AmandaHughes

Hi
We are a uk family who are thinking about a possible move to Canada, we have been back in the Uk since June 2014 after 7 years in Dubai. We have since decided that maybe the Uk is not for us in the long term. My husband is in IT and I am a stay at home mum but do have childcare qualifications. We have 2 boys aged 10 and 7. Basically we would just like some info from those who have made the move, from the research we have done (which is in the early stages) we would most likely prefer to live nearby Toronto or Vancouver.
How easy/difficult is the visa process?
Do most people find work manage to find work before arrival or is it best to be on the ground looking for a job ?
How is Canada an improvement on UK life ?
We would have around £200,000 in savings from the sale of our house but of course would have to think about buying a home etc ?
Any tips would be greatly helpful
Thanks

mikelincs

Welcome to BE.

Please have a read of the information in this part of the BE Wiki to see just what sort of visa you would qualify for, and the points you could claim.

Quick Guide to Canadian Immigration : British Expat Wiki

christmasoompa

Hi, and welcome to BE.

As said above, your first step is to see if you'd be likely to get a visa, particularly as if you need a job offer to get a visa you may find that you'll have to go wherever you can find work from an employer prepared to sponsor you, and that may not be in Toronto or Vancouver.

But to answer your questions, the visa process is fairly straightforward if you qualify for one, you'll usually need to be in Canada to get a job (hint: the Job Hunting section of the Wiki is useful reading), I personally prefer the UK to Canada for my family (but others are the other way around - a quick search of the forum will give you various opinions), and do factor in the £20-30k or so the move will cost you and that you'll need proof of funds of $23k or so to qualify for PR (presumably before you sell your house).

If you've got any further questions then please do start your own thread rather than posting on somebody else's, and you will get more answers/views too.

HTH a bit, best of luck with it all.

christmasoompa

As you've reposted, I'll move the replies on the other thread to here so it's all in one place.

plasticcanuck

Firstly determine if you're eligible to immigrate to Canada. Not everyone is.

Apply to immigrate to Canada

AmandaHughes

Thanks� ����

christmasoompa

No probs, best of luck.

Engineer_abroad

Once you get your head round the main process and if you are looking at permanent resident make sure you look into how to get police certificates for UAE. As you lived there for more than 6 months you will one. It can be a long drawn out affair for some places (as I am finding for Argentina).
Good luck

jjenuk

Hi Amanda, we are in a similar situation to you, currently in the early stages of looking to make the move, be interested to hear how things progress for you and look forward to hearing feedback from experienced expats already in Canada