but i hope you don't throw me out of here immediatly...

i found your forum throu an other similar one and am interested what you share here. i hope i'm able to contribute the one or the other thought or experience.

i've been living at canada's west coast for some time and decided that i want to stay a bit longer. being a british columbia provincial nominee i'm in the middle of the pr application process.

Hello there, lof.

While I'm an expat, I too am not a British one, and they haven't thrown me out yet.

Good luck with your PR process.

i just realized that my first sentence here - which was meant as a joke - became reality sooner than i exspected. its just not worth to participate here and confuse everyone just because i think in the general cic rules - which actually seem to apply for me but not for brits. i rather spend that time otherwise.

all the best to you all! bye.

I have learned, after getting my fingers burned, that it's a good idea to lurk on a forum and become acquainted with the subject matter and what goes on there before jumping in at the deep end and offering advice straight out of the starting gate. Heck, I've had some dust ups here even after becoming a relatively experienced member of the forum. If, on balance, the forum still offers one enough rewards to make it worth one's while to stick around, one gets up, dusts oneself off, and carries on.

Of course you can spend your time however you like and wherever you like. All the best to you wherever you go.

Que i'm from barcelona an no nothing??? any one care to explain to a rather stupid brit what all that was about

In a couple of threads the OP, who is not a British citizen, provided advice based on his/her experience of applying through Seattle.

One of the common threads running through his/her advice was proof of funds and having to provide same at port of entry upon landing.

He/she received responses from some people who stated that they had not been asked anything about proof of funds when they had landed.

If I have gauged the OP's reaction correctly, he/she is disappointed that his/her advice has not been as useful as he/she initially expected it to be.

There also may or may not be an element of his/her being disappointed that British migrants are being subjected to less scrutiny than he/she has experienced during the migration process.

I share some similarities with the OP. I am not British. In fact I come from a dodgy country. That country was an international pariah when my husband applied for PR more than thirty years ago. Obstacles were put in our way that were not put in the way of other PR applicants.

Even now that we're here, our relatives do not have the right to swan their way into Canada when they visit us. They have to apply for visitors' visas, they have to submit letters of invitation from us, and so on.

All of this doesn't bother me. I understand why the safeguards are in place. Many of my relatives live in countries whose residents have a history of not leaving Canada once they get their toe in the door. Canada has a right to protect its territorial integrity.

I understand that I am participating in a forum that was created for British expats. The forum is what it is, and life in general is what it is.

yer wha

Judy

Put as well as you always do - tru diamond..

Gay
x

i guess i just don't like the role as a liar, troublemaker and forum troll. a situation in which i brought myself through my own stupidity and naivety. obviously silently reading here for several weeks wasn't enough to get all the important facts - specially the ones about differences between british and western european immigration to canada which i actually haven't seen in the official cic documents i consulted.

i'm very well aware that this is a forum for BRITISH expats - and therefore it seems wiser to leave before i cause even more trouble. if there's any possibility to delete my user account - please feel free to do so.

if i hurt anybody's feelings please accept my sincere apologizes. sorry for any inconvenience i caused through my presence here.

One way that you could be of help to many people of this forum is with the local knowledge you have gained and stuff about banks, cars day to day stuff that is the same for everyone whether you are British of not.

This sort of knowledge is the best thing that you can offer us - as you are there and we are here (ie UK)

Best of Luck

Gaynor

lof, I didn't for one minute think you were a liar, troublemaker or troll. I would be surprised if anyone else around here thought you were any of those things. I think you are placing those labels on yourself, and I don't think you're being fair to yourself. From the get-go I had the impression you were trying to be helpful.

I don't think you were "right" or "wrong." I also don't think the people who responded to you were "right" or "wrong."

Each of you reported your own experience, which was true and valid for you.

The fact that the British people who participated in the relevant thread had not been asked for proof of funds on landing does not in and of itself prove that British people are exempt from demonstrating they have enough funds to support themselves upon entering Canada.

It clearly states in CIC's document checklist for a work permit that the WP application needs to be accompanied by proof of funds.

If I remember correctly, one of the people to whom you responded did not have a work permit in hand. He was hoping to get his work permit at his port of entry. I felt that was a slightly riskier venture than taking off from the UK with a WP in hand, so I felt he, in particular, would have benefited from taking your advice about proof of funds.

I think you have overestimated the amount of "trouble" you have caused. New comers to this forum have exhibited cases of "foot in mouth disease" that were way, way worse than the one you have exhibited, if indeed yours even qualifies for that label at all.

Although the majority of posters on BE's Canada forum are British, there also are posters from Asia, Australia, Africa, the former Soviet Union, other parts of Europe, etc. I think the non-British posters can provide a useful perspective.

You don't only have to participate on the Canadian Immigration forum. You can participate in other sub-forums in the Canada section. For example, now that you're in BC, you can share how you're finding life in BC when people ask about it. Edited to add that I see Gaynor has made the same point.

If you do answer questions on the Immigration forum, I think it's a good idea to clarify each time that you aren't British, and to say something along the lines of, "This is what I experienced when I landed (or whatever the case may be)."

I suspect that, because English probably is not your first language, you probably are not picking up on all of the nuances of the discussions, and you're feeling more sensitive than the circumstances warrant.

It's difficult to assess people's likely motives when you communicate in writing and cannot watch their faces, listen to the tone of their voices, etc. But that limitation is increased if you are not communicating in your home language.

English is my home language, but I'm still at a disadvantage here. My time on this forum has taught me that there is something called "British humour" that I do not understand. Sometimes I get into a lather about something that is said here, only to discover later that it was British humour.

Well, lof, I still think you could become a valuable contributor to the forum, and I would be pleased if you would stick around, but it's up to you. There's no point in doing so if you think it will only upset you.

Whatever other kinds of Internet forums you try, may I suggest you stay away from the vegan / animal welfare / animal rights forums. That is where I have received the worst e-bruisings of my life.

I second everything that Judy has said above.
Hence my face.

I read though all the posts you have made so far and can't see where the perceived hurt might be ..... on anybody's part!

Fair enough if you feel there are more useful things you could be doing with your time than posting on here, but I agree with Judy that your experiences and advice are at least as valid as anybody else's here, and probably more so than some!

I won't beg you not to leave if you want to, but I think it's your own perceptions that are making you, and I am not sure that you are right.

OK, so don't go!

ps That said, there are, and will be, times when people say things that (intentionally or not) are rude and hurtful. If you get upset by these then you either have to learn to ignore them, or go with your impulse and stop reading BE.

Hello
I too have read through the threads you have been on and was also part of the one mentioned previously. I am unsure where all this has come from as no one seems to have been rude to anyone and people just give their own opinions and experiences, which of course are different for everyone whether you are British or not.
I feel that any comment or experience ANYONE gives is valid and needed on the forum and I am unsure why you think you should not post because you are not British, and I cant understand why you think this.
It is as previously said totally up to you if you wish to continue to post on this forum, but I am sure your experiences and views will be helpful to many people.
And on a forum you should try not to take anything to heart.

Goodluck with whatever you decide to do.