Landed on March 6 around 6am on Toronto Pearson terminal 1 via Air Canada with a connection to Ottawa. I didn't have to recheck my bags, they were sent straight to the final destination. There is a Service Canada open from Monday to Friday on Terminal 1, from 6am to 9pm (I saw the hours written on a sign).
After exiting the plane I followed the flock until an area with automated kiosks. I had filled arivecan so the kiosk just took my picture and printed the receipt. I don't think it would make much difference without arivecan, you would probably just need to answer the same questions on the screen. There was some immigration officers at the end of the room processing some people and one officer checking people's receipt at the end of the line, asking questions and directing them to an officer or to just go ahead. This officer didn't ask me anything, didn't even check my passport, he just marked the receipt with a line from top to bottom and told me to go ahead. A few meters ahead another officer directed me to the right and told me to take the elevator at the end of the hall to the floor below. Exiting the elevator there was another place with the automated kiosks, I had to stay in line but didn't have to use them since I already had a receipt. The setup were the same as before; a few officers processing people and one officer directing people. This one was asking a lot of questions to pretty much everyone in the line, like where they would be staying and what places they would visit. He didn't ask me anything, he saw the receipt from a distance and just said "oh, you can go". A few meters ahead another officer directed me to the right again, to another room. Right after the door there was an officer that just asked if I have COPR, I said yes and she directed me to take the second door at the right. There were about 3 officers processing people inside, but apparently I was the only PR there. They were checking every piece of documentation of everyone else and most people spent a long time explaining things to them. When it was my turn, I said it was my first landing and handled over the kiosk receipt, COPR, passport and the address for the PR card already written on a paper. He only asked in what flight I arrived and told me to sit while he process the documents. 5 minutes later he called my name and asked the mandatory questions about criminality and stuff, asked how much money I had with me but didn't ask to see any proof. He signed the COPR, told me to sign it, gave me the copy without the photo and passport and that was it. When exiting this room, another guy gave me some papers with information for new PRs, like the importance of the signed COPR, SIN and etc.
In the baggage collection area, there is a Service Canada in front of carousel 7 where you can get your SIN. It took me 10 minutes. You need go through that area anyway even if you have a connecting flight.
There are 2 exits; nothing to declare (green) and goods to declare (red). If you have B4 forms, go to the red one and present it to an officer. He will process it and direct you to a cashier to get a receipt. You don't have to pay anything, it says $0 on the receipt. After that, you exit the area and go to your connection or exit the airport. I had to go through security again even though my connection was in the same terminal.
In total, everything took me 3 hours. There were lines for EVERYTHING, like even at 6am. I arrived at the gate to get my connection and they were already boarding. Maybe I was just unlucky that day, but I wouldn't recommend booking a connection with less than 4 hours of layover. And the airport was extremely hot, I think that's expected when hundreds of people are packed waiting in lines. Don't bother getting any winter clothes when exiting the plane, even if you arrive in the winter. Also, I didn't see any restroom until I arrived in the baggage area, so use the bathroom at the airplane before landing if you can.
I didn't have to buy a SIM card at the airport, but I saw several places where you could buy one after exiting the baggage collection area. I bought an eSIM from gophonebox.com and it worked flawless as soon as I landed; data, text and calls.
I rented a car with Turo and picked it up right at the airport in Ottawa. Totally worth it so far. It was cheaper than a normal rental service and the handover took just a few minutes without any paperwork.
I tried to open a bank account right after I land, but there were nobody available at the branch, it was empty with just one person at the reception. I tried in the next days in other branches with no luck. I had to book an appointment in their website and it took a week. You could try to book it in advance before landing, but the form asks for a phone number and they usually call to confirm. I doubt they will accept a foreign number. Some banks also restrict their apps to Canada only, so you'll be forced to change the country in your Google play account (I assume it would be similar with an apple account). This requires a new payment method to be added and it can't be done if you have a plan shared with family. The apps from CIBC and Scotia worked without changing the country.
I hope this helps anyone.
After exiting the plane I followed the flock until an area with automated kiosks. I had filled arivecan so the kiosk just took my picture and printed the receipt. I don't think it would make much difference without arivecan, you would probably just need to answer the same questions on the screen. There was some immigration officers at the end of the room processing some people and one officer checking people's receipt at the end of the line, asking questions and directing them to an officer or to just go ahead. This officer didn't ask me anything, didn't even check my passport, he just marked the receipt with a line from top to bottom and told me to go ahead. A few meters ahead another officer directed me to the right and told me to take the elevator at the end of the hall to the floor below. Exiting the elevator there was another place with the automated kiosks, I had to stay in line but didn't have to use them since I already had a receipt. The setup were the same as before; a few officers processing people and one officer directing people. This one was asking a lot of questions to pretty much everyone in the line, like where they would be staying and what places they would visit. He didn't ask me anything, he saw the receipt from a distance and just said "oh, you can go". A few meters ahead another officer directed me to the right again, to another room. Right after the door there was an officer that just asked if I have COPR, I said yes and she directed me to take the second door at the right. There were about 3 officers processing people inside, but apparently I was the only PR there. They were checking every piece of documentation of everyone else and most people spent a long time explaining things to them. When it was my turn, I said it was my first landing and handled over the kiosk receipt, COPR, passport and the address for the PR card already written on a paper. He only asked in what flight I arrived and told me to sit while he process the documents. 5 minutes later he called my name and asked the mandatory questions about criminality and stuff, asked how much money I had with me but didn't ask to see any proof. He signed the COPR, told me to sign it, gave me the copy without the photo and passport and that was it. When exiting this room, another guy gave me some papers with information for new PRs, like the importance of the signed COPR, SIN and etc.
In the baggage collection area, there is a Service Canada in front of carousel 7 where you can get your SIN. It took me 10 minutes. You need go through that area anyway even if you have a connecting flight.
There are 2 exits; nothing to declare (green) and goods to declare (red). If you have B4 forms, go to the red one and present it to an officer. He will process it and direct you to a cashier to get a receipt. You don't have to pay anything, it says $0 on the receipt. After that, you exit the area and go to your connection or exit the airport. I had to go through security again even though my connection was in the same terminal.
In total, everything took me 3 hours. There were lines for EVERYTHING, like even at 6am. I arrived at the gate to get my connection and they were already boarding. Maybe I was just unlucky that day, but I wouldn't recommend booking a connection with less than 4 hours of layover. And the airport was extremely hot, I think that's expected when hundreds of people are packed waiting in lines. Don't bother getting any winter clothes when exiting the plane, even if you arrive in the winter. Also, I didn't see any restroom until I arrived in the baggage area, so use the bathroom at the airplane before landing if you can.
I didn't have to buy a SIM card at the airport, but I saw several places where you could buy one after exiting the baggage collection area. I bought an eSIM from gophonebox.com and it worked flawless as soon as I landed; data, text and calls.
I rented a car with Turo and picked it up right at the airport in Ottawa. Totally worth it so far. It was cheaper than a normal rental service and the handover took just a few minutes without any paperwork.
I tried to open a bank account right after I land, but there were nobody available at the branch, it was empty with just one person at the reception. I tried in the next days in other branches with no luck. I had to book an appointment in their website and it took a week. You could try to book it in advance before landing, but the form asks for a phone number and they usually call to confirm. I doubt they will accept a foreign number. Some banks also restrict their apps to Canada only, so you'll be forced to change the country in your Google play account (I assume it would be similar with an apple account). This requires a new payment method to be added and it can't be done if you have a plan shared with family. The apps from CIBC and Scotia worked without changing the country.
I hope this helps anyone.
