Overwhelmed by choices. Trying to sort it out.

[jessetr]

Hi all,

I am an addictions counselor (a recovery coach for those who know the difference). And I want to work and settle in Canada.

After starting out some preliminary conversations with the addictions board known as CACCF to see if my education and work experience can transfer, I am now at the canada.ca website.

I have already created a profile there. In fact I just received an email saying I was ineligible for Express Entry as I am only at the beginning stages: no job offer, not sure about my NOC classification (I **THINK** my level is "B", pretty sure my number is 42201), no language tests, etc. They weren't specific about the reasons.

I assume I can just create a new profile as my qualifications become better.

At this point, I'm confused and overwhelmed at the choices of direction I need to take. Most importantly I need to know the order of steps so I don't waste time and effort or money!

What are the basic requirements that absolutely everyone needs to have? What steps to I take in what order? At what point is it worthwhile to look for a job without having a delay in the immigrations process? Does every potential immigrant need an ECA?

After basic requirements, there seem to be several pathways: Express Entry, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class, possible to get an Extended Work Permit first that can lead to Landed Imm status that leads to Citizenship, Provincial Nominee Program.

Is a lawyer crucial, or can I actually do this by myself?

I know these questions sound basic, but I've spent months just figuring out how to get to this point. LOL.

Thanks in advance!

 

[scylla]

Hi all,

I am an addictions counselor (a recovery coach for those who know the difference). And I want to work and settle in Canada.

After starting out some preliminary conversations with the addictions board known as CACCF to see if my education and work experience can transfer, I am now at the canada.ca website.

I have already created a profile there. In fact I just received an email saying I was ineligible for Express Entry as I am only at the beginning stages: no job offer, not sure about my NOC classification (I **THINK** my level is "B", pretty sure my number is 42201), no language tests, etc. They weren't specific about the reasons.

I assume I can just create a new profile as my qualifications become better.

At this point, I'm confused and overwhelmed at the choices of direction I need to take. Most importantly I need to know the order of steps so I don't waste time and effort or money!

What are the basic requirements that absolutely everyone needs to have? What steps to I take in what order? At what point is it worthwhile to look for a job without having a delay in the immigrations process? Does every potential immigrant need an ECA?

After basic requirements, there seem to be several pathways: Express Entry, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class, possible to get an Extended Work Permit first that can lead to Landed Imm status that leads to Citizenship, Provincial Nominee Program.

Is a lawyer crucial, or can I actually do this by myself?

I know these questions sound basic, but I've spent months just figuring out how to get to this point. LOL.

Thanks in advance!

- It's your call if you do it yourself or with the help of a lawyer. Depends on how much time you are prepared to spend researching on your own. Most people here have done it themselves.
- Yes, there are a number of pathways as you've mentioned. You will need to research them to understand how they work and to see which ones are options for you. CEC is only an option if you have at least a year of skilled work experience in Canada. Federal Skilled Trades is only an option if your occupation is a trade (which yours is not).
- Work permits generally require a job offer from an employer and that employer needs to go through the LMIA process which is long and expensive and requires them to prove they couldn't find a Canadian for the role. It's generally difficult to find employers who are willing to go this. Best approach is to try to qualify to immigrate without having a job offer in Canada.
- If you have completed education in Canada, then you don't necessarily need an ECA. If all of your education is outside of Canada, then ECA is required. One of the reasons why you would be ineligible for express entry now is that you don't have ECA. Language test results are also mandatory.

Assuming you want to do this yourself without paying an expensive lawyer, your next steps are to dedicate a number of hours to reading and understanding how the Express Entry program works. See the link below:

https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/express-entry/works.html

 

[scylla]

Hi all,

I am an addictions counselor (a recovery coach for those who know the difference). And I want to work and settle in Canada.

After starting out some preliminary conversations with the addictions board known as CACCF to see if my education and work experience can transfer, I am now at the canada.ca website.

I have already created a profile there. In fact I just received an email saying I was ineligible for Express Entry as I am only at the beginning stages: no job offer, not sure about my NOC classification (I **THINK** my level is "B", pretty sure my number is 42201), no language tests, etc. They weren't specific about the reasons.

I assume I can just create a new profile as my qualifications become better.

At this point, I'm confused and overwhelmed at the choices of direction I need to take. Most importantly I need to know the order of steps so I don't waste time and effort or money!

What are the basic requirements that absolutely everyone needs to have? What steps to I take in what order? At what point is it worthwhile to look for a job without having a delay in the immigrations process? Does every potential immigrant need an ECA?

After basic requirements, there seem to be several pathways: Express Entry, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class, possible to get an Extended Work Permit first that can lead to Landed Imm status that leads to Citizenship, Provincial Nominee Program.

Is a lawyer crucial, or can I actually do this by myself?

I know these questions sound basic, but I've spent months just figuring out how to get to this point. LOL.

Thanks in advance!

Just to add... If you have really already spent months on this and are only this far, then I would definitely recommend that you hire an immigration lawyer and forget about doing it yourself. If you want to do it yourself, then you need to be able to research and understand the details of the programs independently.

 

[canuck78]

Hi all,

I am an addictions counselor (a recovery coach for those who know the difference). And I want to work and settle in Canada.

After starting out some preliminary conversations with the addictions board known as CACCF to see if my education and work experience can transfer, I am now at the canada.ca website.

I have already created a profile there. In fact I just received an email saying I was ineligible for Express Entry as I am only at the beginning stages: no job offer, not sure about my NOC classification (I **THINK** my level is "B", pretty sure my number is 42201), no language tests, etc. They weren't specific about the reasons.

I assume I can just create a new profile as my qualifications become better.

At this point, I'm confused and overwhelmed at the choices of direction I need to take. Most importantly I need to know the order of steps so I don't waste time and effort or money!

What are the basic requirements that absolutely everyone needs to have? What steps to I take in what order? At what point is it worthwhile to look for a job without having a delay in the immigrations process? Does every potential immigrant need an ECA?

After basic requirements, there seem to be several pathways: Express Entry, the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian Experience Class, possible to get an Extended Work Permit first that can lead to Landed Imm status that leads to Citizenship, Provincial Nominee Program.

Is a lawyer crucial, or can I actually do this by myself?

I know these questions sound basic, but I've spent months just figuring out how to get to this point. LOL.

Thanks in advance!

What is your education background? How much work experience do you have in the field related to your degree?

 

[jessetr]

What is your education background? How much work experience do you have in the field related to your degree?

My education background is a BA from a four-year accredited college, class of 91.

For my work, I have a certificate known as a CRPA. Unlikely at this point it is transferable to Canada, so I will have to take an online class in Canada. I think this will be the least of my worries at this point.

 

[scylla]

My education background is a BA from a four-year accredited college, class of 91.

For my work, I have a certificate known as a CRPA. Unlikely at this point it is transferable to Canada, so I will have to take an online class in Canada. I think this will be the least of my worries at this point.

In that case, based on your age and level of education, you won't get enough points to be selected through Express Entry. You're competing with others in the Express Entry program and those with the most points are selected. You want to have 470+ to have a reasonable chance. Your age is going to be a major barrier.

IMO you need to forget about FSW / Express Entry and explore the PNP programs to see if your occupation is a priority for any province.

 

[canuck78]

My education background is a BA from a four-year accredited college, class of 91.

For my work, I have a certificate known as a CRPA. Unlikely at this point it is transferable to Canada, so I will have to take an online class in Canada. I think this will be the least of my worries at this point.

Canada really prioritized young people under 40 for immigration so yo7 may find immigrating difficult.