Hey everyone..............I have been a member for about a month or so now...........having introduced myself on the Meet And Greet Thread, and had a few drinkies at the Pass Inn And Pass Out thread........and I do need as much help as I can.


Ok basically I have recently met a wonderful Lady living in Edmonton, Alberta. As time has gone on we have grown closer and closer to the point where we both feel that we belong together. As my sister has recently emmigrated to Australia, I am kind of getting tiresome of the Uk and want to broaden my horizons, so to speak. As Myself and this Canadian Lady have reached the point where we want to be together forever (corny I know, but it really is the truth), I am thinking of proposing...............now my question is, and the info I need help with, is, should we get married, would that qualify me for Canadian Citizenship...........or how far would it get me with the application process.

Judy has given me an article to read (http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Spousa...sorship-Canada), but was wondering if any fellow BE Members have taken or taking a similar road to me???

Many thanks for taking the time and effort to read my post, and I look forward to meeting more friends

Do you live with the Canadian citizen? If not, can you live together for 12mths to be eligible for as common-law partners if you don't want to marry? Either way, it won't be citizenship you'll get - it'll be a permanent resident visa. After 3yrs living in Canada (of the previous 4) you'll then be eligible to apply for citizenship.

Oh, and welcome to BE

Ok....no I am not living with her..........yet. I am still in the UK and she is in Edmonton, Alberta.

I could take a career break of 12 months from my current employment, like a sabatical, and live there for 12 months, but how would I support myself financially??

How old are you, are you eligible for Bunac? Is she eligible for a UK visa?

I am 33 years old (last wednesday)...and to be honest, I want to get away from the UK....I do not want to live here and it's pants weather climate any longer.

I appreciate all your help with this

Thank you

welcome, i think biiiiink , was checking if you were 30 or less and would have ask you to take the BUNAC route to get a 12 months work auth, with this could check to see if you truly want ot be there and take it from there.

well, yea you can marry her and go through the spousal route, also depending on your skills can take the skills route(long one dear 5yrs) but if you can get a job offer and a positive LMO, Labour market Opinion, then you good. your skills has to be in demand b4 u can speed this up. I am sure you can check your skills up here and ie maybe your girlfriend can help you in the JOb search then you good as well.

http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/workplaces...bouplist.shtml

good luck and someone will come along to help.

The original poster is a 33-year-old postman (letter carrier in Canadian).

Gingerdom, you're too old for BUNAC, and your occupation is not listed as an Occupation under Pressure in any province.

A skilled worker application is not good for anything unless you're in an Occupation under Pressure and have a job offer. But, even so, just to be able to fill in a skilled worker application, you have to belong to Skill Level 0, A or B on the National Occupational Classification Matrix. A letter carrier belongs to Skill Level C, so cannot apply as a skilled worker.

Gingerdom, let me cut to the chase and save you some time. According to my knowledge of the Canadian immigration system (but keep in mind that I'm not a professional in the field, just a frequent participant on this forum), your only hope of gaining entry to Canada is to marry your friend in Edmonton and have her sponsor your application.

Keep everything (letters, photos, e-mails or whatever else) that demonstrates how your friendship grew. This will help you to convince Citizenship and Immigration Canada that, if the two of you do get married, it isn't a marriage of convenience (that is, a marriage that was entered into for the sole purpose of facilitating your entry to Canada). They're usually less picky with applicants from First World countries, but you can never be too careful.
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Judy, just asking , what countries are first world?? haha

I was trying to tell ginger that the BUNAC thing wont help as he is over the age limit.

It's a good question.

A very rough guide that I use, for the purposes of gauging how Citizenship and Immigration Canada will view things, is whether or not a citizen of a certain country requires a temporary residence visa (TRV) in order to visit Canada as a tourist. Here is the list of countries whose citizens do need TRVs.

It never ceases to astonish me that citizens of my home country, Swaziland, do not need TRVs to visit Canada. With the highest prevalence of AIDS in the world and a variety of other problems, Swaziland is not a First World country in any way, shape or form.
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Hi

Because there are very few refugee claimants from Swaziland, actually in the top 10 countries refugee claimants for 2006, the only country that makes the list at No.1 that doesn't require a TRV is Mexico. (Partner in Nafta, not PC to require visitor visa, although used to be required. Here is the list: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resourc...mporary/21.asp