Montréal -> Toronto by bus?

[Ido.less]

Hi

I'm in a process of surveying the best way to travel from Algeria to Toronto and I have to land in Montréal first (I've already booked my ticket to Montréal, but have not yet decided how to go to Toronto) before going to Toronto. My questions are :

1. Can I go through all the formalities in Montréal so I can travel by bus to Toronto?
2. If I do travel by bus to Toronto and there are still formalities to complete, where can I do that? will there be any trouble if I don't land at an airport?
3. If I travel by plane, is a 3 hour layover enough?

Thank you !

 

[Vitesze]

Are you in the process of becoming a PR? As you probably know, Montreal is located in Quebec which does not participate in the Express Entry program, and instead has its own immigration program (QSWP). You better have plenty of documentation ready to show the authorities that you're not planning to settle in Quebec.

You can do all formalities at most International Airports in Canada, even the ones in Quebec, but the challenge is convincing the immigration officer that you really plan to settle in non-Quebec territory.

 

[Ido.less]

Are you in the process of becoming a PR? As you probably know, Montreal is located in Quebec which does not participate in the Express Entry program, and instead has its own immigration program (QSWP). You better have plenty of documentation ready to show the authorities that you're not planning to settle in Quebec.

You can do all formalities at most International Airports in Canada, even the ones in Quebec, but the challenge is convincing the immigration officer that you really plan to settle in non-Quebec territory.

I'm indeed in the process of becoming a PR.
Is a one way ticket to Toronto and an Airbnb reservation enough to convince the immigration officer that I plan to settle in Toronto? What additional documents should I get?

 

[Vitesze]

I'm indeed in the process of becoming a PR.
Is a one way ticket to Toronto and an Airbnb reservation enough to convince the immigration officer that I plan to settle in Toronto? What additional documents should I get?

That sounds sufficient to me. You can show anything that shows your settlement intentions, e.g. do you have any family or friends living in Toronto?

Just an idea; you can also print a ticket estimate for Algeria to Montreal and to Toronto, to show them the price difference, and why you decided to land in Montreal. But this is assuming money is the reason; why do you need to land in Montreal if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Ido.less]

That sounds sufficient to me. You can show anything that shows your settlement intentions, e.g. do you have any family or friends living in Toronto?

Just an idea; you can also print a ticket estimate for Algeria to Montreal and to Toronto, to show them the price difference, and why you decided to land in Montreal. But this is assuming money is the reason; why do you need to land in Montreal if you don't mind me asking?

Thank you for your insight !
I don't have friends or family in Toronto, and I don't either in Montréal.
The national algerian airline only offers flights to the city of Montréal, I could have gone to another company but this one is the cheapest. Also I originally planned on visiting Montréal with my family for a week before setteling in Toronto, but that's not the plan anymore.

 

[Vitesze]

Thank you for your insight !
I don't have friends or family in Toronto, and I don't either in Montréal.
The national algerian airline only offers flights to the city of Montréal, I could have gone to another company but this one is the cheapest. Also I originally planned on visiting Montréal with my family for a week before setteling in Toronto, but that's not the plan anymore.

Just tell this to the Agent and he/she will understand. You're definitely not the only one who attempts their landing in the "wrong" province, they just want to know where you're planning to settle, and why you decided to land in Quebec.

To summarize:
- Explain Toronto is your final destination
- State the Algerian airline only flies to Montreal, and other flights to Toronto were a lot more expensive
- Bring your bus ticket and AirBnB reservation for Toronto
- Provide an Ontario address, for your PR card to be mailed to. Absolutely under no circumstances give a Quebec address
- If you can obtain any additional proof of your intentions, that'd be great.

Still, it's important to mention that legally you can be rejected from landing. There is no 100% guaranteed success way to go around this - if you want to avoid the stress, I'd recommend cancelling the ticket and booking one straight for non-Quebec territory

 

[Ido.less]

Quick update : I landed in Quebec, and I wasn't asked for a proof of further travels to Toronto. Stayed in Toronto for a bit then moved to Montréal.
I also did not have any issues to register with RAMQ, I wasn't asked for the CSQ.