Let's bring this post to life nauh people please o

Hi
I am new in nairaland.its so informative.I like to birth in Canada.
I have no close family member there. Pls I need advice on everything.i need quality and affordable hospital.I don't know where to start from.I have never been there.

Thank you for being a readily available resource person on this platform. Please help my case. I entered Toronto last week Wednesday with my 13months old son. I am here to give birth (currently 29 weeks gone), but getting an apartment or a shared accommodation has been difficult. I currently stay in an airbnb room for $80 per night, please help a sister out. How can I get a shared accommodation, I've contacted Dr Ted Kosalka so it's likely I use Humber River. I'm open to change though.

Hi vgil, pls can you kindly share your Port of entry experience so others can be informed as well.thank you

Vgil100:
Hi
I am new in nairaland.its so informative.I like to birth in Canada.
I have no close family member there. Pls I need advice on everything.i need quality and affordable hospital.I don't know where to start from.I have never been there.




Thank you for being a readily available resource person on this platform. Please help my case. I entered Toronto last week Wednesday with my 13months old son. I am here to give birth (currently 29 weeks gone), but getting an apartment or a shared accommodation has been difficult. I currently stay in an airbnb room for $80 per night, please help a sister out. How can I get a shared accommodation, I've contacted Dr Ted Kosalka so it's likely I use Humber River. I'm open to change though.

Hello anyone in the house...its so calm here and quite here.

Hi Karencute,
My text is actually the first paragraph,I only quoted the latter.Like i said ,I have never being Canada.Lets hope someone shares some info. cheers

my wife is about 22 weeks pregnant and we would like to have our baby in Canada. please i need you kind guidance on how to proceed.
here is what i have on my list from what i was able to read on nairaland
-1. get a letter of introduction from a family or friend in Canada. (the letter of introduction and Visa application will indicate that we are coming for holiday and my wife will also be having our baby while there)
- 2. fill the application form and submit (which is better - online of paper route ? )
- 3. in addition to providing bank statement and other documents... do i need to correspondence with hosptal or doctor ?

thanks in advance.

oluhenry7700:
my wife is about 22 weeks pregnant and we would like to have our baby in Canada. please i need you kind guidance on how to proceed.
here is what i have on my list from what i was able to read on nairaland
-1. get a letter of introduction from a family or friend in Canada. (the letter of introduction and Visa application will indicate that we are coming for holiday and my wife will also be having our baby while there)
- 2. fill the application form and submit (which is better - online of paper route ? )
- 3. in addition to providing bank statement and other documents... do i need to correspondence with hosptal or doctor ?

thanks in advance.

Hello oluhenry7700. You are on the right track. You do not need correspondence with hospital or doctor, as most of them will refuse to put anything in writing for you. It is fine for you to book an appointment with a doctor and indicate the name, phone number and office address of the doctor and your appointment date and time in your Letter of Explanation. This has been sufficient for many people who have successfully gained entry to Canada as reported on this forum.

Regarding your question on how to proceed, you will find a full list on cic Canadian visa application website after you create an account. https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/application/account.html
Paper application requirements differs slightly from online application requirements.
People on this platform have used both application routes and my own opinion is that each method has its own benefits and disadvantages.
If you will find it difficult to scan many documents to strict file size specifications, maybe stick to paper application. For me, I went for the online application. It was tedious, but it helps to avoid omissions and minimize error.
Whatever method you choose, act fast because the average turnaround time stated on the cic website is 50days. Do not underestimate the strain and time required to gather the documents.

Documents needed for online application are:
Travel History (Copy of all past visas and pages of your old passports which have markings or stamps, boarding passes, etc)
Current Passport Page (YData page of your current passport plus all pages that have markings)
Letter of Invitation
Proof of Financial Standing
Various Forms Applicant for Temporary Residence (IMM5257), Family Information (IMM5645), and one other Form to declare your legal/offences profile)
Client Information (In this section upload/provide a Letter of Explanation stating clearly the business, family and investments you have in Nigeria and say that these things will ensure that you will return to Nigeria at the end of your visit. In addition to financial strength documentation, state anything that can help prove your integrity. In this section, also attach a budget sheet - which is a breakdown of the expenses you anticipate on this visit. This will help to show that you know what to expect and your financial statement should show that you are capable.


Hope this helps.

