nfitz

Better yet, call the local school board. I gave the number for the Toronto District School Board's department that deals with such issues further up the thread ...

nfitz

So if you were in a situation where you could get rid of the car, and only have one person working but earn the same total money, you could probably save at least $400 a month ... assuming that you pay about $1,000 a year for insurance, and don't actually drive that much ... and move from the red to the black. Now obviously this is not possible for you ... but that's one way people survive in the long term with these kind of incomes.

Judy in Calgary

I would be very happy if ezvanetree's impression is correct.

However, even before the court ruling to which ezvanetree has referred, Calgary schools (both public and Catholic) treated children of work permit holders the same as permanent residents and citizens for the purpose of assessing tuition fees. That is, children of work permit holders get what is to all intents and purposes a free education up to the end of high school. (It's not entirely free, because they do charge fees for odds and ends, but those fees are modest.)

I've phoned the public and Catholic school boards, so I know that to be a fact. I've posted about it in the past.

The one thing that I do find odd is that Calgary's public school board provides free education only to natural children of work permit holders and not to adopted children. That strikes me as unfair. (But perhaps the court case to which ezvanetree referred has overturned that practice.) I don't know how Calgary's Catholic school board treats adopted children of work permit holders.

Although my research into this question didn't involve any phone calls, I do remember previous discussions on the forum to the effect that the whole of Ontario gives free elementary school and high school education to children of work permit holders. It's written into Ontario legislation (the Education Act or something like that). I remember doing an online search for the legislation and reading the relevant clause during past research. It's wording is pretty clear.

I mention that just in case you're heading to Ontario or to Calgary. If you're aiming for either of those destinations, I'm pretty confident in saying you don't have to worry about school fees.

Oh yes, here's a Manitoba government website that states that children of temporary work permits receive provincial funding for their education. That's across the province of Manitoba.

However, I don't know where in Canada you intend to live, so I don't know how helpful the above information is.

rabrol

We are here on a work permit, and there have been no problems for our son going to school. He was issued s Study Permit at the same time I got the work permit when we entered Canada.

As far as the school fees are concerned, he is treated like a local child. That is in an Edmonton Public School Board school. And our daughter will begin there in September.

Rob

dbd33

Apples and turnips, surely. I cited a couple of cities where there's beauty and culture, it may be that you think these things don't matter and it's better to live in Toronto, poor or not, but that doesn't relate to being poor in other cities of Ontario. To my mind, Canada really only has three cities, I don't know Vancouver but I'd think it's about the same to be poor in Montreal as Toronto.
Documentation of street riots in London and Paris would be welcome.

Again, if you're an immigrant, you're not choosing poverty in Sudbury vs. poverty in Toronto but poverty in London vs. poverty in Toronto.

If this is important why not go to Miami or Australia ?

Yes, certainly. Toronto is great for eating and swimming.

Anywhere in Toronto with Driftwood in the name is as rough as the worst of Detroit, though not as bad as the worst of Chicago or any of the really bad US cities. Ironically enough, I only ever go there to fetch and carry for students at the rough school nearby ; York University they call it.

Look, I don't think Toronto is without merit, one can buy food from any country, raw or cooked, directly from a native of that country, it's almost as good as NYC for eating. That's the major feature though and it's no good if you can't afford to go out.

ezvanetree

Thank you, Judy in Calgary, for providing more detailed information on this issue in Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario. I am very glad I wasn't completely mistaken. It is likely the same will apply to student visa holders, but of course everyone should check about their own individual circumstances!

tim hortons man

It sounds like you've done quite well for your self, that is what makes Canada (and to a lesser degree America) such a great country to move to. But what I was referring to is as you move up the income ladder your tastes begin to change, all of sudden that old TV and couch just won't cut it any more so its off the Brick to get a new one (on payments of course) then its the bedroom suite that needs replacing, soon the car is too old and you add a car payment. Then you deserve that vacation, and hey we just got approved for a line of credit at the bank what the hey, eh. Then the wifes pregnant and she wants to take few years off of work and then voila first thing you know you've maxed everything out and your struggling to live on 80 grand or more a year.

Except for the kid part we've been there.

I also have several family members here and in Germany who inspite of sometimes very good incomes were ill preprepared for changes are really struggling.

Rob

PS may be gone 7 years but I have really enjoyed reading about home again. I always be Canadian at heart.

