JimmyV

Hi all, this is my first post in this forum. I've ended up here many times through Google search, but never actually registered until now.

Okay,so I'll explain a little. I'm a British citizen with a wife and child. A few months ago, we decided enough was enough and are now actively seeking to emigrate to Canada. We've done as much research as possible into it and as I understand it, I am able to be accepted into Canada providing I reach the 67 point mark for the immigration system. After self-assessing myself several times, I've come to the points below:

English Skills: Need to head to Canada to take the test. At least level 7 required, so minimum would be 16 points.

Education: I have a BTEC Level 3 National Diploma which I believe counts as post-secondary for 2 years and would be 19 points.

Experience: I've worked as a Finance Analyst for 7 years. After looking up my NOC, I fall in category B which counts as 15 points.

Age: I'm 31, so that counts as 12 Points.

Arranged Employment: I have nothing to put here. I have no job offer and have never worked in Canada so this counts as 0 points.

Adaptability: The only thing I could count here is my wife who is also a British citizen who would need to take the CLB test. Providing she passes level 4 (no doubt she will), that would count as 5 points.


So adding everything together, that comes to a minimum of 67 points - without a job or job offer.

I understand that I will HAVE to go to Canada and take the English skills test and achieve at least CLB level 7 and my wife will have to achieve at least level 4. I also understand that my education credentials will have to be assessed too.

So, assuming that all of it goes ahead and meet the criteria, is it as simple as starting up the process and getting on with it?

Also, is there an easier way to emigrate to Canada? i.e Just fly over there and go find a job, or search the Canadian Job Bank.

Is it also worth noting that I have a relative who lives in Canada? She is my second-cousins daughter. (I assume not, but you never know)

Finally, does anybody have any tips or advice on the whole emigration process, like what I should and shouldn't do, or things which will greatly increase my chances of being accepted?

For those of you who have gotten this far in the post, seriously thank you for sticking with me

christmasoompa

Hi, and welcome to BE.

Erm.....no. Sorry! That's the first step, you need to score over 67 (and meet the other Federal Skilled Worker criteria i.e. work experience, proof of funds, language, etc) to be eligible to enter the Express Entry pool. However, it's a two stage application, so first you enter the pool, but once in the pool of applicants, only those scoring highly enough are selected and given an Invitation to Apply for PR.

So although scoring 67 or above is great, it's not enough on it's own to get you Canadian PR. You'll need to check your score on the Comprehensive Ranking System for Express Entry as well, to give you an idea you'll need to be scoring above approx 460-480 as a rough guide. That scoring system is here - http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigra...d/crs-tool.asp

Nope. You can take IELTS in the UK. You can assume maximum points as a native speaker, with a bit of practice testing.

Sounds about right to me, you can search the forum to see what others with BTEC's have been given in their ECA's though.

Yep, all sounds good.

Yes to the last bit, no to the first - see above, you'd just take the IELTS exam in the UK.

It is, except that as above you'll just be in the Express Entry pool after you apply, and depending on your CRS score you will either get an ITA quite quickly, or you could be sat in the pool for ages waiting for an ITA, or you might be in the pool for a year without an ITA and then your profile will just expire and you'll have to reapply. But if you check your CRS score it should give you an indication of which of those is likely to happen to you, hopefully the first one! If you're scoring a lot less than 460ish, then you will need to look at other ways to get your points score up, such as a job offer.

That would result in a Temporary Work Permit, and whilst a lot of people do go via that route, they're usually people that don't have the option of applying for PR without a job offer.

Getting a Temp Work Permit is actually likely to be far more onerous, because not only do you need a job offer to get one, you also need something called a LMIA. This is something that the employer has to apply for, at a cost to them of $1000, to prove that they have advertised the job across Canada for a number of weeks, and been unable to find a Canadian willing, or able, to do the job. As you can imagine, it's tough to find an employer prepared to go through the paperwork/cost/hassle of that unless you have specialist skills.

