johnnyk.kennedy

I’m looking for the easiest, quickest, cheapest way in order to secure my stay in Canada for ever! but everything seems to be going against me!

SKILLED ROUTE
A bit about me. More or less single, Irish, 28 years old working in IT living in Europe and my occupation is on the NOC list but I am short of 5 points to make the 67 in order to go down the skilled route.

BUNAC/USIT/12 MONTH WORKING HOLIDAY
Originally I was going to apply for a 12 month working holiday visa that would have given me the 5 points badly needed and allowed me to live in Canada for starters too or could have applied for a PNP when working there but Canadian immigration changed the requirement for Usit equiv to Bunac stating the following:

“Be an Irish passport holder and ordinarily resident within the 32 counties of Ireland. You cannot have resided outside of Ireland for more than a total duration that exceeds 4 years since turning 18”

I have resided outside Ireland for more than 4 years and therefore I am unable to apply.

I cant apply to Bunac as you need to hold a British passport!

So what is left for me? I have over 10 years in IT! I don’t want to be moving to Canada when I am 40.

What about.......... Federal skilled application based on substituted evaluation that I will have the ability to become economically established upon immigration to Canada because of my circumstances and history...professional history?

Anyones help is really appreciated....what about studying in Canada? How much is this? I want to live in Toronto. I’m happy to do distance learning but to study full time would be difficult as I need some sort of income!

I'm desperate as I want to be there!!!

Aviator

Lots of people have immigrated at 40'ish. They were not over the hill.


What about it?


You have to be in full time education to get a study permit and are restricted where you can work. International student fees are not cheap either.

You could try for a TWP if an employer will offer you a job and apply for the LMO. They are harder to get these days though.

johnnyk.kennedy

I know but seems close to impossible in obtaining.

pinkmcfarquhar

I think these guys are working in IT. I know it's St John's and not Toronto, but they might be able to give you some pointers.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=650019

orange247

Have you looked at or are you aware of little known (more like secret) Information Technology Workers Program?

http://www.cic.gc.ca/ENGLISH/work/special-tech.asp

Does your occupation fall under any those listed?

1. Senior Animation Effects Editor (NOC 9990.1)
2. Embedded Systems Software Designer (NOC 9990.2)
3. MIS Software Designer (NOC 9990.3)
4. Multimedia Software Developer (NOC 9990.4)
5. Software Developer—Services (NOC 9990.5)
6. Software Products Developer (NOC 9990.6)
7. Telecommunications Software Designer (NOC 9990.7)

A prospective employer does not need an LMO for any of the occupations listed. The HRSDC has issued a National Confirmation letter in lieu of an LMO. Surely your skills could match some of those on the list, check out the link.

The process goes like this:

Employer offers you a job and sends you a contract and offer of employment based upon the occupations listed. You gather relevant supporting documents, travel documents, resumes, work history, reference letters from former employers, copy of qualifications, copy of degrees etc., enough to make a case for your TWP. Get yourself on a plane, train or automobile to your nearest POE and get the TWP issued there and then. Probably one of the easiest ways to get into Canada if you have the relevant skills.

I've had a number of these work permits and I'm now applying for PR through the Canadian Experience Class.

DigitalGhost

You know, there is a lot of unfairness regarding Youth Mobility visas, Bunac costs the best part of £400 and requires a lot of paperwork and messing around, plus you need to be resident in the UK when you apply where as my girlfriend could apply for hers whilst in a foreign land and just needed to pay the CIC processing cost.

The rules on Irish citizens do seem unduly harsh though, possibly even worse than they are for us Brits I think.

SirTainly

Hardly much paperwork to be honest, the PR form requires all that and more and cost a hell of a lot more than £400. When I did the forms in 2005 for PR you had to have all your employment contracts for the last X years (might have been 5 or 10) photocopied and notorised.

To the OP, doing a(nother) degree might boost your points or learning French, neither easy or cheap but doable. If you've lived in the UK for 5 years you could always apply for a UK passport then try Bunac that way (apparently according to a website I googled you can get UK and Irish citizenship concurrently).

DigitalGhost

You can have dual UK and Irish citizenship, a guy I used to work with had it although for some reason he had also never held a passport in his adult life.

I understand that instant PR will obviously cost a lot more but at least the requirements are the same across the board and if you really want it then it will pay back three-fold over where as a YMS visa is really only designed for a year and the process seems to differ greatly dependant upon where you were born.

SirTainly

This is true, the case used to be that the equivalent Canadian scheme gave people 2 years in the UK.

DigitalGhost

The Japanese programme (for UK citizens) only costs £6 for application but you need to provide a letter explaining exactly what you plan on doing whilst you're there and they don't really like people working in the same job for too long, which is understandable really I suppose. I honestly cannot be the only person to wish that ACPO certificates did not exist though.

I think the old UK system allowed one year of work and one extra year of tourist leave, the Australians did the same thing and you could go back as a tourist again but only have one work permit under the scheme in a lifetime.

johnnyk.kennedy

another 2 questions:

can i get the extra 5 points if my girlfriend decides to move to canada with me, though she lives in asia at the moment. we are trying to sort out first if we can be together or not.

she only has a degree/masters in economics

can i claim british citzenship if my mother holds a british passport, because she was born before 1949 as anyone in ireland can claim british citizenship if born before that year. also her father was british as well.

thanks!

Butch Cassidy

1) Not until you get common-law status you cant
2) Yes

johnnyk.kennedy

for my second question are you sure? on what basis? though my mum wasnt born in ireland.

i will phone UK immigration tomororw.

how does one get common law status? whats the process?

many thanks

Butch Cassidy

for common law see
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common-law_marriage#Canada

For passport see
http://britishembassyinireland.fco.g...t-do-i-qualify

orange247

To the OP,

I really can't see why you are intent on going down the PR route immediately.

You state that you have 10 years IT experience, those kind of skills are in demand right now in Canada. You have no major family commitments as you state, why don't you just go looking for a job in your field in Canada? It might take a few months but with a decade of experience, an IT job that qualifies under the IT Workers Program should not be hard to come by surely? Total cost to you, a few resumes mailed and a $150 fee for your work permit.

As for the BUNAC, easy way to get your foot in the door but there is no garauntee of a job when you come over on one. I've known too many people come over on those and struggle to get work in their field, they end up leaving usually.

It took me just under a year from mailing out my first resumes and waiting for responses to end up in a position in Vancouver. In fact the company I now work for sat on my application for over nine months until a position came up. When they did eventually contact me it was less than three months from interview to actually living and working in Vancouver on an IT worker TWP.