Henneth

Hi everyone. I've been reading these forums on and off for a year or so now while me and the missus have been discussing the merits of moving to Canada Vs. staying in the UK. We are headed out to stay with my Mother and Stepdad (both Canadian citizens) in January and plan to do as much homework during our stay as the weather allows!

Jobwise , I work in IT (the experiences of many on here suggest that employment may be rather difficult to find) and the OH is a Pharmacist (which means she'll have to re-qualify for a third time as she's not originally from the UK). We know the length of time applications take are unbelievable, but we figure the wait can be put to good use to gain further qualifications, save extra cash and generally lay the groundwork.

I fell in love with the place at 18 when I first visited but the OH has never been. All being well, after our trip we plan to start the ball rolling with a Skilled Worker application and take our place in the queue....

Any advice of any sort from the wise old heads here is appreciated.

raine66

If your Mother is a Canadian Citizen then doesn't that mean you can become a citizen?

Check out this link.

www.cic.gc.ca

Raine

iaink

Yep, under most circumstances if she was a citizen at the time of birth (especially if born after February 14, 1977). Man, thats almost too easy!!!

Henneth

Thanks guys. That's what I thought too until I read up on it recently. I'm too old to be classed as a dependent child, so could only be sponsored if my mother had no other relatives in Canada - at least that's how I read it. I could be wrong mind... inf fact I'd postitively LOVE to be wrong in this instance.

I could always push my stepdad under a stampeding moose I suppose...

Biiiiink

Welcome to BE

Your mother wasn't a citizen at the time of your birth I take it?

Edit, wow, how many edits did you two sneak in? Make me look like I haven't read the thread, why don't you

iaink

You are (more than likely) technically canadian already if shes a "born and bred" canadian...no need for any PR application, just get your birth certificate and proof of her citizenship and take it from there to get a canadian passport.

Look at the citizenship part of the CIC site, not the immigration part!

Henneth

Both my mother and stepdad are expats unfortunately. She's been out there since '91 and he's been out there since the sixties (when the UK Govt. used to pack young lads off to the "colonies" with a pat on the back and some money in their pocket - a bit easier than nowadays ).

I had to go through all the medicals etc. as I was classed as a dependent child at the time she emigrated. As I'm now an old git of 34 I'd assumed that I would no longer be eligible to take this route?

iaink

Sadly you are right, Im not sure that sponsorship is entirely out of the question, but perhaps skilled worker / PNP is the only way.

I would ask in the canadian immigration area whether sponsorhip is an option under the "relative of any age if you do not have an aunt, uncle or family member from the list above who you could sponsor or who is already a Canadian citizen, Indian or permanent resident." provision ...Spouses may not be considered "family members" in that context...I dont know. Sponsorship would certainly be far faster, thats for sure.

raine66

So where you born in the UK then?

If so you should still be entitled to Canadian citizenship, you apply on the application 'passport for an adult born to a Canadian citizen outside of Canada' enclosing all the relevant documentation. i.e., proof of mother's citizenship, birth certificate etc.

You should get this pretty fast but may have to wait awhile for citizenship card, this is how it worked for my daughter anyway.

Raine

iaink

Does not apply as neither parent was Canadian at time of birth, and even if they were, before 1977 the birth would have had to be registered by a certain time in order for citizenship to be retained

Henneth

Cheers Raine - I'll look into this. Does it matter that she was a UK Citizen when I was born though?

Edit: Ah bugger. Sadly, Iaink's confirmed what I thought. Cheers for the advice thus far though guys.

raine66

Yeah sorry she would have to have been a citizen at the time of your birth.

Raine

Henneth

Not to worry. We are pretty realistic about the timescale it may take us to jump through all the hoops. I also realise that, although we may not be able to fastrack an application via the family sponsorship route, having family already settled in Canada is still going to make things one hell of a lot easier for us (especially as stepdad is an estate agent).

The OH mentioned that there have been a few adverts in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's magazine asking for Brit qualified Pharmacists to move to Canada and retrain. Loathe as she is to start her career over for a third time (first qualified in her native South Africa, then moved here and had to qualify again), she's willing to do it if it means a better life for our daughter.

We'll probably contact a few of these agencies and see what's involved. A guaranteed job upon arrival for one of us would be half the battle.