guidance/suggestions how to immigrate

[Flo85]

Hello everyone,

I’ve been in Canada for 1,5 years from 2011-2013 (1 year work and travel visa and 5 month tourist visa) and I am planning to go back for good, Immigration!
I am currently finishing my study, writing my Master thesis in Germany and right after that I plan to move to Canada. I started to get some information from the website www.cic.ca but know that I am probably not eligible to immigrate right now. I don’t have a job offer yet and no family in Canada.
So my plan is to come to Canada (Northwest Territories) to stay with my girlfriend (Canadian citizen) and start looking for job once I am there in order to meet the specifications of applying for Immigration.
I figured with not enough work experience in my field because I’m just finishing my study I cannot start applying right now for Immigration.
I know I can’t come to Canada to look for work; my intention of going back is of course mainly to stay with my girlfriend. I also know the easiest way would be probably marriage but that should not be the purpose of ours and only the last way to legally stay in Canada.
I know that up north a lot of jobs are available in my field (environmental engineering).

So is there some guidance what is best to do in my position?
And is my plan maybe not well wrought?

Your help is very much appreciated

 

[Spikey92]

When you were in Canada did u live with your girlfriend? If you have lived with her for at least 12 months and got proof of that,she can sponsor you as common law partner.
A marriage doesnt automatically give you a visa or let you immigrate. Your girlfriend or then wife would still need to sponsor you.

 

[asbereth]

Hi Flo85,

So you were on work permit for 1 year within the last three years? Did you have a skilled job during this period (I asked because it was a 'work' visa)? If so, and if your work experience can be classified under skill level A, B, or 0, then you may be qualified to apply under the Canadian Experience Class (since it only requires one year of full-time work experience within the last three years).

This stream is the easiest to qualify if you have one year of full-time skilled Canadian work experience (which you probably do since you were under work permit for a year, but make sure that it is 'skilled' work experience), and probably the fastest way to move to Canada as an economic migrant. You have to move fast though since your days in 2011 are moving out of the window fast (they only consider the past three years).

Good luck.

 

[Flo85]

thx for the replies.
@spikey: the problem with these 12 months of living together is, that my overall stay of 1,5 years was interrupted by 2 months where i went back to Germany in order to figure things out after my 1 year work and travel permit expired. after these 2 months in Germany I lived another 5 month together with her. So I dont know if these 12 months can be interrupted??

@asbereth: yes, I went to Canada at the end of August 2011 until August 2012 with a work and travel visa, following 2 months in Germany before I came back for another 5 months from the end of October 2012 until the end of March 2013.
My work unfortunately covers only 10 months of my stay while I had my work visa.

Right now I'm located in Germany finishing my Diploma engineering degree and after that (by the end of the year) I want to come back to Canada to see/live with my girlfriend. During this time I want to see if engineering companies up north will seek for engineers like me, so that I could apply for the "young professional program" under the IEC!

Has anyone suggestions what would be a more proper way to be prepared once I will arrive in Canada by the end of the year?

Thank you in advance for your help

 

[Spikey92]

Unfortunately the 12 months cannot be interrupted ,I think a week or two for a business trip are okay but not 2 months.
If you dont find a job ,you might consider getting married,then she can sponsor you as spouse.
But this is just incase you were already thinking of marrying her anyways.please dont just marry for immigration purposes!

But hopefully you can find a job and immigrate through this path.

Viel Glueck!

 

[Flo85]

Ok that is no problem, I figured that already.
Yeah we were talking about getting married if nothing will work out with finding a job but actually we dont want to do that just for immigration purpose.

So the easiest way for me would be the "young professional program" through the IEC program so I won't need a LMO for my VISA.
I have a question to the "work and travel" visa. Am I eligible to work as a skilled worker under this skill lvl A,B,0 with that kind of visa?

How get people VISA without having a job offer, without beeing a refugee and not beeing sponsored or is that not possible?
I read every now and then that people arrive in Canada and then start looking for jobs!?

thanks for all your help

 

[Spikey92]

I'm pretty sure the work &travel visa is an open work permit.you can work anything except in childcare and hospitals.
The only way to get a work permit without being sponsored, a refugee or having a job offer is through the IEC path (work and travel).
You still need a job offer for the young professional class,BUT every employer could technically give you one,as he doesnt have to get a LMO for a temporary employees. But your visa wont be an open one,it will have the companies name on it.

If everything doesnt work out,you can come to Canada as a tourist and ask for an extension before your tourist visa expires. That way you can live with your girlfriend for 12 months and then qualify for common law sponsorship. Or you stay 5 months see how everything works out,then get married and then apply for spouse sponsorship.If you apply inland you can stay in canada after your tourist visa expires,because you will have implied status, from the moment CIC receives your application until you hear back from them.

 

[Flo85]

Oh wow. Thank you for all the information.
That is very helpful.

How long would be the extension and what are proper reasons? I mean they wouldn't extend my visitor visa because I want to stay with my girlfriend a bit longer!?

Regarding the work and travel visa. Are you sure that I also could work as a skilled worker with that. I don't want to bring my boss trouble because of that.
Does my boss have to fill out a form or something special in order to prove that I worked as a skilled worker? I mean I just worked there for 10 months but I think it's still going to help me on my resume.

 

[Flo85]

Hello everyone,

I have a question to the visitor visa. Once I asked Canada to extend my visitor visa in order to meet the requirements to live with my girlfriend together for 1 year, would CIC extend my 6-month visitor visa for another 6 months or what is the maximum extention?

My other question is about the "work&travel visa". Would I be allowed to work as skilled worker with that visa?

Thank you all for your help.

Flo