DigitalGhost

I need to return to Canada at some point in the near future in order to comply with my RO and recently put myself back onto the job market. I've applied for a few jobs in Canada and the response has been lukewarm at best however since creating a LinkedIn profile, UK tech recruiters have been all over it and I'm getting messages from headhunters pretty much every day.

A lot of roles in my line of work (DevOps) were remote before 2020 and that only seems to have increased so I'm wondering if anyone has any experience of working in a remote IT job for a UK company whilst living in Canada. I'm talking about a full time job here and not contracting.

I did find a few old threads on this such as the one below and but I'd be interested in more up to date advice and experiences if anyone has anything to share.

https://britishexpats.com/forum/canada-56/working-remotely-uk-company-canada-882593/

Siouxie

These links might help
Working remotely for UK company in Canada and the post after by JonboyE
Aviators posts Working remotely for UK company while in Ontario
Snowy's post Working remotely for UK company while in Ontario
Working remotely for UK company while in Ontario

Danny B

Unless you have an extremely rare skill there is absolutely no benefit to the Canadian employer by hiring someone full time who lives in the UK. If there was, they would hire someone from India or the Philippines for $35k a year instead of someone from the UK at $70k year.

If you want to work for a Canadian company, you need to be in Canada. Then perhaps after a few years of work in Canada you can negotiate moving away.

Siouxie

He has PR, he's moving back to Canada - and has offers from the UK to remote work for them, from Canada (not the other way around)..

DigitalGhost

My job is in demand on the Canadian market and I'm already a landed PR so there shouldn't be any difference between hiring me and hiring a local, especially since most people are currently working from home anyway and I could be in the country within a few months tops. Please don't try to excuse Canadian labour market prejudice because it's not helping anybody.

DigitalGhost

Thanks, much appreciated. I'm hoping it won't come to this tbh since I would honestly prefer just to do a normal job for a local company in Canada and not have to worry about tax complications etc. It's just proving a little bit difficult to set that up at atm and I don't want to resign from my current job unless I have another one to go to.

Danny B

Sorry I misunderstood. I thought you were wanting to live in the UK but to work for a CDN company.

Instead you want to live in Canada and carry on working for the same UK company as you do now. What did the HR dept say? if the exchange rate was the same as it was in 2007 I'd be very tempted but that 8hr time difference would suck for me here on the west coast. Starting work at 1am, no thanks.

DigitalGhost

No apologies necessary. I wouldn't be working on the west coast so it would most likely be a 5am start.

I don't particularly want to do it tbh. I've been working from home for most of this year and don't find it especially enjoyable. The problem is the insularity of the Canadian labour market whereas UK employers tend to be much more responsive, friendly and open.

I haven't broached the subject with any HR people yet. I wanted to get an idea of the feasibility of it first from a legal/tax perspective.

Atlantic Xpat

There are some benefits to living in the Far East (of Canada)! 3.5hr time difference means that I'm available to my UK colleagues from 11.30am UK and they finish for the day around 2pm my time, leaving time to do actual work rather than being in Teams/Webex calls!
(I can't help the OP with tax/legalities though as although most of my work is with stakeholders in the UK and elsewhere, I'm an employee of a Canadian company but a remote member of a UK based team. )

wardy_1990

do you need a degree to work in devops in Canada?

Siouxie

But each job description will tell you what the specific company requires
https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/marketreport/jobs/22548/ca

wardy_1990

sorry was asking the OP didn't realise you worked in IT.

thanks for your help

Gozit

Don't have any advice for you DG but i'm looking at doing the opposite. Work remotely for a Canadian company while living abroad. I reckon I can at least do some kind of support work to pay my bills for a while while I rest and recharge.

Siouxie

I don't, I know where to look for the information ;p