC, or if she's aged 30 or under herself, she could also apply for her own IEC. Bear in mind she can only go as your dependent if she's your spouse i.e. you're married or have lived together as husband and wife for a year or more. Do also look in to her job in Canada - she'll need to jump through quite a lot of hoops to work as a teacher, and the chances of her finding a job as a teacher are remote at best (although she may have more chance than most given her work with special needs children - might be worth a new thread with a relevant title to ask those in the know about that though). Search the forum and read the Wiki article on teaching in Canada for more info.

4. If you're on an IEC or have PR via EE, you don't need a job offer to get a visa. So as you're eligible for both of those it seems, forget needing a job offer as that will make things much harder for you.

5. See no. 1!

HTH, best of luck.

Former Lancastrian

Short answers to some questions.

1. No idea about IT jobs but Kitchener/Waterloo has a lot of IT business as well as the usual major cities. Others will chime in on this.

2. 450 on the CRS score in most cases would get you an invite however a few rounds have been 450 plus
See this link for previous rounds
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration...-previous.html

3. The IEC is an excellent way to get a job for 2 years and yes your wife could come and also get a job provided you were employed in skill level 0, A or B. Canada is not for everybody so you could leave at anytime during the 2 year work permit on the IEC.

4. Applying for jobs from the UK IMHO can be futile and frustrating as you don't have the work permit in hand. With no legal status to work most would ignore applications thats not to say it cant be done. A 2 to 3 week job hunting trip in Canada might yield better results.

5. Once you have PR status you could move anywhere though be careful if applying through a Provincial Nomination if that became a route for a PR application.

Usmaan.W

3. No, you've misunderstood. IEC can take dependents (even children), so you could take your spouse. Once you've got a 'skilled' job, she could get an open work permit for the same duration as your IEC, or if she's aged 30 or under herself, she could also apply for her own IEC. Bear in mind she can only go as your dependent if she's your spouse i.e. you're married or have lived together as husband and wife for a year or more. Do also look in to her job in Canada - she'll need to jump through quite a lot of hoops to work as a teacher, and the chances of her finding a job as a teacher are remote at best. Search the forum and read the Wiki article on teaching in Canada for more info.


Seeing we are both under 30 and yes will be married do you think the IEC would be the best way to go? And can the IEC lead to PR? As I understand it is for 2 years and the plan is to settle permanently. Yes I've read about the teaching prospects and there are many hoops - but seeing she has transferable skills I think she's more than happy to adapt to the situation and work towards the qualifications needed for her role in Canada once she's there.

Thank you for your reply!

Usmaan.W

I will look into these locations as they have been mentioned a few times. The plan is to move Winter 2018 so have a little time. By reading your post it seems the IEC may be an easier route. My job falls into Skill Level B.

Thank you for the reply!

christmasoompa

Just bear in mind that if you want to move at the end of next year, you need to get an IEC visa under this year's program - there is a quota of visas each year and they will have run out by then, and the 2019 program won't open until around the end of 2018 (so by the time you've applied, waited to get selected, then had your application processed etc, you'd be looking at spring 2019 at the earliest before you could move).

So do look in to IEC sooner rather than later, and get your app in asap if that's the way you decide to go.

Good luck.

P.S. 'The Silicon Valley of North America'......? Wouldn't that just be Silicon Valley?

Usmaan.W

Issue is the wedding is planned for August 2018 - from what you have said it might not be possible getting the application in for this year as we may end up having to apply individually and much rather send off one application. So in this case most likely have everything prepped and ready to go as soon as the next round opens in 2018!

Haha! In relation to the 'Silicon Valley' comment - think I need to browse more trusted websites while I do my research!

christmasoompa

Why would you rather apply together? It would actually be much better to apply separately anyway, as it's a lottery system so if you both applied you'd have two chances rather than one.

Then if one of you gets selected and gets an invitation to apply, they can get the IEC (remember you have a year to move once you've got it, so that works with your timescale). Then once married (I assume you don't qualify as common-law spouses?), the other can get an open work permit.