It's also not really going to be any quicker, as the LMIA can take several months, and of course you'd have less security than if you went on PR (on a TWP you're tied to your sponsoring employer so if you get made redundant or similar it can be very tricky). So if you are eligible for PR (depending on your CRS score), then that would be preferable usually.

Too far removed to be of any use unfortunately!

There is loads of useful info in the Wiki and on the forum, have a search and you'll find lots of tips.

HTH a bit, best of luck.

JimmyV

Wow! That is a massive amount of information. Simple incredible

So I headed over to the CRS tool and came back at 410 points. After some working out, I managed to figure out if I were able to gain 3 years of skilled work experience, that score would jump up to 471 (possibly just enough).

The one thing I'm struggling to understand is how I would actually be able to get a work permit and live in Canada for 3 years. As of now, I have applied for several jobs in the field I am most talented in - which may be worth pointing out isn't the field I am qualified in.

Like any other country, I'm guessing they don't take too kindly to just going over there, looking for a job for a few years and not returning, but it seems bizarre that they ask if you have worked in Canada before.

christmasoompa

OK, so that's not enough currently (since EE started in Jan 2015, the lowest score it's ever gone to is 450). But it's not too far off, so at that level personally I'd apply anyway in the hope that points drop and you get an ITA.

Yes, but if you were going to Canada on a work permit, then you'd get an extra 600 points for the job offer and LMIA anyway, so wouldn't need to wait 3 years as you'd then be scoring over 1000 as soon as you got there, which would mean you'd get an ITA straight away.

Have you read the Job Hunting section of the Wiki? Put simply, you need to get out there and job hunt in person, Canadians just don't do online applications really, it's all about personal contact. It's a good idea to plan a recce trip anyway before spending tens of thousands on moving, so you could combine that with job hunting and hope you come back with that all important job offer.

It's no issue to go over and job hunt, that's fine. You'd need to return whilst you wait for the LMIA to be processed anyway, so you'd job hunt, then go back out on a TWP when you get a positive LMIA (hopefully!).

And the reason that they ask if you've ever worked in Canada before is that if you had, you'd potentially be eligible for another visa route - the Canadian Experience Class. People that have worked in Canada for a year or more in a skilled job are also eligible to apply for PR under that route, hence the question.

HTH!

Siouxie

If I could add to Christmasoompa's excellent post, it would still be worth entering the EE pool if you have 410 points as Ontario, for example, look for candidates to invite for PNP from those with points over 400, who can show an interest in the Province. (You either have to select 'all Provinces' or the specific Province when completing the EE application).

OINP-Ontario Express Entry: Human Capital Priorities

R I C H

I'm not so sure it's quite that black and white. As an employer and employee here I've only ever dealt with applications online. I currently have online ads running for 25 positions and will shortlist by covering letter and resumes that are submitted electronically - 360 so far in under a week.

Having said that, overseas applications are unlikely to have much chance in succeeding, unless the role is highly specialized or is temporary/seasonal where an IEC visa holder would fit the bill.

christmasoompa

Maybe not, but that's the general advice always given for Canada. As you say, it might be different for those 'in country' who are work authorised and have Canadian work experience, but to get anywhere it's usually advised that those from the UK travel out to try and network and find a job that way.

JimmyV

I think I'm going to have to go down that road. Once I get into the Express Entry pool, that would be the best time to head out to Canada and get myself known?

Also, out of curiosity, does the amount of funds you can prove you have affect the CRS score at all? i.e having the equivalent of $50,000CAD boosts you score more than if you only had the equivalent of $25,000CAD.

Former Lancastrian

Funds dont affect CRS scores you just have to meet whatever the amount is. You don't get extra points for having a boat load of cash.

Engineer_abroad

unless you have enough to go on an investment type visa and then you can buy PR. Cough 'Quebec investor program' cough.