Post landing as a PR
- Thread starter Rach WLT
- Start date
Would personally try to avoid locking in a rental before you find a place to live because that will really limit where you can realistically commute to or find employment. As a newcomer I would suggest avoiding only applying to places like the GTA or Vancouver. Would also look at commuting routes when considering rental location. I see many people insist on living in some locations where commuting links are horrible.
But the account holder would have to visit a Canada post location before the account can be activated. So, it is not useful when one is overseas.
But the person who asked was looking for ways to show POF without having to carry a lot of cash. Creating any Canadian bank account (which needs activating post landing) should help them with that.
Yes the Canadian bank account (at Tangerine) is created but is not activated yet. One cannot transfer in any funds until it is activated. It's useless if there are no funds in the bank account, isn't it?
I don't know about Tangerine, but any other bank account (Scotia, RBC, etc) can be opened and funds can be transferred. I've opened 4 accounts not too long ago and made transfers to them. You can't use it like a normal bank till it is activated, but you can use it for POF as we get confirmation of balance.
“There are a few realtors who exclusively work for newcomers, but they are likely to ask you for 4-6 month's rent in advance (very predatory, not legal),”
May not be legal , but it could potentially put you at at the top of the list to a landlord when they have 100 applicants for a space.
I’m from Toronto . I rented a place , gave them six months up front with my application. One can’t dick around in this rental marketplace . It’s like the Hunger Games, but it’s for places to rent.
My brother gave a BINDER detailing his and his wife’s life . They moved from out of Province and have an extensive background.
You are right. Rental market in GTA/GVA is very bad. Had a friend who recently moved, ended up paying for 4 month's rent in advance, tricked into renting a place that is still under construction(were promised that the construction would be over). They are still happy though that they didn't had to spend $4-6k/month on Airbnb. As a newcomer who has no job, they are paying $2,100/month of 1BDR near Square one in Mississauga - which I guess isn't too bad of a deal.
You won't necessarily be asked to show proof of the funds at the border when you are landing. I landed at Pearson. The officer asked me about how much money is "available to me". I answered and that was it.
For ideas about how to move the funds over:
- if you can keep a bank account open after you leave UAE, give power of attorney to a trusted friend or family member and they can wire the funds over to your Canadian bank account when you have one. Carry a recent bank statement from your UAE bank and show it if asked. That should be good enough.
- Again along the same lines, if you can keep a UAE credit or debit card active you can use it for the early period. The same person with POA can close it for you when your setup in Canada is ready.
- Look for something called a "Forex Card". I am pretty sure that would be offered in UAE. It's like a pre-paid Visa or MasterCard that you can load with a variety of currencies. USD is very common but I'm sure CAD is an option too. You can use it to make purchases for your first few days and even to withdraw cash at an ATM. Check the fees and exchange rates to make sure it is right for you.
Good luck!
Yup, it's a dog eat dog market in Canada because it's not a first come first served system - it's like an auction and it puts you at a severe disadvantage as a newcomer.
I just went through this in Toronto and had to front 6 months rent. I could theoretically apply to the LTB and ask for it back but I'm not going to do that to maintain a good relationship with the landlord. I willingly offered it to secure the lease even though I knew it was against the RTA.
One more thing. In Ontario you are entitled to interest on your rent deposit according to the RTA equal to the maximum allowable rent increase for rent controlled properties - currently 2.5%.
If you are paying the standard last month the amount is usually too small to cause a fuss about. If you are paying 6, 9, or even 12 months upfront then it gets into the hundreds of dollars and might be worth mentioning when you settle things with your landlord at the end of your lease.
If you are paying the standard last month the amount is usually too small to cause a fuss about. If you are paying 6, 9, or even 12 months upfront then it gets into the hundreds of dollars and might be worth mentioning when you settle things with your landlord at the end of your lease.
It takes a lot of time to evict someone if they stop paying rent and so landlords want to be cautious about renting to the right tenants. There is huge demand for most rentals so landlords can afford to be picky these days. If someone isn’t employed in Canada than that is a risk compared to someone or a couple who has had consistent Canadian employment and a record of paying their rent as a tenant at previous properties. If applying as a newcomer(s) without a job(s) then you often need to make up for the fact that you have no credit check, no job, no rental history, etc. Many offer to pay rent upfront to provide some security to the landlord that rent will be paid during the time before you likely secure a job. We also see many younger people needing parents to sign as a guarantor because they are not working in full-time permanent employment and working on contract or in the gig economy so not in a secure position. Many are not in the position to cover their costs if a renter doesn’t pay rent for 6+ months while you wait for a hearing at the LTB.
I understand and agree with the landlord's perspective. At the same time, when you are actively encouraging hundreds of thousands of newcomers to come to Ontario and Toronto specifically, not all of them will be easily able to come up with tens of thousands of dollars upfront like I had to do - and many others.
I don't have the solution, but it is a real issue!
Don’t think the government is encouraging people to move to Toronto. If anything the government is trying to discourage people from moving to a few large cities and would like newcomers to spread out throughout Canada. There is freedom of movement as a PR so even in the case of PNP many have no intention of living in the nominating province and leave soon after landing and move to mostly the GTA. Do agree that the government immigration targets don’t meet up with infrastructure whether it is housing, healthcare, etc. Would hope that there will be pressure to slow down the number of people immigrating or that immigration would be limited to those intending to meet certain labour requirements. Unfortunately the government is actually making it easier for people to come to Canada versus harder. For example visitors can now arrive and apply for a WP while you were previously required to apply from outside Canada. Processing often takes around 6 months so allowing people to apply within Canada often leads to people working under the table until they can find an employer with a positive LMIA and they get a response about the WP application which usually takes 6 months. Parents can now visit for 5 years with a possible 2 year extension which places huge demand on places like the ER, walk-in clinics and hospitals in general but especially in areas with a large immigrant populations. Those areas already lacked infrastructure for the population size because the areas have seen huge growth and because urban planning had only factored in a typical Canadian household size and not multi-generational households and a high percentage of basement rental units. Visit a hospital in Peel region or Surrey and is a disaster. Realistically almost all of these parents have no intention on leaving if “visiting” for 5-7 years and am not sure what will happen to the hundreds of thousands of parents visiting on supervisas. If they don’t get selected to PGP will they all apply for H&C? That is a huge mess in the making. Lots of mismatch between federal government and provincial governments or even municipal government.
I agree with you that the government's immigration targets don't seem to be meeting up with the infrastructure needs of the country. There is a lot of pressure on housing, healthcare, and other essential services in areas with large immigrant populations.
I think the government should focus on attracting immigrants who are skilled in high-demand occupations. This would help to ensure that immigrants are able to find good jobs and contribute to the economy. It would also help to reduce the strain on public services.
I also think the government should work with provincial and municipal governments to ensure that there is adequate infrastructure in place to support immigrants. This includes things like housing, healthcare, and education.
I think there is a lot of potential for immigration to benefit Canada, but it's important to make sure that we are doing it in a way that is sustainable and that benefits everyone.
Here are some specific suggestions for how the government could improve the immigration process:
- Make it easier for immigrants to find jobs: The government could create a more streamlined process for immigrants to get their credentials recognized in Canada. They could also provide more support for immigrants who are looking for work, such as language training and job placement services.
- Improve access to healthcare: The government could increase funding for healthcare in areas with large immigrant populations. They could also make it easier for immigrants to access healthcare, such as by providing translation services.
- Make it easier for immigrants to integrate into Canadian society: The government could provide more support for immigrants who are learning English or French. They could also offer more programs and services to help immigrants connect with their new communities.