Hello,
I have a question or two to ask,

Im a skilled plumber + gas fitter from England and looking into Canada. I have family scattered around Ontario (toronto) and I was looking on the requests for skilled people on the canadian visa website,

My question is if my visa was approved, would i have to move straight away or within a certain time of it being approved? or could i go whenever i want?
And if a visa is approved does that mean your a citizen of that country?

And how would i apply ? where do i get an application form from?

I have applied for a number of plumbing positions in Canada and have received some pretty positive feedback only i cant take it further as i dont have a work permit.

Thank you

Dan

Try the wiki (blue bar), there is a link to it in the sticky readme post. It covers all the basics and more.

In short you have to land within a year of doing your medicals, in order to activate your status. In practice this might mean having only a few months to get to Canada and land after a permanent residency visa is issued. PR is not the same as a work permit.


Once you land as a permanent resident you have to remain in canada for a total of 2 years out of any rolling 5 year period in order to maintain your permanent resident status, so you can easily return to the UK for a while before having to make a permanent move to Canada, as long as you are back in canada to meet the two years out of five requirement.

If you manage to live here for 3 years out of 4 you can qualify for citizenship. Once thats granted then you can leave indefinitely without losing the right to live here.

Depending on what family you have here a family class sponsorship might be an option... its generally the easiest way to get here. Its hard to get an employer to jump the necessary hoops for a work permit to be issued, especially in an economic downturn when there are canadians around able to do the job. Better to have PR and be able to work without them having to do anything.

Be aware that canadian employers like canadian qualifications. For plumbing thats the "red seal", and it may be a hassle to get.

More detail on most of the above can be found in the convenient wiki pages, but dont be afraid to ask if its not clear.

You have to have that to get licensed and therefore be able to work.

Well, you do and you dont.

If you want to be paid top rate and work independently you need the license. If you have enough UK hours and the testicular fortitude I believe you can arrange to challenge the licensing exams without further apprentice type hours in Canada, although someone may know better...

I have read the wiki link they require plumbers and it says that as a plumber you can bypass the points system and the requirement to have a pre arranged employer.

There seems to be more jobs in Vancouver and western canada than eastern and central such as toronto...


What do you suggest i do? Temporary visa just to see what is out there?

i never knew you needed a license!

If you can bypass the TWP process and plumbing is on the list then follow the skilled worker route. unless one of you relatives can sponsor you.

You will find tons of info and advice in the immigration area. Best place to start for immigration stuff is the horses mouth, www.cic.gc.ca

Licensing is a provincial issue, so find the website for whichever province you are aiming for and see whats involved. Sure there are skilled tradespeople who post (or have posted) here who have walked your intended path before you and can point you in the right direction....

Just to correct this, you don't bypass the points system, just the job offer requirement. So because your job is on the list of 29 eligible occupations you don't need pre-arranged employment, but you do still need 67 points or more.

Wouldn't bother with a Temp Work Permit if you want to go permanently - it's going to be harder to convince an employer to go through the paperwork/wait/hassle of hiring you and doing the LMO (whereas with PR you're instantly employable), plus you'd be tied to that employer so it's not very secure. If you are sure you want to emigrate to Canada, then definitely apply as a Skilled Worker, and preferably asap - the quota reopens today (CIC's year runs 1st July to 30th June) and there are only 500 applications for plumbers that will be considered.

So get your IELTS booked (can take a couple of months to get a test slot and then another two weeks or so to get results) and in the meantime start gathering paperwork and filling in forms.

HTH, good luck!

Whats the website to apply? because there is alot of websites that charge you so they take on the hastle of arranging everything, id rather just apply directly.

www.cic.gc.ca - as given to you above, and also in the Wiki if you read it.