Funkymom:
Am due in August and the hospital they use is Peter lougheed just beside the clinic. So prenatal, doctor and baby is settled....They gave us estimates for hospital, epidural and baby . Buy said the hospital will bill us after the baby comes .

Pls funkymom, congrats on the arrival of your baby. Pls I need guidance on obtaining birth certificate in Calgary. Kindly provide all the information. Thank you

Hello @Hotstepper.

Good morning.

Weldone! You have helped a lot of people on this thread (myself inclusive silently lol). God bless you.

I’ll like to please suggest that we create links on page 1 like i have seen on some threads, to sort of help people with same questions over and over again. That way its easier to have them go to page 1 to look up answers they seek.

Questions centered around best hospital options in some provinces
Doctors
Doctors numbers
Doctors fees
Birth certificate when the baby arrives
How to go about the visa application and possible documents to equip ones self with
POE testimonies/questions
Etc.

I don’t mind assisting you, should you need help and any other person who likes to gather information as well can join.

Ps: I don’t know how to create links on Nairaland. But i can help with the gathering of information. This is just to make it easier for people coming ahead and to also keep the thread alive.

God bless you

Cc @Hotstepper @Justwise

duvocharrison:


Pls can I get ur contact plsss am in a fix pls

Pls I need to speak with u

JESUnifemi4eva:
Hi OmoPeace,

I got a family friend (Nigerian) to guarantee.

please I need your family friend contact for the Guarantor pls

Hello Olalacious,

Please when you were applying for your visa, did you have an invitation letter? Also did you use a hotel reservation for your application or did you have a contact to stay with? Thank you

Olalacious:
Hello my people,

LONG POST ALERT!!!

Weldone and thanks to everyone keeping this thread alive

I don dey read this thread for the past two weeks (from page 1 oh), in fact the page is permanently opened on my browser and i just keep reading in my spare time plus taking a lot of screenshots for future reference
Like someone said, this thread should be a taking and also giving back thread (Not only taking without sharing your experience), I will start sharing my experience as it goes and will keep on updating as I progress on this journey.

In 2015 I applied for US tourist visa and got a 2year entry. At POE in US told CBP i was also going to have my baby in the US along with the vacation. Baby came, all bills paid got zero balance from doctor and hospital. Fast forward to 2017, myself and hubby wanted to renew the visa, VO said why didnt we declare in the first interview that we wanted to have baby in the US. Told the VO that the initial VO who interviewed us did not ask any question on that and the plan was only to visit. He would have any of our story. Long story short, he denied us the visa.

Then I decided to try the Canada route. Read this forum like crazy to understand how to go about the application especially when you have been denied a US visa. After a lot of reading and digesting, myself and hubby summoned courage to apply for the TR visa. Plan was that we would travel for a visit in December as a tourist and then use that opportunity to see if we could scout for a doc/Gynae/settle accommodation plans etc and then next year when baby is due will travel for child birth. We submitted the application (via Paper route) went to VFS to submit all the requested supporting docs. This was on 22nd Oct. Exactly 10 calendar days after submitting the application, hubby got a call from the Canada embassy. Basically he was asked for the reason why we were refused a US visa. He then clearly explained to the Canadian VO that we were not no sufficient ties back home. He also mentioned that we had our baby there as well but all the bills were paid in full. Apparently the Canadian embassy had also called the US embassy people to find out why we were not given the visa but they did not give any convincing answer to the Canadian embassy hence the reason the Canadian embassy called us to find out further. Also during the convo, the Canadian VO then asked my husband if I was currently pregnant. My husband said yes and that we plan to also have the baby there next year but the reason for the initial visit was for tourism. The Canadian VO was like it is not illegal or a crime to go to Canada to give birth. If you have sufficient fund to cover it, you would most likely be given. They even called my husband’s company HR manager to confirm if salary certificate which we provided was correct (no be small thing).

Long story short, he told us to send receipts of our medical bills in the US as well as the refusal document which was received from US embassy. We sent all the details to him and even put the US hospital and doctor’s contact info to call them if they have any doubts. Exactly one week after sending all the details, we received a mail from the Canadian embassy to come and drop our passports. Got our passports back today. Mine stamped Multiple entry till 2021 hubby till 2019 as passport expires in 2019.