Woodstock62

Hi Judy,
Thanks for your reply. My apologies, I do remember your previous post on this topic.
In actual fact I made a mistake on my post. What I should have said was do the children of people on a 6 month visitor visa have to pay international school fees. I was asking just in case we need to come over while we wait for our PR to be processed.

BTW, we are heading to Calgary.

Sorry about the confusion.

Judy in Calgary

Woodstock, I tried calling Riverside Bungalow, the Calgary Board of Education office that processes students who arrive with their parents from abroad. I called their number, 403-777-7373, but got a message inviting me to leave a voice mail so that they could call me back. It wasn't convenient for me to have them calling me back, so I didn't leave a message.

I then phoned the office that processes international students at 403-294-8525. By international students, I mean students who come to Calgary without their parents. I thought the people at that office also might know the answer. Yvonne answered the phone. She said that, to the best of her knowledge, children who accompany parents who are on visitors' visas are charged the same tuition as international students. However, since that was not her area of responsibility, she did not feel comfortable claiming that that was the last word on the subject. She said she would feel more comfortable if I phoned Riverside Bungalow and got a definitive answer from them. They are the people who know all the ins and outs concerning children who come to Calgary from abroad with parents.

I'm shaky ground here, but I believe the children of a student visa holder receive free education. I seem to recall finding that out when I did my previous research into this topic. If you had to pay tuition for someone, either yourself or your children, I would guess it would work out less expensively for you or your partner to register for a post-secondary course of some kind. Then your kids could receive free schooling.

But coming to Calgary temporarily would be fraught with so many other expenses and logistical hurdles that I wonder if it would be worth it. I suppose the same question has occurred to you.

In any event, I'll phone Riverside Bungalow when I get a chance in the next few days and ask them if children of people with visitors' visas have to pay tuition.

Judy in Calgary

Woodstock, I called Riverside Bungalow at 403-777-7373 and reached a human being. Sorry, forgot to get her name. Anyway she said that if parents came to Calgary on visitors' visas, their children had to pay tuition of approximately C$1,000 per child per month.

For anyone who may not have been following this thread, this information pertains specifically to the Calgary [Public] Board of Education.

nfitz

When aren't they rioting in Paris? Here is today's report, yesterday's, and did you miss last fall's race riots, though much of it was in Paris and it's suburbs. According to the reference it extended to 274 towns, lasted two weeks, and caused over €200 million in damage; ending only with the imposition of martial law.

By comparison London is quite peaceful, though there have been three race riots in Brixton in the last few years, that I recall. And what about the riots in 1990 about the poll tax? Though Toronto isn't immune either, though it's been over 80 years since the riot at Christie Pits ...

Nick

Novocastrian

Wahey Nick. Let's organize one next weekend. How about at Feathers next to where dbd33 lives? (if that's alright with him).

dbd33

By all means come and enliven our bourgeous suburb, note though that the Feathers is not somewhere you'd be going on a family income of $40,000. I can go there because I'm not poor and that's my core point, Toronto's pretty dull but ok to live in because property is relative cheap and that leaves money for other things, things one could not afford in older more interesting cities. To be in Toronto and broke seems to me the worst of both worlds, like being poor and in Milton Keynes. I think I'd rather deal with occasional excitement.

Katesmommy

Hi Little:

I don't really know much about cost in living in Toronto, but I do know about having a PhD husband and a baby. We are Americans living in Edinburgh, preparing for a move to Canada (prairies). Anyway, we live in central Edinburgh with an income of 16,000 pounds which includes DH's stipend and my PT job. We don't qualify for any tax credits, child benefit, because of our visa status. And we have a toddler.

Edinburgh is definitely considered an expensive city and yet we are doing fine. No car, which helps! University housing--which isn't cheap, but more space for the money than private. It's not only students who live here--there are a few professors too--would that be an option for you in Toronto?

I bet you could find a way to make it work--you're still somewhat in student mode it sounds like and that's different than trying to make something work permanently. Is it possible one or both of you could take on something PT (in evenings or at home) if the budget just became too tight?

raza

Hi

We are going to be in the similar situation.
We did our landing last August in Toronto and got our PR and came back to the Gulf where I have got full time job as an EFL teacher at a university. We've been here for 12 years. I have applied to do my PhD in education at York University and University of Calgary. For post graduate students the universities offer annual funding (Can $17000) plus some teaching assistantship and my wife has decided to work PT or FT and we also hope to get some child benefits for our two kids(5 and 10). Any feedback on that. Would that be a right way to make it work?

Raza