FARAH1305

Hi all

I've been in the process of what feels like forever in talking about moving back to Canada and sponsoring my British husband.

I've lived in Europe (mainly England) approaching 10 years, I haven't lived in Canada as an "adult." In many ways I feel more European than Canadian.
While living here I used to go home at least twice a year to see my family and always loved it - and I know that from a standpoint of my parents ageing and wanting my child to know my side of the family this is the right move. I know that in the long term I want my child to be educated in Canada and that I do miss home.

However now that we have accepted an offer on our house ... I am starting to panic. We have a lovely little life in England. We live in the Brighton bubble and are literally walking distance to the seafront. We have a small mortgage on our house and few expenses which has allowed me to stay at home with my daughter. Nurseries are so much cheaper here than Toronto.

I guess i am just freaking out. Any advice, wisdom, reassurance? Are we making a horrible decision, lol?

Siouxie

Are you able to apply for British Citizenship before you leave.. if you can, it's recommended... the rules / regulations to move back to the UK are not easy without it, should you ever decide to.

FARAH1305

Yes we are getting that done in the next couple of months!

MillieF

DandNHill

Do you need to live in Toronto? Maybe an hour out of Toronto might work better? Cheaper housing would be a good start. I don't know about childcare but maybe that would be cheaper too?

Tumbling_Dice

Apart from having children, and selling our house, you have described a lot of our situation. I am the Brit, wife is Canadian but she never lived in Canada for long as an adult. She wanted to reconnect with her family and be close to her ageing parents. We too had a great life in the UK, took regular holidays and long weekends, my career was entering the sweet spot etc. But, approaching 40, we decided it was now or never. To be clear I did not want to move but we ultimately thought it would be better to give it a go than be sat in 10 years wishing we had tried it.

There is no doubt I have never gone through such stress in my life. Not ever! Generally, not much bothers me to a serious level, but it has been a very up and down 2 and a half years. We did sort of do it on, with hindsight, more of a whim and emotion, rather than an analysis of the pros and cons. The one thing we have done is agreed on a time limit to evaluate the move and decide if we are staying or returning to the UK. I would suggest that if you haven't done a pro-con consideration of the move, even at this stage, that you do it and also set a time limit that certain criteria need to be met by. Takes some of the emotion out of it and, I think (including based on what I read on forums like this), will enable a more successful outcome.

Best of luck with your move because it is, after all, a very exciting thing to do.

FARAH1305

my family lives in the suburbs and i grew up in the GTA...and i definitely know that's not up our ally. We are more city people - so being actually in Toronto will definitely be vital for us to be happy... worth the extra cost (for now at least).

FARAH1305

I think the peace of mind of having my British citizenship will help that we can always go back easily.

We are moving to Toronto.

Thank you for the advice. I am on a roller coaster oscillating from fear and panic to excitement.

Danny B

If I was in your position, I would never have moved to Canada in 2007. I love Brighton, and it sounds as if you have a comfortable life. You really have to weigh up the pros and cons that are relevant to you.
If you fancy a house swap please let me know, Brighton is one of the few places I would move back to the UK for if the right offer ever came up.

FARAH1305

We absolutely love Brighton. It's genuinely idilic and we are so sad to leave it.

For me returning home to Toronto, has a lot to do with my family. My husbands parents have both passed away so my parents are the only grandparents our children have and I will need the help as we are trying for baby number two.

Also my husband and I are quite unhappy with all this Brexit stuff ... he works in financial services and the commute up to London is absolutely brutal. As a teacher I prefer the Ontario school system (though with the Tories in power it will be 4 years of drama). We have a lot of emotional reasons to move to Toronto - but really Brighton and Hove is simply wonderful and now that its actually happening i've just got lump in my chest about it.

zdenka

Moving is stressful and exciting at the same time. Some great ideas above, pros and cons list, timeline to decide whether you are happy or not, keeping options to return if need be.

It seems that you have firmly decided to move and now you just have to go for it. You will never know whether it was a good move or not until you try. Super helpful, right?
Good luck and welcome back.

dbd33

I live in Canada but am in Brighton today. Brighton seems like a paradise but then it is spring here and winter in Ontario.

glendem4

Best advice I can give you is.....give it a go.... otherwise you will regret it in years to come. We moved from Bournemouth to Toronto in 2018. I am a Brit and love Bournemouth, my wife is Canadian and only has close relatives in Toronto. We made the decision to move following the Brexit vote in 2016. I submitted my paperwork to get a permanent residence card in April 2017 and was granted permission in July 2017. I work in financial services in downtown Toronto and the job market is booming here. We are moving to the downtown core next month from East York as we love the city vibe. Toronto comes alive in May-Sep. You will appreciate being close to your parents when you get here. Family is everything. And remember , you can always go back to Brighton in your later years when you want to retire.

FARAH1305

Thank you for the reply
How are you finding the work environment in Toronto vs the UK? How long did it take for you to find work?
Today I am super nervous about going back (yesterday I was excited) - but who knows how i'll feel tomorrow, ;0

JamesM

The family connection is important so I understand the pull to look at moving.

The work environment in Toronto is toxic versus the UK. There is less jobs and connections will always trump skill set. People are fired at will here and there is little come back.

Britain is looking at Brexit. Even if it happens London will still attract far more investment and jobs than Toronto but it will maybe get closer to Toronto with smaller branch plants

Overall if you are happy with your lifestyle in the UK then you will be better off staying as salaries in the UK are better in most cases and most items cost less.

Toronto is fast becoming skyscrapers of shoe boxes so criminal organisations can launder money. It's a money for nothing culture full of fake it till you make it types.

I'd stay put and utilize the superior vacation time one gets in the UK to visit a couple of weeks a year.