Can a PR holder survive by driving uber full time?
- Thread starter U.F
- Start date
With Uber in order to maximize your income you have to drive in certain areas where you are likely to get back to back fares plus drive at times where demand is high. Unfortunately that also usually involves unruly and sometimes dangerous fares and working Thursday, Friday and Saturday night. Would say Friday and Saturday night from 8pm-3am are big money makers. Unfortunately that often doesn’t work with people’s schedules. Uber can only earn you money in certain cities. In smaller cities most wil have their own transportation. Make sure you register yourself for because you are a private business owner. Some new immigrants have incorrectly assumed that Uber money is all take home pay and some consider it a cash industry that won’t count if you receive welfare. Some have received some very large bills and may have to pay back some or all of their welfare money.
And don't forget it is mandatory to register with the CRA to get a HST/GST registration when ride sharing. So dependent where you are in the country, example, Ontario you would be remitting 13 percent to the Federal Government from what you make from Uber
If you do not register, the Government will then do a mandatory registration back to the date you started ride sharing aka driving, and you will be subject to all penalties and interest
If you do not register, the Government will then do a mandatory registration back to the date you started ride sharing aka driving, and you will be subject to all penalties and interest
Guys I really thank all of you for your input! Do you think overall it's a good idea? I mean it's a little investment (buying a car) but it gets you going almost immediately. If I compare it to the stories of other PR holders, most of them struggle to find a job for 3-6 months and even then land a non professional job. Is there a reason for all these people to not take this 'uber' route?
Do not forget not just the cost of the car but also insurance can be expensive plus of course whether there are any specific challenges with exchanging your country licence in the province you are heading for. As for reason all these people do not take this route more than likely given the payback simply does not live upto expecations as easy money plus of course depending where you are simply competition for fares..
A friend did it as a part time gig, just for the extra cash, but he would time it when the prices surged, and only drove then. He would head downtown Toronto around the time the bars closed, prices surged due to demand. Otherwise he said it was just not worth it
Don't get scared before you make it here. While I get that a lot of people struggle to get a job initially, I know of many (including me) who found jobs in their field pretty easily.* Driving Uber is a good hedge against bad times, but you must understand that the job hunt journey is unique to each individual.
*Very few share good stories. The bad stories are magnified.