Medical Exams and Work Permits

Unlike applicants for permanent residence who always require a medical exam, an applicant seeking a temporary work permit may or may not have to undergo a medical exam. Only the following temporary workers must undergo a medical exam prior to entering Canada:

1) Applicants who will work in Canada for 6 months or longer, and who come from (or have resided in) these designated countries.

2) Applicants who will work in occupations in which the protection of public health is essential. Such occupations include teachers, domestic workers, day nursery employees, and others.

You can expect a 2 to 3 month delay in processing your temporary work permit if a medical exam is necessary.

Investor Financing

Individuals with a net worth of at least CAD $800,000 and appropriate business experience may qualify for Canadian immigration under the investor category. This can be an attractive option, especially for older individuals who would not qualify as skilled workers. The process can also be completed relatively quickly if an individual applies through a provincial nomination program.

There is a catch however: the applicant has to lend the Canadian government CAD $400,000 for 5 years interest-free. The opportunity costs on this amount of money can be substantial. However, there are government-approved financial facilitators that will finance this contribution and it works like this: the investor pays the facilitator a non-refundable fee of about CAD $120,000 which represents the predicted lost interest on CAD $400,000 over 5 years (roughly 7 percent). The facilitator then forwards CAD $400,000 to the government on the investor's behalf, and the facilitator receives that amount back at the end of 5 years.

This is a good option if an applicant has substantial monies in high-yield investments and does not wish to liquidate for immigration purposes.

Settlement Fund Tips

Under the skilled worker category, an applicant has to show sufficient settlement funds in order to be successful. These funds are required so an applicant can support himself or herself (and accompanying family members) between the time of landing and the time the applicant obtains employment. Required funds depend on number of accompanying family members, ranging from $10,000 for a single applicant to over $25,000 for a family of seven or more people.

There are two significant points to keep in mind when determining the amount of settlement funds for skiller worker immigration:

1. If an applicant is awarded points for arranged employment in Canada then the applicant is not required to show any amount of settlement funds. This is based on the fact that the applicant will have employment on arrival in Canada.

2. Settlement funds can initially be held in property (or other assets) that will be liquidated if the applicant is successful, provided that the property or assets are properly valued. CIC officers are required to given an applicant an opportunity to establish that he or she meets the settlement fund requirements, which gives an applicant a relatively short period in which to liquidate assets, if necessary.

If an applicant cannot satisfy a CIC officer that he or she has sufficient settlement funds, the applicant can be refused admission to Canada.

Foreign Worker Statistics

The numbers are in: 2004 greeted 6% more foreign temporary workers for a total of 90,661. Labour shortages in certain industries - combined with NAFTA rules that ease labour movements into Canada from the US and Mexico - have presented numerous opportunities for foreign nationals to work in Canada. The big bonus for these folks is that a work stint in Canada can help increase a skilled worker immigration point score, especially for those who lack a university or college degree.

Here's the breakdown by CIC of the top 5 sources for foreign workers in 2004:

United States - 15,226
Mexico - 11,347
United Kingdom - 7,337
Australia - 7,268
France - 6,479

Immigration "Lock-In" Dates

Parents take note: if your child is approaching age 22 and you plan to immigrate to Canada, you should ensure your application is submitted to the appropriate Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) processing office before your child turns 22. CIC will "lock-in" your child's age as of the date of the application, so even if your child is over 22 by the time your application is accepted, he or she will still be admissible to Canada as your dependent child (so long as all other requirements are met).

Section 5.19 of the CIC Oversease Processing Procedures states that "Lock-in (of age) occurs when a visa office has accepted a submission as an application...If age is a factor that makes an applicant admissible, officers should use their age on the lock-in date. As long as they are the right age on the lock-in date, they can surpass it before admission."

So get that application in as soon as possible, even if you don't yet have some supporting documentation that is not essential for a complete application (e.g., criminal record check, etc.) .

There are certain circumstances under which a child who is over age 22 can accompany his or her parents, but I'll cover those another time.

Foreign Credential Recognition

Earlier this year, the federal government announced it would be spending some serious money to help various industries and regulatory bodies across the country to recognize immigrants who have foreign credentials, allowing them to work in the field of their training.

There have been long-standing complaints from the immigrant community that highly-trained individuals were frustrated with the legal hoops that prevented them from working in their own (mostly higher paid) occupation.

As this program rolls out we're going to see some very interesting results in my view. Until now, immigrants have been more likely to become entrepreneurs and start their own businesses in Canada than anyone born here. Traditional wisdom has said that this 'entrepreneurial spirit' was simply a reaction to the frustrations immigrants faced in working in their field of training. I've never felt comfortable with this explanation. My perspective has always been that once immigrants arrive, they recognize that Canada is geared toward business in terms of generous tax allowances, government grants and a stable workforce. My view is that immigrants start businesses because it makes sense -- not necessarily because they can't work within their field of expertise.

As foreign credential recognition in Canada kicks into high gear, it will be interesting to see if the high rates of entreprenuerialism among immigrants remains -- even once the occupational hurdles are cleared away for good.

Destination: Saskatchewan

Looks like Saskatchewan is getting serious about attracting immigrants.

A new agreement with the federal government signed June 1, 2005, allowing foreign workers to be nominated by the province for a whopping 45% of all jobs in the province. Skilled workers and farmers are in short supply, the latter suffering from the fact that many young men and women no longer want to carry-on with the family farm business.

If you're a skilled worker, professional, health professional, business person or farmer, Saskatchewan can offer a fast track into Canada, especially if you long for a wide open prairie landscape and inexpensive housing as compared to Vancouver and Toronto, the traditional destination cities for immigrants.

My guess is that this fast-track immigration program is going to be very popular, especially for skilled professionals frustrated at the lengthy processing times in so many countries around the world.

NAFTA Temporary Work Permits

I get a lot of phone calls from US and Mexican citizens seeking a temporary work permit and wondering if their current job offer will qualify for HSRDC confirmation (i.e., won't impact negatively on the job market by preventing a qualified Canadian from doing that job).

These folks are often pleased to hear that NAFTA can often provide a key for easy entry into the Canadian labour market for a number of occupations such as:

Business visitors (e.g., marketing, sales, buyers, distributors, etc.)

Professionals (e.g., accountants, computer systems analysts, graphic designers, librarians, lawyers (surprise, surprise) etc.)

Intra-Company transferees

Traders (business trading in goods or services with Canada, the US and Mexico)

Lots of opportunity here to bypass the sometimes tough hurdle of HRSDC confirmations.

Post-Graduate Work Permit

As of May 16, 2005, many students will be able to work in Canada for up to 2 years in their field of study -- if they apply. This is a great advantage for those seeking to immigrate permanently, as working in Canada can increase an applicant's skilled worker score tremendously. However, only students who gradute from a Canadian university, a community college, a CEGEP, a publicly funded trade or technical school or a Canadian private institution authorized by provincial statute to confer degrees are eligible for the work permit. These restrictions were designed to prevent schools from "popping-up" solely for the purpose of streaming students into the workforce.

Unfortunately, the restrictions capture prestigious, private schools such as the Vancouver Film School that produce high quality graduates who could certainly contribute to local industry. I understand CIC officials are trying to deal with this issue, but for now, certain students who should be able to take advantage of the program are excluded.