Before you leave your home country:
- Get 3 sets of sealed and stamped transcripts from your university. You will need them when you pursue further studies in Canada.
- Get your kids' educational transcripts from their schools
- Bring records of vaccinations for every member of the family
- Ensure you bring stamped motor vehicle reports which verify your ticket history for the last 3 years from the ministry of transportation. You will be able to get a G license directly if you have relevant experience.
- Ask your auto and home insurers to provide claims history for the last 6 years. This will save you a whole lot of insurance premiums. 'Make that 10 years history if you can instead of just 6. Some Insurers give larger discounts for the more clean driver history you can provide'*
- Get letters of reference from 3 of your previous managers. Ensure you ask their permission before using them as references for jobs.
- Sell all your assets and bring the cash to Canada. You will need the financial buffer and honestly it may be a while before you head home.
After you come to Canada get your SIN number and open your bank accounts. Deposit all your travelers checks and bank drafts right away. Apply for a newcomer credit card and start using it from day one (Even to buy your first cellphone and laptop- credit history is huge here) Book your driving test. Apply for your health card. Newcomer agencies will help you in all of this for free. Get a job. Find a comfortable home. Don't be too choosy about the job but please be choosy about where you live. Don't live in a basement. Its depressing. Read the details on my webpage 'Arkangel': Live, study and get a job in Canada . Then,
- Get prepared to love the cold. You will see a lot of it. Edit: Victoria and Vancouver don’t really get cold* we are so jealous of the west coast folks who get amazing weather. I would love to retire there some day.
- Don't convert Canadian dollar prices into Rupees, Pesos, Yen or whatever. It will just stress you out and serve no purpose. You need to eat and live a little. You can't watch prices constantly.
- Google ' Toronto Raptors' , 'Maple Leafs' and 'Blue Jays' (Toronto) ‘Canucks’ *(Vancouver), ‘Habs’ (Montreal Canadiens) and come up to speed on their history and top players. Then watch the games whenever they come up and be ready to dive into the water cooler chat like a pro.
- Sample the Canadian menu regulars. Get a Double-Double at Timmys, poutine and a hot dog at Costco and some Sushi from your local mall.
- Visit Niagara Falls, the CN tower, Ride the rocket and the Go train (all in the GTA) and Parliament Hill ( Ottawa). Go camping in summer with the 'learn to camp' programme. Don’t miss Whistler* and Kelowna* in BC and Jasper and Banff* in Alberta for some of the most breathtaking natural beauty in the world. We drove up to the East coast last year and were blown away by the beauty of Cape Breton Island, saw dolphins swimming along from the shore at Digby, saw the highest tides in the world at the Bay of Fundy and enjoyed swimming in the warm waters of Parlee Beach and PEI, just to name a few unforgettable sights in that part of Canada. We didn't visit Newfoundland but we are saving it for its own road trip.
- Apply for citizenship as soon as you're eligible.
- Travel the world on your brand new Canadian passport (6th most powerful in the world) and tell them how amazing your new country is.
*Thanks Sudhakar Ji for the west coast mentions and thanks Sonika for reminding me about the beautiful East coast. We are passionate about our country! *Thanks @Anthony Aleksic for the reminder to bring the 10 year driving history if available ref.
Thanks for Reading
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