Landing at Toronto in July

[khan2015]

I have finally got my immigration visas and for COPR for me and my family and will be landing in mid July. I can stay only for about 10 days! I will stay in Misissuaga. Can anyone please guide what are the most important things I should do in these limited days? Will we be asked about how long we will stay in Canada? Can I give my friend's address or hotel's address for the PR card delivery? How much actual.money should I bring with me, my family consists of my wife and one teenage child? Should the money be cash or can be bank draft? Which band do you recommend for opening account?
Under the current rules, for how long can I stay outside Canada without losing PR status?

Many questions ! appreciate your help

 

[torontosm]

I have finally got my immigration visas and for COPR for me and my family and will be landing in mid July. I can stay only for about 10 days! I will stay in Misissuaga. Can anyone please guide what are the most important things I should do in these limited days? Will we be asked about how long we will stay in Canada? Can I give my friend's address or hotel's address for the PR card delivery? How much actual.money should I bring with me, my family consists of my wife and one teenage child? Should the money be cash or can be bank draft? Which band do you recommend for opening account?
Under the current rules, for how long can I stay outside Canada without losing PR status?

Many questions ! appreciate your help

Congratulations! You may be asked about how long you intend to stay, but be honest...there is nothing wrong with what you are doing. You can stay outside of Canada for another 3 years at the most before you risk going offside on your residency requirements.

you can provide your friend's address for the PR card. there is no point giving your hotel address as it will definitely not come within the 10 days that you are here. your friend will have to mail it to you.

While you are here, I would suggest opening a bank account and getting your SIN card. You can't get a driver's license without a permanent address, and there is no point applying for OHIP as you will not be eligible for it anyway. You can open an account with any bank, as they are all fairly similar in terms of fees and convenience.

I hope this helps.

 

[islamabad786]

Stay close to square one mall. There is one hotel at walking distance to it
It is advisable to provide the address of your friend for PR card delivery as it may take up to 90 days for delivery of PR card these days. Make sure your friend is staying at that address for next 3 to 4 months. You can also change address later online if needed.
Apply for SIN at airport if you are landing during weekdays as nearest Service Canada office is 8 km from square one mall in Mississauga
open an account in bank in TD trust or any other bank. They will issue you a debit card right away and no fee for account for initial 6 months. They are offering free tablet subject to conditions. Do not go for that option as you will be here for 2 weeks. TD square one branch is also open on Sundays. You should bring money as required by CIC for family of three although they don't ask at airport. I would not recommend dollar bank draft as it takes 4 to 6 weeks to transfer to your account. Please bring the B4 form if you bring anything later(goods to follow). It is not required for stuff you are carrying in July.
Do not apply for health card as you will not be staying in Ontario for 3 months.
As per new law, you have to be in Canada for 183 days per year in 4 years out of 6 years to maintain PR status. So you can stay safely for next two years out of Canada.

I have finally got my immigration visas and for COPR for me and my family and will be landing in mid July. I can stay only for about 10 days! I will stay in Misissuaga. Can anyone please guide what are the most important things I should do in these limited days? Will we be asked about how long we will stay in Canada? Can I give my friend's address or hotel's address for the PR card delivery? How much actual.money should I bring with me, my family consists of my wife and one teenage child? Should the money be cash or can be bank draft? Which band do you recommend for opening account?
Under the current rules, for how long can I stay outside Canada without losing PR status?

Many questions ! appreciate your help

 

[khan2015]

Thanks a lot for your replies, this is a great forum!

 

[torontosm]

As per new law, you have to be in Canada for 183 days per year in 4 years out of 6 years to maintain PR status. So you can stay safely for next two years out of Canada.

The "new law" applies to citizenship applicants only. Residency obligations for PR's remain unchanged and the OP can stay out for three years.

 

[Komal.canada]

Very helpful, thanks.

 

[izharsiddiqui]

don't make the mistake of bringing all your money in a CAD bank draft... it took more than 12-15 days for CIBC to remove the hold on my available funds. so carry as much cash you will be needing for the 10 days you're in Canada.

 

[khan2015]

Thanks God, I landed in Canada at Toronto and spend about 15 days in Mississauga, enjoying a lot. I got the SIN cards, opened bank accounts, attended some informative sessions by Center for Education & Training etc and visited a lot of places including Niagra falls. I have now come back and hope that my PR cards will soon be received by my friend and will eventually get to me.

There is one little confusion and need you experts advice on this. When i checked my address, the residence address is showing my Canadian correct address (my friend's home address). However, the mailing address still shows my Saudi PO Box address. Will the PR cards be sent to my Residence address or to the Mailing address which is wrong? Should I update my mailing address and make it the same as the Residence address?

Finally, thanks a lot for the valuable advice I received from this forum before heading for Canada, specially the following great posting by qorax

http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/landing-in-canada-all-you-need-to-know-t36735.0.html

 

[steaky]

don't make the mistake of bringing all your money in a CAD bank draft... it took more than 12-15 days for CIBC to remove the hold on my available funds. so carry as much cash you will be needing for the 10 days you're in Canada.

That's with CIBC. If you deposit the bank draft in HSBC, you could have immediate access to the funds.