Mikeypm

So this time last year we arrived in Canada to start a new chapter of our life. We had been building up to this move as in 2012 we came over to visit my sister and her family. It was our first time in Canada and we have not had chance to see what else Canada has to offer, but we fell for Vancouver.

Once home we had a lot of discussion on the potential of moving to Vancouver, we felt life was a little stale in the UK and we wanted something different and somewhere new. With that in mind I started to research what we would need to do to make the move happen. Thats when I found BE and I have been on the forum ever since.

CIC had paused FSW1 so I gathered docs ready for it to reopen later in the year only to discover that my occupation was not on the list. So Plan B it was then and fortunately Plan B had been bubbling in the background.

Plan B was to try and find work and move over sooner, I had been networking on LinkedIn, emailing prospective employers and had paid for a Canada Skype calling package.

I decided to miss out the lower positioned people when networking and connected with senior management and VP's which helped as I managed to meet up with one companies UK VP in London, met the owner of one company whilst she was in London attending meetings, a couple of Skype interviews. As a lot of people say its not always easy to get a job whilst in the UK and so I booked a flight to come out for 8 days in March 2013.

During that week I had over 20 meetings with several offers and out of those offers I picked my current company. So at the start of April 2013 my employer applied for an LMO and it took Service Canada till June to respond and then they asked my employer to advertise over an above what had already been done. So the application went back in and Friday 13th September 2013 we got the news we had been waiting for and we had the positive LMO required to head out on a TWP.

We had been waiting months and could not see the house selling without leaving us seriously out of pocket and so found a managing agent to manage the house. We had already figured out the shipper we wanted to use and so called them as soon as we heard back on the LMO. Our stuff left our house on the 25th September and we spent the next fews weeks selling some stuff or giving it away as we only took what we thought was essentials or sentimental and went the groupage route.

The weeks leading up to the 5th October 2013 were a little crazy, getting the pets crates, booking them on our flight, sorting out our flight. We had already found a basement suite in East Van so our accommodation was already sorted.

Possibly not the best idea but I headed out for a few drinks on the Friday night to say goodbye to friends and work colleagues. So I was already tired before the flight, no real sleep on the flight and I was pretty knackered when we got to YVR.

On our arrival we advised the first CBSA agent we got to that we were applying for TWP and SOWP at POE. So I was advised to go through but as it would take some time that my OH should go collect our pets. So I waited for a free CBSA agent in the side hall/area they have for TWP/PR etc. Finally its my turn and the CBSA agent I got obviously had a feral peed on as she was such a lovely person (meanwhile the CBSA agent next her is so nice to the person next to me).

So good start as the CBSA agent is having a bad day before I get to her and then I advise her my OH needs an SOWP and so I have to go find my OH and bring her through with our pets, our dog did not like the flight and so is winhey and so now we were pleasing everyone .

We eventually get the TWP, pay the various fees and my sister was there to meet us so that made life a lot easier getting to our new place.

We were unlucky as the LMO took so long and Service Canada just gave us a year. Which when I have heard or seen so many people get two years kind of feels for whatever reason we got short changed so to speak.

So thats half the essay done lol, that's our journey here and it has been worth the effort as we love it here and we would not want to go back.

So the basement suite we arranged before we got here was through my sister, basically her neighbours were two sisters and there families who had bought a house and decided to split it. The one sister was moving with her family to the sunshine coast and had mentioned to my sister they were looking to rent the basement suite.

We saw it via Skype but I don't think that helped and would warn against sight unseen.

It turns out that it was not a legal basement suite, no sound proofing so we heard absolutely everything, phone calls the bathroom being used. The heating was controlled on a thermostat upstairs so we had to text the remaining sister and family that lived upstairs, it was not ideal.

We wanted to secure somewhere prior to moving and so we had been paying rent since mid July as we did not want to lose the place ( we did not realise the issues till we got there and thought being so close to transit, in east Van and next to my sister and her family). Who said this immigration malarkey was cheap?

So we decided to give it a chance and gave it till Christmas, it did not improve and one day the electrics went out and we then discovered the electrics had been done by an untrained monkey. The other issue we had is the noise level was making my OH's condition worse.

