Why is it so Hard to Immigrate to Canada? Part 2

Possibility #2:

Professional and/or Academic credentials may not transfer when you move to Canada.
We’ve all heard the stories about successful doctors who come to Canada only to be unable to practice because one of many bodies refuses to recognize their credentials. Or foreign engineers who end up working low-paying, non-engineering jobs in Canada while jumping through hoops to be recognized as accredited.

Possible solutions:

Before you immigrate to Canada, check with the appropriate governing bodies that your credentials will transfer. If not, find out what tests/schooling you might have to take to be recognized.

Check This Out: Expat Explorer Survey

Watch this:

Why Is It So Hard to Immigrate to Canada? Part 1

Why is it so hard to immigrate to Canada?

Possibility #1:

It is hard to leave behind a life in another country and start again in Canada where the cultures, norms, entertainment, consumer products, food, clothing, schools, jobs, laws, etc are different.
My coworker (originally for Egypt) told me that her family was excited to find that the grocery store near their home sold a kind of juice from Egypt. She said they weren’t very fond of the juice before, but they buy it and enjoy it now just because it is something familiar from back home.

And it’s not just foods and juices that you will end up missing when you come to Canada. Things that everyone takes for granted every day might not exist or be completely different in Canada. This might be hard to imagine, but it is a reality. And it might be very hard to adjust to this reality.

Possible solutions:

The internet offers plenty of forums where you can find recommendations on where to get goods from home and where the nearest cultural center might be.


Bonus! Educational Canadian food history video:

This Week's Topic

I don’t really know if anyone is reading this blog yet, but if you’re like me you might have noticed a connection over the last few posts: it’s tough to immigrate to Canada. (I am thinking of the news story about the hopeful would-be immigrants being pushed to the back of an enormous line, and a comment made in the brief interview with my Thai friend.)

So the topic for all of this week’s blog posts is going to be: Why is it so hard to immigrate to Canada?

I am going to try to present as balanced of a view as I can. However, I may miss some perspectives or information. Please feel free to fill me in on what I’ve missed in the comments, on twitter ( @MBlogger2 ) or by email ( comingtocanadablog@gmail.com ).

Live on Twitter

Currently tweeting-away ( @MBlogger2  www.twitter.com ) about Canadian Immigration facts and trivia. Tweet me your questions, facts, and trivia about Canadian immigration.

International Interviews Part 1

I posed the following questions of some international friends of mine (who will remain anonymous here) who I met while they were in Canada to get an idea of why some people choose not to seek permanent residence in Canada and/or return to their home country after their visa expires. Here are the results which they gave me permission to post online.

Interviewee #1, Female, from Germany

Q: What type of visa did you first come to Canada on?

A: “I came with a work & travel visa (2012) but I had been to Canada twice before as an exchange student during high school (2001) and as a tourist visiting my host family again (2005).”

Q: Did you intend to stay in Canada permanently if you could?

A: “No.”

Q: If not, why?

A: “I love Canada but the great thing about living in a foreign country is that you start to appreciate your own country and culture more than you did before. I loved every single day I spent in Canada but towards the end of my stays I always realized that there were a lot of people and things I was looking forward to in Germany.”

Q: Would you ever consider permanently immigrating to Canada?

A: “Yes.”

Q: Why or why not?

A: “Canada would be the first country I would immigrate to if I could choose freely. Probably immigrating within the European Union would be much easier when it comes to paperwork etc. but I don't really know anything about those things. I would like to live in Canada because I speak the language, the Canadians were always very friendly and welcoming, as a European it is mostly quite easy to adapt to Canadian culture, I love the Canadian landscapes and the outdoor activities they have to offer. And one very important thing is that during my stays I also realized that Canada is not the land of milk and honey but has its downsides. The fact that despite of these I can still picture myself becoming very happy in Canada makes me even more sure about Canada being my first choice if I would ever consider to emmigrate [sic].”

Interviewee #2, Female, from Thailand

Q: What type of visa did you first come to Canada on?

A: “Student visa got me there.”

Q: Did you intend to stay in Canada permanently if you could? If not, why?

A: “I actually did if I can”

Q: Would you ever consider permanently immigrating to Canada? Why or why not?

A: “Yes i would.. but I have heard that it was so hard to not having the prefessional [sic] degrees in order to get the permanent residence.. and if I happened to study there, i wont have a chance doing a part-time work.. there were quiet a few limitations there..so yea.. I ended going to Australia where is a lot easier in getting a job, and getting permanent residence.. :)” [sic]

*******

So, what do you think readers? Would you immigrate to Canada if you could? Let me know in the comments or on twitter ( @MBlogger2 ) or by email ( comingtocanadablog@gmail.com )

Losing Your Place in the Immigration Queue

I read this news story a couple of weeks back:
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/line+Potential+immigrants+have+lost+their+place+queue+tell+their+stories/6937506/story.html

So, the big question in my mind was if the individuals interviewed in this article were representative of what's really going on, you know?

Do you know anyone who's been waiting for years to come to Canada? Do you know anyone who was moved to the back of this "line" and has to now start the whole process over again? Has this happened to you?

Please share any information and stories in the comments.

PS You can follow me on twitter @MBlogger2 or email me at comingtocanadablog@gmail.com

A Brief Video About Immigration

Immigrant: What's in a label?

What’s in a label?

Do you remember back in high school when they told you that one effective way of starting an essay is with a definition (preferably taken from the Oxford English Dictionary)? Well I figured I could start with some definitions for clarity. I’ve found it really helps a discussion when everyone is on the same page.

