5parky

Hi everyone. Firstly, my apologies for the random and somewhat desperate nature of my post. I Came across this forum and thought I may as well try to find the answers I'm looking for.
Basically, having grown increasingly tired of life in the UK over the past few years my wife and I have started to think seriously about emmigration. Canada is #1 on the list but I feel it may be a non-starter
Although I have 10 yrs experience as a factory manager and a post-graduate certificate in management studies they don't really apply to the application process and my points tally is not enough.
We have 3 lovely children and I know that we would all make the most of a new life in Canada, working hard to contribute to the economy and the community but obviously that's not going to lead to a uccesful application
I think I read that if you are able to invest a certain amount of money with the Canadian government for a period of time then you may be able to get in but I'm not sure on that

Any advice, appropriate links or glimmers of hope would be very much appreciated at this point.

Thank you for taking the time to read my post.

Dibbsy

Firstly, there is always hope.

Have you tried employing an agency to help you in this quest? We did 3 years ago & live in Alberta, Canada. We have now been here long enough to apply for Canadian Citizenship, which will go in the mail this week. You can find them in the Yellow Pages under 'emigration'.

Things have not been a piece of cake by any means, you will expect to earn considerably less for your skills here than in the UK, having said that the cost of living is much lower, so it balances out favourably.

We applied on our own, with no sponsorship, no job, nowhere to live, and not much money. Neither my husband or I have fancy jobs, and we had to go for an interview at the Canadian High Commission in London before they would let us in (we just scraped by on points). My Husband went back to school for 2 years & did a Sociology 'A' Level to get the extra 10 points we needed.

Try this Canadian link for info http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/index.html

But the best advice I can give you is 'don't give up on your dream'. We moved from a '2 up, 2 down' just outside Manchester, and now live in a 4 bedroom ranch style house in 7 acres of land, our nearest town is a 20 minute drive, this morning I sat on the front deck with my coffee & gazed at the snow covered Rockies, we have cats and dogs, and 2 horses wandering in our corral that we ride in the mountians. We still have to work , but the Candadian version of 'working hard' is somewhat different here .

Good Luck with your venture.

5parky

Thanks
I certainly don't want to give up just yet, it's just that spending hours on the net trying to figure out the most appropriate way to gain entry along with the continued day-to-day drudgery of our UK life and our overwhelming disappointment at the future prospects for our children takes it's toll eventually.
I will look into an agency and see what it entails.

shriver9

I guess you have checked out the points system, but if you have post grad. cert, may I ask if you have a degree? Generally, if you have a degree, and are below 49 years of age with some work experience, you stand a good chance of getting the required points, since you'll get the full points for english language for having lived and worked in the UK.

Having more than the minimum amount of funds and 3 young kids helps - you won't get additional points for them, but in the big picture, CIC is very interested in your kids as they will help boost up their declining population growth.

If you have studied French before you could take the required exam to get some minimum points for basic knowledge. You could also look into the PNP scheme or getting in via the work permit route.

shriver9

Can you clarify on this?

Thanks.

pennyhp

Hi

we too thought that we stood no chance. We didn't have a hope in the skilled worker category, but if you look up the link posted by Dibbsy and look at the other categories you will see that there is more than one way to skin a cat (or moose).
For a start since you have management experience you may be eligible for the entrepreneur category.
Have you considered a PNP on a business visa - again your management experience could really help.

We have gone for a PNP because it is quicker and there are no restrictions on our visa (if we get it) other than to start or buy the business. Of course the different provinces have their own criteria, so have a good look on the /cic website at the different programmes.

Pennyhp

gavb

I've just completed a three year degree just to get the required points... it was worth it though and I had a great time!!

kt0157

Ah yes, "invest". It's a euphemism. You give the Canadian Government a substantial long-term interest-free loan and they "invest" it in schools, hospitals, flying Canadians to be tortured in Syria, that kind of thing. Worse still, you don't even get a peerage.

It's really a short-cut way of someone like Rupert Murdoch or Bill Gates buying residence. It's not for ordinary people who would need the cash to actually invest in a business.

But there are other ways to skin the cat..

K.

Alberta_Rose

I think when we started the process, the points system was paramount as many applied under the category of "skilled worker" (SW), and qualified on points for their education and experience etc.

Now that the SW process timelines are so terribly long, many of those folk, applying now, will go for the PNP, or work permit route, to cut wait times! If you get an arranged and validated job offer it gives you 10 points towards your PR as well!

If you have a job to go to, you no longer need proof of settlement funds, which may be another consideration. Obviously a possible downside is that having got here, you are stuck with the job you came for for a period of time.

I would ceratinly think that just because you don't think you can scrape together the 67 points for SW you are a lost cause! You may have to be a bit creative though!

Good Luck.

robbudge

One other option is the way we are hopeing to get to canada is FIND A JOB FIRST.

I emailed over 300 comapnies in my field and managed to secure a job offer.
My employer then applied to HRDC to get approval to offer me the job and i am just waiting on CIC to allow to me work as a tempory worker.

Once working in canada i can apply via PNP for residency.

There is quite specific list of 'Skilled Jobs' that the HRDC will allow a tempory working into canada to fill, providing the employer can show that they have tried to recruit a canadian nation.

Hope this gives you another route to look at.

kt0157

This is a good route because you get a lot of points for having a job and also having worked in Canada (which may be years by the time they process your application).

The downside to this approach is that you have to, well, find a job. You need an employer who wants you enough to do all the paperwork proving that there aren't any Canadians to do the job.

K.