As it took so long for the LMO to come through our life had changed dramatically during the summer of 2013 as my Oh was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. So by the time we moved to Canada I was the bread winner/sole earner and here in Canada I still am. So our initial accommodation was not ideal for my OH's health.

I started work on the 7th October as I wanted to get started asap and the first day was great as work let me go and get my SIN, bank account etc, so a nice easy day to ease myself in.

My OH managed to find a great naturopath and I feel she has made leaps and bounds from where she was the same time last year. Its going to take time for her to get better or at least in a position were she is maybe 80-90 percent back to where she was before she had this condition.

We eventually found a newly built lane way house to rent, its compact but the landlords are great, its a great area, good for transit etc.

Transit were we are is pretty handy and works well and is reasonably priced, my understanding is that if you head out of metro vancouver that transit is not so useable. We would like a car eventually but with one salary coming in we have to balance the budget, so for now we have been using car2go when we need something more flexible than transit.

We have gotten into the hockey and the football here and have been to some cannucks games, whitecaps games. Although we don't have a big budget we have been out and seen a band, went to cirque de soliel, baseball game, street partys, beach days, hung out with my family. We went to Harrison Hot Springs for a nice weekend, had a few meals out etc.

We have and are still loving our time here and the only thing holding us back is this immigration malarkey again. We applied for PR in April, we forgot to put a translation in for my OH's birth certificate and the pack was sent back after they sat on it for several weeks, we sent it back and it got stuck in the backlog of the FSW1 stream re-opening in may and so we only for PER in September. We have applied for a BOWP and SOWP till the PR is processed and have yet to hear on that so we are in limbo on implied status.

My employer applied for an LMO in June to extend my current TWP, it was sent back as Service Canada decided not to process it under the LMO system but under the LMIA which came in to affect after the app got there. Then again in August Service Canada changed one box on the app and sent it back to my employer and my employer filled out the new form and sent back and I have yet to hear on the LMIA.

If anyone is thinking of moving to Canada I will be honest and won't sugar coat it. Its not an easy thing to do, it is expensive, the grass is not greener its just different. But that different grass suits us and it may not suit you.

The headaches with the LMO last year ,the LMIA this year, the PR app, the BOWP app (supposedly takes 7 days according to CIC's website if it is an online app ) still has not put us off. Its frustrating but if we get PR we are staying here and putting down roots

Hopeful the next Canniversary is not as nerve racking and apologies for waffling, hoping in the waffle somewhere is info that could be of some help to other forum users

ann m

Best wishes to you both. Hope it all pans out well. Bureaucracy is designed to drive us all quite bonkers I think.

I feel like you have been on BE for way longer than a couple of years.

grassman

Best wishes to you also, Mike. Immigration is definitely one of the most stressful situations I have encountered also. Hope it's all up from here.

G

Mikeypm

Thanks for your kind words, it does feel like I have been here longer

Yes bureaucracy I think is sent to send us nuts

Mikeypm

Thanks for the best wishes. I see it as one of those bumps in the road that's life and so hopefully from here it's nice smooth highway miles

dishwashing

Your resilience has always been impressive, Mike. Sorry to hear of the troubles and another well wishing from here!

Mikeypm

Thanks

Resilience helps as I felt a little under the weather and so went to the doctors today and it turns out I have a bladder and kidney infection. So anti biotics and a couple of days rest

Geordie Lass

Hang in there Mike. Its so stressful.

As you know I have everything crossed for you. Hoping you get PR soon and when you do paaarrrtttyyyyy.

Mikeypm

Thanks

ExKiwilass

Hello Mike. I had chronic fatigue in my early 20's, it is and can be very debilitating, I lost a year of my life in recovery. I have a lot of empathy for your OH and you as her partner. Hang in there x. Here's hoping you get to settle down in that coquitlam house soon.

Mikeypm

Thanks for your kind words it's really appreciated

Shard

Good stuff. Thanks for the update.

Mikeypm

Thanks Shard

SchnookoLoly

Best wishes for another happy year Mikey!

Mikeypm

Thanks Schnookololy