That's what I would do anyway!

Usmaan.W

Makes sense - need to look more in depth into this Visa. I am getting contradicting info though - the CIC website says your spouse cannot obtain a work permit if you obtain an IEC visa and would need to be assessed individually? Link is here .. Will my spouse or common-law partner get a work permit under International Experience Canada to come with me?

christmasoompa

That's because they don't automatically get a work permit just from you having an IEC, so it's no. 2 in that link that you need to look at. As mentioned above, they only get a spousal open work permit once you have a 'skilled' job, so if you were (for example) just going to work in a restaurant as a waiter, they wouldn't get a work permit. All spouses of skilled workers on work permits are eligible for spousal open work permits, so it's not specific to IEC, hence the info in that link.

For more info, see here - https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration...y-11-2013.html

HTH.

Usmaan.W

Thank you for your response really appreciate it. Seems like the way to go is obtaining an IEC and the spouse coming along as a visitor until I secure a skilled job - unless we both happen to get the IEC visa then there would be no issue I guess.

The IEC Visa - would companies favor this for skilled worker jobs? Don't want to decrease my chances of skilled work if this visa is discriminated against by more corporate employers.

The IEC also supports the skilled worker Visa by helping to obtain additional points - after 2 years would I need to leave Canada to apply for the Visa to stay permanently or could this be done whilst working on the IEC?

Thank you for the patience!

dbd33

I'm a contract programmer and the operator of a consulting agency. My, not wholly innocent, take on this is that the way to go is:

- get IEC
- take a contract
- rent a place to live
- there's only one Silicon Valley and it's in America
- there are a good number of computing jobs in Kitchener-Waterloo and in the GTA
- there are computing jobs in Ottawa but it's a government town, even contract jobs sometimes require citizenship/security clearance, lots of permanent jobs do
- take a contract where you can get one (well maybe not Regina but 'most anywhere) Foot in Door is what counts.

I say "get IEC" because it's relatively quick, cheap and easy. I say "take a contract" because there's little risk for the "employer", they're less fussed about background because, if you can't do the job, you're easily gone. otoh, if you can do the job they may hire you permanently. If you take a contract and hate the location or the work there's no resume damage, it was just a contract. Similarly, a rented house isn't a tie like a purchased one. After six months of contracting and renting you'll know much better what you really want to do.

I think it's equally easy/difficult to get a contract in Canada from Leeds as it is from Toronto. People are routinely hired from India or from the US and then turn up not knowing they should have brought a coat. What's needed is a resume offering what the client wants, an agent trusted by the client to keep the claims on the resume within reasonable distance of the truth, and the ability to talk coherently on the phone even though it's the middle of the night where you are.

JamesM

You've got a good level of starting funds and are well educated.

My only query is I'd further research Ottawa. It's quite a small place and in my opinion known more for government jobs than tech jobs.

Vancouver or the Toronto-Kitchener/Waterloo area will probably have more tech jobs.

I'll wrap up by saying Ottawa might have cheaper real estate and a better commute than the latter too but in my experience it's a pretty dull city.

Best of luck.

waltsdog

Two things to be aware of for Ottawa:
1. A lot of Ottawa jobs will require French, while this may not affect you directly in IT it might affect your partner. Government jobs require you to be at minimum PR and more often a Citizen.
2. If you haven't visited Ottawa in the winter then you really need to do that before you jump in. I love it here but we're in the -30s today with windchill.

Usmaan.W

Thank you for the response. Seems like the majority on here recommend me going for the IEC and then PR once I have Canadian work experience. Seems like an easier route and less paperwork (for the IEC at least)!

Ottawa seemed like a tech hub from the numerous articles I've read but it shows it was worthwhile posting on here as Waterloo seems like a good alternative! I'm pretty flexible with location so it's no issue me moving around if one location doesn't seem to be the right fit.

Contracting may be the way to go too! Will need to look into the possibilities of this as need to understand how tax works etc and technically your self-employed so this may not count towards the experience for the CEC Visa.