Originally Posted by jwsadler

Hi guys,

Still suffering with jet-lag, but after having gotten back from BC, I thought I would update you with our landing experiences...

Landing and PR activation (23rd May @ 18:00 – took 1.5 – 2 hours)

We landed in Vancouver on Saturday 23rd May 2009 (6pm). We proceeded as normal through to passport control. At this point the lady in booth asked us what the reason was for our visit, and I replied we would like to activate our PR. She pointed us the direction of immigration, but suggested that we collect our bags first – which we did.

We then headed for immigration, and were asked to leave our trolley loaded with bags outside the immigration section. We went inside and were directed towards (via the signs) a new immigrants section. There was only one couple in front of us. After 5 minutes, the lady spoke to us about where we were hoping to reside (Bowen – which comes under North Van), and then went through (in some detail) loads of information about who to see, and where to go for things. Loaded up with forms, papers, leaflets and books, we then waited in-line to see the immigration official. After about half an hour we saw the immigration lady (very nice), she looked at the paperwork, checked it, and then said that the photos were no good. – She called over a colleague who took us off to the side and took some new photos of each of us. We went straight back to the immigration lady, who then asked us how much money we were bringing in, where were we staying, what line of work I was in, what was our Canadian address (I used my relatives) - very pleasant.

I mentioned to her about goods to follow, and she said I should show this to the customs people when we exit the arrivals hall (but only when we come for good) – proof of funds was never asked for (even though I gone through the pain of getting notarised documents/statements from my bank!). She then asked us to sign the paperwork (I did both the children’s) she put part of the form in to our passports and then said congratulations and welcome to Canada! – Amazing!!! This all took about 40 minutes.

Settlement Services (1 hour)

A day or so later we followed the new immigrant’s advice and went to see settlement services. We chose the North Shore Multicultural Society (604-988-2931). How friendly can people be – they were great, even giving our boy some colouring in stuff to do whilst we talked... They were fantastic going through in some detail what was available for us and what we needed to do. They gave us info on schools, healthcare, benefits, and even toddler activities, etc. The main things I remember that she mentioned included:

• You need a SIN card.
  
• You need a bank account (we already had one).
  
• Apply for your health cards – even though we were going to be out of BC for more than 30 days they recommended that we do this. The reason she gave was that even if we did not get them, we would be put to the front of the queue when we came to stay for good. The form asked us to supply a letter explaining why we would be absent from BC and copies of our landing docs and passports. – We sent this off towards the end of our holiday.

Government offices (1 hour, parking a pain)

Next we went down to the government offices to get our SIN numbers. We decided to get the children’s at the same time, so that we could then register a RESP (registered education savings plan) for them at the bank.

We had to fill out some forms for each of us. Then we had to wait in line to see an official.

Within 10 minutes we were seen and the lady who saw us was nice if a little official. She took her time, transcribing the information we provided onto her computer and then printed our SIN numbers, saying that the cards would arrive in the next few weeks, and that we should not reveal these numbers to anyone except an employer...

Bank (3 hours / 2 visits)

This was the longest part of the whole process. We already had a savings account and a debit card. The account manager set up a new chequing account, two youth accounts and a family RESP (based on mutual funds). We then asked about a credit card, he said that he could offer us (as we have been a client for about three years) an unsecured credit card with $500. But he said that he would pass this over to his manager to try and get us a bit more. I showed him my credit report (Equifax - £12) and a letter of reference from my UK bank, which he copied and sent on to his manager.

Mobile phone (Bell)

I purchased a mobile phone from Bell in the Park Royal Mall. They used their address and all I showed them was my UK amex card. I got a phone which will work in the UK (good for CV and potential clients / employers to use). It was all free (including the phone and registration) with a $25 per month fee.

Driving

We were a little worried that the 30 days allotted you when you arrive in Canada, before you must take your test, would have expired before we returned in December. I phoned ICBC, who said that the 30 days would restart when we entered Canada in December. They mentioned that as we had UK driving licenses we would have to take the multiple choice test and do a driving test before getting our BC license. They said we should read the road-sense guide book located at:

http://www.icbc.com/driver-licensing...dsense-drivers

I then spoke to them about using our UK no-claims in Canada, and they said that we needed to get our insurance company to write a letter (an example of which was on the ICBC website). It didn’t need to be notarised; but they were looking at claims history over the last 8 years, rather than no-claims discount.

School

We went to see the primary (public) school on Bowen. They were very nice and showed us around taking a real interest in our son. He will be grade one in December (only 18 kids in the class!). We went back a few days later with some more questions, and bumped in to the principle, who then sat down with us for about thirty minutes discussing all that the school had to offer.

He mentioned that BC has some of the best schools in the world and that his school was one of the best in BC!!!

People

People are so friendly (especially on Bowen). They welcome new comers with open arms. Even after having only spent a couple of weeks on Bowen, we got farewell hugs from friends we had made!

It’s quite a shock when you say to someone that we have just gotten our PR and we want to live in your country and they say congratulations and welcome!

On one occasion, on the Bowen ferry my wife spoke to some other passengers asking where the nearest gas station was as we were pretty low. They gave us directions and then said they would follow us to make sure we didn’t break down. They followed us to the exit (off highway 1) before waving goodbye!

General thoughts

Things seem to be a little more expensive than when we were last in Canada, particularly on Bowen (where you can add a 20% “Bowen Tax”). And as such I would say that general goods are more expensive (pound for dollar) than in the UK. - Although this is hard to judge as quantities tend to be bigger in Canada. Obviously I will be able to judge this better, when I have a job in Canada.

Petrol is cheaper at around $1 per litre.

Some people can’t stand the Island life because of the need to use the ferries. Thankfully they have now introduced two water taxi services, one of which goes to down-town and takes around 20 minutes. It’s not cheap $20 but it sure beats the ferry and then a bus!

But the community spirit is fantastic and with people being so welcoming I know that we will be off the best possible start when we go out in December...

All the best and many thanks to all of you who have helped and encouraged us on our journey.

Jamesd & Helen.