A Guide to Canadian Immigration

Canada has a pretty impressive immigration rate with 300,000 new immigrants coming in every year.  It has literally been the land for immigrants since it saw its first European settlers in the 16th century, and it continues to be a beautiful destination for many people around the world looking for a new life and opportunities.

If you’re also one of these people looking for a way to get to Canada. This guide and an experienced immigration consultant for Canada is your best bet.

Basic Things to Know About the Canadian Immigration Process

Immigration is an exciting process, but it can be slightly daunting for you if you’re never looked into it before. Here are a few basic facts you should know about Canadian immigration to get up to speed:

• Non-Canadians can travel and live in Canada in two ways. The first way involved obtaining a permanent residence visa. The second approach is to arrive on a temporary work permit.
• A Canadian immigration visa gives you almost all the same rights as Canadian citizens.
• You can retain the Canadian residency status and the rights as long as you stay in Canada for 2 years in every 5 years.
• After completing 3 years of Canadian residency, one is eligible to apply for citizenship.
• Canada allows you to be a dual citizen—you do not need to give up your current nationality or passport to become a Canadian citizen.
• The two main differences between being a citizen and a permanent resident are that as a permanent resident you can’t vote. More importantly, you can be deported in case you commit a serious crime. But once you’re a citizen, you won’t be deported, instead, you’ll be dealt with under Canadian law like any other citizen.
• Canadian immigration is divided into 6 main categories with each category having its own set of requirements. Two additional categories that may show up in your research are Asylum and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Understanding the Different Categories

Every category is designed to cater to a specific group of immigrants based on their personal details, skills and education and so on. Thereby, they all have their own set of eligibility requirements as well.

Here’s a brief breakdown of each category:

Federal Skilled Worker

As the name suggests, this category is for skilled workers and professionals—basically, people who are more likely to become economically settled after moving to Canada. People with relevant work experience, or those living as temporary foreign workers or students in Canada for a year, or those with a permanent job offer from a Canadian employer are eligible for this category.

Some other factors that play a role in eligibility and selection:

• Present financial stability—should be enough to be able to settle on arrival
• Education
• Language skills (English and/or French)
• Work experience
• Age
• General adaptability factors

Quebec Skilled Worker

This category is exclusively for those who wish to live in Quebec after immigration to Canada. It’s basically the skilled worker category but with a slightly different selection process i.e. the Quebec Selection criteria.

The main differences in the CIC evaluation and the one used by Quebec are the ways points are allotted for each factor (including the ones based on one’s family structure)

Provincial Nominee Program

This is a very swift process and is basically a product of partnerships between the federal governments and the provincial governments. You can choose a program based on the province you want to settle in.

There are currently 10 provinces that are participating in this program and they each have their own set of requirements.

Family Sponsorship

This is a very useful program that allows you to sponsor close family when you’re already in Canada. There is a list of family members you can sponsor through which includes spouses, parents, grandparents, dependent children including those you wish to adopt, or relatives with no other guardians or close family.

But the main factor that plays a role in the sponsorship is your financial ability to provide for the family you’re sponsoring.

Business Immigrant

If you think you can contribute to Canada’s economy through your managerial or investment skills—this category is for you. If you think you have the resources and skills to help the Canadian economy flourish and can create jobs, then you can apply to this program under three of its subcategories. Each has its own requirements.

Canadian Experience Class

This category is exclusively for the temporary foreign workers and students who are already in Canada and hoping to become permanent residents. The evaluation criteria for this category are based on a very simple fail or pass model.

Read also – How-to-buy-a-house-in-Canada

The category assumes that having work experience or student life in Canada has already helped settle the applicant in Canadian society. But it does look at some other eligibility factors like successful completion of the study program and so on.  

Find A Canadian Immigration Lawyer to Streamline the Process for You

The Canadian immigration process can be a whirlwind for people that are not familiar with it. This is why it’s wise to hire an immigration lawyer that can help you make sense of the many categories and rules.

If you’re already in Canada, our experienced immigration lawyers in Toronto can help you out with the process. We also offer estate lawyers, family lawyers and other legal services for our clients in Canada.

Get in touch to learn more about our services.

About the Author

This post is written by one of our retired immigration lawyers at Nanda & Associate Lawyers. They understand the ins and outs of the Canadian immigration system very well and are still our go-to person for complex cases.