Hi all

We - me, OH, daughter 13 & son 12 - have been lurking on this site for about 2 years now - decided to bite the bullet and send my first post.

Been going through the process for the past 3 years. I took our passports down to London for the PR to be put in last Thursday - got to go back in two weeks to collect them

Anybody else in the same position as us - nervous won't be able to sell the house in time to go?

I have a few questions, but will post them separately when I find out if I'm doing this right!

Love to hear from someone

HI AND WELCOME....there, it does work....post your questions away, there's plenty on here to help and if not, there's always the wiki.....

Thanks - I'll start off slowly.

As I understand it we have 12 months from the date of medicals (August 08)to land and become PR. We have to put the house up for sale in the new year, do the landing trip before August 09. If the house doesn't sell before August 09 can we land and return to sell the house, and if so how long can we stay out of Canada for?

I want it to sell in January of course, but not very optomistic

can i ask, is there any reason to leave the house until the new year/ why not stick it on now?

as i understand it, you have to be 'resident' in canada three years out of a period of five years but you have to obviously 'land' first to activate the PR.....and you must do that whilst medicals are valid and that you passport has at least (i think this is right) 6 months on it!!!! and i'm quessing that also police checks have to be valid too.....

we put our house on 6weeks ago, we've had 5 viewings and we're ever hopefull of that 'offer'......actually hoping on tues/wed next week, so keep fingers crossed for us......your house will sell, depends on the price and how much you 'need' to take to canada with you.....but it will sell, honest....x

Hi debrhoda,

We all knew you were lurking out there you know...we were beckoning you to come in...didn't you see us! Seriously, here's wishing you a very warm welcome to BE.

Congratulations on getting to the back end of the process. Where have you got in mind as your eventual new home?

gibsonslanding seems to have addressed the questions you asked. We're assuming you have a particular reason for maybe delaying your arrival here a bit (eg: finishing a school year or something of that nature). If it's any comfort, we went through the landing process on what was essentially our final research trip and then returned to the UK to sell the house and tie up all the loose ends, etc, before emigrating a few months later.

Best wishes for moving across in sue course.

Kind regards,

Eamonn & Janet.

Didn't think we would have much chance of a sale before xmas & OH is decorating - the bland magnolia that buyers apparently prefer! Perhaps we should rethink! We are hesitant because the house opposite which is exactly the same as ours has been up for sale for the past 10 months - it is up for a bargain price as well!!!

That's interesting about the 3 years out of 5, but hope it never comes to that. Will look into the police checks as they were done March, perhaps have to get them done again

Glad to hear that your viewings are going well - will keep fingers crossed for you - perhaps things are better out there than they make you think!

Do you mind if I ask where you are heading and why? We don't have jobs to go to - OH is in building and civil engineering & I'm a PA to part of MoD, ex medical sec. Spent a few weeks travelling in BC, like lots of places but not sure where to go. Having many heated discussions on the subject:curse:

Hi both

Thanks for the welcome, can't believe I'm part of this now

We are only delaying really because of decorating the house.

We have been looking at lots of areas to live this morning - including Okotoks - and where we think we might find work. What's Calgary like?

Kind regards

Decorating...no fun is it! Makes sense to present your house as well as you possibly can though.

For us, Calgary and surrounds are a very good location. Proximity to the mountains will remain something we have to pinch ourselves over for many years to come - they are just fabulous. Our reference point was London and the South East of UK (our last UK home was in St Albans, Herts) so Calgary provides a welcome contrast. Calgary has just over a million residents versus untold millions in London and the South East. We find Calgary and surrounds very navigable - sure there are rush hour periods but these, in our view, do not compare to the worst of the UK's many traffic motorway and town/city pinch points. Yet Calgary and its surrounding communities (like Okotoks - where we are, Cochrane, Airdrie, Chestermere, Bragg Creek, etc) between them, offer everything you need for day to day living. We also feel safer here (a subjective statement - clearly there is significant amounts of crime here too - but we do not feel anything like the same sense of threat as we did in the UK). We can imagine that life-long or even long-time Calgarians have seen a significant deterioration in their experience of life here but it's all about what YOU are comparing to. For us, Calgary and area presented a nice proposition.
Kind regards,

Eamonn & Janet.
ps: Have a look at our blogs below...they will give you a taste of life out this way.

Hi ... Welcome!

Maybe when you get your PR papers you might "land" in Calgary and do a bit of research to this area?

Get together some possible job prospects to visit, and work out an itinerary that will allow you to suss out different areas for living etc .... and do some touristy things too of course!

Welcome, don't worry about new Police checks, you only needed them for the updated documentation a few months before your medicals.

Hi and Welcome to our mad and sometimes insane world of BE

Dont pin your hopes on one area go where you have the better chance of a job if my opinion.

We came to Lethbridge AB Aug 2007 with kids the same age as your any probs or questions about how they coped feel free to PM me

Gaynor

Many thanks all

Yes, I think landing in Calgary would be a good idea as we researched the other side of the rockies last time.
Will keep researching while pushing decorating along. OH dragging his feet abit - nervous and excited at the same time. We both have good jobs and a nice house - can we get simular over there especially with the downturn - frying pan to fire?!!

Going to get a paint brush now to help him along

Gaynor - I'll PM you with a few questions re teenagers & school when I discover how!

[QUOTE
Glad to hear that your viewings are going well - will keep fingers crossed for you - perhaps things are better out there than they make you think!

thank you......BE will be the first place that i'll let the world know if we've sold....lol....it's a headache but just a challenge to overcome.

Do you mind if I ask where you are heading and why? We don't have jobs to go to - OH is in building and civil engineering & I'm a PA to part of MoD, ex medical sec. Spent a few weeks travelling in BC, like lots of places but not sure where to go. Having many heated discussions on the subject:curse:[/QUOTE]

we're heading for vancouver.....why? well, it's extremly beautiful (officially the best city in the world and not just for it's looks).....it's very cosmopolitan, beaches, skiing, good weather, not 'overly' cold.....and it's were hubby wanted to work, with the company he wanted to work for.....so everythings good, right? my brother lives in calgary (14years) and is a little p****d off that we are going to van and not calgary....hey ho, can't please everyone but we're a lot closer than we are hear in the uk, right?.....

civil engineering jobs shouldn't be an issue in BC or alberta...hubbies in engineering/construction and he found no amount of potential jobs......and isn't there a big UK army pressence in alberta/BC? there was but not sure if still is.....i would have thought that as a PA, you would find plenty of work in vancouver or calgary, lots and lots of 'offices'.......

don't forget, if your having heated discussions on where to live, you can move, right?.....we've identified where we'd like to go....north van.....but we're going to rent so that we make an 'informed choice' on the buying side......

good luck to you all.....follow your dreams and you will make it happen, promise....xx