After the Covid crisis hit India, a lot of Indians are contemplating moving to other countries like Canada, Australia, Qatar, New Zealand. Any person would want to live in a place where there is a better and economical healthcare system and a better quality of life for you and your kids. There might be other reasons to shift your base too- for instance, better education, safety, or business opportunities.
For long, Canada has been one of the prime locations for Indians to consider moving abroad. In fact, since 2016, the number of Indians moving to Canada has more than doubled. Canada sees a number of immigration requests from citizens of south Asian countries like India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Srilanka, and even African and European countries. Let’s take you through the process of moving to Canada.
There are different options via which you can apply for Canada immigration. These options are-
- Federal Skilled Program
- Provincial Nominee Program
- Quebec Skilled Worker
- Business Immigration, including the Start-Up Visa Program
- Temporary Residence First, Then Transition To Permanent
- Family Class Sponsorship
Basic requirements to apply to Canada are
- ECA (Educational Credentials Assessment) by sending transcripts to WES(World Education Services) or other evaluators like IERF, AES, or CES
- Sufficient proof of funds (Rs. 8-10 lakh and above)
- IELTS test score (Ideal score is 8,7,7,7 in Listening, Reading, Writing, Speaking respectively)
- Funds for applying to WES
- Funds for appearing in IELTS
- Other documentation charges
- Medical and Police Verification
Steps to follow for your immigration
- Canada follows a point-based system. One needs to score 67 points based on age, education, work experience, language skills, etc. First, you need to check your points using this Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS)
- You need to create a WES profile and submit your credentials, pay their fee and send education transcripts (which is done by your university)
- Apply online through an electronic portal called Express Entry, get selected based on your ranking
- Make the final application along with requisite documents and applicable fees.
How many points are required to calculate residency requirement?
You must score 67 points out of 100 to meet Canada residency requirements. If you are accompanied by your spouse, his/her points will also be taken into consideration for PR application.
Federal Skilled Program
Canada operates its federal class immigration system using Express Entry. Express Entry requires candidates to submit a profile, with the highest scoring profiles issued an Invitation to Apply to one of the above immigration programs. Under Express Entry, candidates score Comprehensive Ranking System points for core factors such as age, education, work experience and language ability.
Provincial Nominee Program
You can also consider provincial stream to apply for immigration. There are different provinces in Canada that run their own immigration program based on specific demand of labour in their territory. These provinces are Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan, Prince Edward Island, Yukon.
There are two processes to apply under PNP- Paper based and Online. In paper-based process, you need to apply to a province under non-express entry program after meeting the eligibility criteria. Once you have been nominated, you submit a paper application for permanent residence. Application processing time are longer than through Express Entry.
In the online process, you create an Express Entry profile and show the province you’re interested in. If the province sends ‘Notification of Interest’ and you contact the province for further process. Alternatively, you can contact the province first, and if the province agrees to nominate you then you can create the Express Entry profile and show you have been nominated.
Quebec Skilled Worker (QSW)
The province of Quebec runs its own skilled worker immigration program. The Quebec Skilled Worker Program (QSW) is an immigration program for candidates who have skilled work experience and will be able to make lasting contributions to Quebec’s economy as members of the workforce. Similar to Express Entry, candidates are ranked using a points system and then certain candidates are invited to apply.
Business Immigration
Business immigrants are people who can invest in, or start businesses in Canada and are expected to support the development of a strong and prosperous Canadian economy. There are two categories of Business Immigration- Start-up Visa Program and Self employed
The Start-up Visa Program targets innovative entrepreneurs and links them with private sector investors in Canada who will help establish their start-up business. You can either be an Angel Investor(must invest $75,000 in the business), Venture Capitalist(must invest $200,000 in the business) or Business Incubator.
Under the Self-employed program, the candidate must make a significant contribution to cultural or athletic life in Canada; or you must intend to and be able to buy and manage a farm in Canada.
Temporary Residence First, Then Transition To Permanent
People with Temporary Resident Permits who are looking to move to Permanent Resident Status can do that too. They will need to do it using the Canadian Experience Class where they need to have either two years of work in Canada or completed one year of post-secondary studies as well as one year of work. This is a popular option for those temporary workers who do not meet the points required by the federal skilled worker program.
Family Class Sponsorship
To immigration to Canada, family sponsorship is one of the fastest and most popular ways to gain permanent residence in Canada and is expected to boom again as international travel restrictions ease up this year.
Your relatives can live, study and work in Canada if they become permanent residents of Canada. You can sponsor certain relatives to come to Canada if you’re at least 18 years old and a:
- Canadian citizen or
- person registered in Canada as an Indian under the Canadian Indian Act or
- permanent resident of Canada
Top reasons to move to Canada
- Medical treatment is mostly free and funded by government taxes.
- Kids have access to free public education from the time they are five to around the age of 19
- Work life balance is better as Canadians generally work only 40 hours a week.
- There is paid maternity leave of 15-17 weeks. The extended parental benefits are paid for as long as 61 weeks.
- You also get an Unemployment Benefit up to 45 weeks when you lose your job and if you’re eligible for it
- Canada is safer for immigrants and more tolerant towards them than any other developed country.
- It has huge business opportunities for investors and entrepreneurs
You can get more information about moving to Canada here- https://bit.ly/2S5zx9n
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