Why do we all need to be on the same page you ask? “I already know what an immigrant is…” you might have just mumbled to your computer/laptop/tablet/phone screen. Well, I have personally experienced and witnessed confusion and ignorance about what it means to be an immigrant. Often, what I hear from others shows that they are confusing immigrants with refugees, and this causes them to misunderstand the whole system and get pretty upset about the issues for the wrong reasons. So, let’s all be clear on what we’re talking about here:

[Note: I’m going to get these definitions from Microsoft Word with the ol’ right click>look up method since not everyone has a fancy OED laying around and some skeptics might want to verify that I am not misrepresenting the facts or making up my own definitions.]

Immigrant: (noun)
1.      somebody settling in country
a.      a newcomer to a country who has settled there
(adjective)
1.      settling in another country
a.      relating to those who have come to settle in another country

Expatriate: (noun)
1.      somebody who has moved abroad
a.      a citizen who has left his or her own country to live in another, usually for a prolonged period
2.      somebody without citizenship
a.      a citizen who has renounced his or her citizenship or whose citizenship has been revoked.

Emigrant: (noun)
1.      somebody who moves to another country
a.      somebody who leaves a place, especially his or her native country, to go and live elsewhere

Refugee: (noun)
1.      somebody seeking safe place
a.      somebody who seeks or takes refuge in a foreign country, especially to avoid war or persecution

So according to Microsoft Word, all of these words are synonyms for each other. That is, they have similar meanings. Similar meanings do not mean they are exactly the same, though. Each of the above words has a slightly different definition. They are not necessarily interchangeable.

Here’s how I interpret these different words and meanings:

-An immigrant is a person who has settled in Canada. Settling implies that they have established themselves in our country. These are the sort of people who come here not only to work but to establish their lives in Canada. They want to stay and grow in Canada.

-An expatriate is mostly clearly separated from an immigrant by the words “prolonged period” in the definition above. To me, this implies that although an expatriate is living in a country they might not be intentionally putting down roots there. (That’s not to say they won’t fall in love with Canada and end up staying forever… this country does tend to grow on you, I think.)

-An emigrant is the synonym that has the most similar meaning to immigrant, in my opinion. The big difference, for me, is that emigrant is about leaving and immigrant is about arriving. You emigrate from one country and immigrate into another.

-A refugee is different from an immigrant in my opinion. The definitions seem to suggest that immigrants make a conscious decision to leave one place and establish themselves in another, new place whereas refugees may not necessarily choose to leave their country but fell it is not safe for them there or that they have to leave for their safety. Refugees might arrive in Canada without a job lined up and with poor English or French skills or they might be highly employable and have excellent language skills. They may not have chosen Canada specifically to flee to and any safe country might have done just as well, or they might have heard Canada was a place that they could seek refuge in. Everyone’s personal case could be wildly different so it is important not to assume all refugees are the same or come from the same kind of situation.

So, you’ve read what I think… What do you think? What do these words make you think about?

 If you came to Canada from another country, which word do you use to describe yourself? Do any of these terms accurately describe how you feel? Do you feel there is more stigma attached to one term or another?

The floor is all yours in the comments section!

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Introductions

The Topic: Immigration in Canada (in all its shapes and forms, victories and challenges, pitfalls and triumphs)

About your blog-tastic author: Hey! You can call me M. And I’m a Canadian-born woman… and I have some vague academic credentials around here somewhere. Where did I put them? Ah! There they are: I’m a fourth-year university student studying English and Political Science. My studies in Political Science have focused on the Canadian Political system at all levels from Municipal to Federal.

Now, I’ll admit I’ve always vaguely enjoyed Canadian Politics. And I’m a pretty proud Canadian/Canadienne. However, I never really thought I had anything truly significant to contribute to the plethora of voices that make up this incredible country. I hadn’t found any issue that I thought was worth risking delusional internet self-importance a starting a blog about. I mean, who cares what I think about the Prime Minister? Anyone with a keyboard can stand on a soap box and shout out their opinions. So, I want this to be an informed blog. I’m going to be honest and open I can be, given natural human biases. If you disagree with me I want you to comment! That’s my philosophy.

However, I seem to have gone off-track here. Ooops! So, why am I suddenly passionate and jazzed about Canadian immigration issues? Well, I recently met an amazing man who happens to be a would-be Canadian Immigrant. (Currently, he is in Canada on a work visa.) As we began dating, I found myself frequently answering questions posed by my friends and family about what it meant to date an immigrant, how the Canadian immigration system works, etc. And, I’ll admit I struggled to answer some of these questions. I started looking at my life more closely and realized that I am surrounded by immigrants and aspiring immigrants everyday at work and school. That was when I realized that even though it is often said that we are a “country of immigrants”, Canadians are often unaware of the immigrant experience.

Now, I am not an immigrant. I cannot presume to speak for the people who come to this country hoping to establish their lives. I can’t tell any Canadians (whether they were born here or not) how they should feel about immigration.

Instead, I just want to share my own experiences with immigration-issues in Canada, pose my questions, muse on some thoughts, do a little research and post some information. Hopefully, some of you out there have the same questions as I do. Maybe you can help me answer them. Maybe we can discuss these issues together. Maybe you’ll learn something new from me. Maybe I can show you another side to an issue. More likely, you folks are going to teach me new things and open my eyes to new ideas. That’s what I hope to do with this blog.

So, buckle-up because things are about to get international!

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