My peace of mind is that I have clearly declared to the VO that I would be giving birth so I no get fear for POE issues.
In my opinion, Canada Embassy processes your VISA in a fairer manner than US. They take time to review your documents properly and then make a decision based on that. But US ehn, its like before you even show up at the embassy, they have already made a decision without checking your docs..

Now unto the next stage of preparation, Accommodation /OB GYN/Hospital to use. As I no get family for Canada, Ontario will be my best bet as I can see from people’s review on this thread that it seems to be a relatively less expensive to birth there. I will start contacting the hospitals and docs now.

@Hotstepper, please help a sister out. How can you assist with accommodation options available and which city do you recommend I stay in (Brampton or Toronto)? Which is easier to move around in? Do you have anyone I can contact in arranging accommodation for a 2 month period. Also I have contacts of Dr Ayodele and Dr Abou of Brampton hospital and I have the Dr Grace contact of humber river. I just need to understand if I should call the doctor first or the hospital first or do I have to first get a Family Doctor who will then refer me to the hospital/Doctor. As I don’t have family doctor, please help if you can refer me to someone. Thanks a lot and look forward to your feedback.

Any other preggy mama bound for Ontario around April/May 2018 who doesn’t mind sharing accommodation? I need to plan this waka well in advance.

Thanks a lot to everyone and wishing every mama out there a safe one!!!

his family friend canmot do that cuz he or she doesnt knoe u. U will have to find a lawyer or a notry public to do that for u

omopeace4luv:
please I need your family friend contact for the Guarantor pls

Pls is it compulsory to sumit ur passport via paper route

JESUnifemi4eva:
Hi OmoPeace4luv, would love to contact you via email but can't seem to remember the password for my Nairaland mail�. Kindly ask your question here please.

it's the contact for the Guarantor you talked about I want please

Hi everyone,thanks for contributions on this thread,i got into canada on the 12th of september,in ontario at the moment,believe me you,the struggle to get a cheap doctor is real,i contacted the midwives of george town clinic in brampton,as i heard they could be a cheaper alternative,they got back to me today that they do not care for visitors,tried reaching Amma midwives,they were saying,i was gonna pay about 8k CAD ,i am like whaattt Right now,on the look out for doctors or midwives ,thatz as cheap as possible.Any expectant mum in Ontario,letz hook up ooooooo, meanwhile being trying to find Hotsteppers details,cant seem to find it,anyone who has it,kindly send a message,God bless u

Hi OmoPeace4Luv,

My guarantor is unwilling to guarantee a person that's not familiar to her. Please pardon me. On the flip side,
maybe you can ask your landlord or a notary public to assist.

Warm regards.

omopeace4luv:
it's the contact for the Guarantor you talked about I want please

Just saw that Hotstepper responded to your request.

Bless you Ma'am @Hotstepper!

Hotstepper:
his family friend canmot do that cuz he or she doesnt knoe u. U will have to find a lawyer or a notry public to do that for u

aquaboss11:
I'm surprised to hear that the Birth center in Ottawa billed you 5000. Which if the birthing Center precisely. Community Midwives or Ottawa South??

Thank God for you and your family n safe delivery.wanted to ask u if you had option to give birth I n USA and y you picked Canada

hajidel:
Good day house; As promised I would like to share my wife's journey after the successful birth of our child and through the help and tips from this forum we acknowledge and show our gratitude. So hence we would like to share our own story so others may benefit from it.

Wife travelled at around 28 weeks and arrived in Montreal without any issues at the airport as we had always declared our intent of giving birth in Canada. I'm not sure if me residing in the USA did any trick but at the POE we were only asked a handful of questions and was let in without any issues. Now that is the easy part.
The real issue came when we needed to get a doctor and hospital to register with. Through the help of others on the forum here albeit most go to Toronto not much experience in Montreal so, we tried walk ins, urgent care, family GP etc but none of them was successful. We then tried to contact the hospitals direct and some would not accept patients without the insurance card which only residents of Canada can have. Some of the other hospitals were requiring us to pay a deposit of between CAD$15,000-25,000 which for me was not worth it. I then proceeded to give my wife hotstepper's contact so she can get another option. Hotstepper was very helpful in offering her services but unfortunately she turned it down as she would not have any relatives in Toronto that would offer emotional help.

Contemplated sending her back home to africa as
1. it did not make financial sense the offers the hospital were giving in terms of the deposit less the delivery (dependent of C or natural),
2. baby and mother per day
3. Epidural
4. Doctors fees
and some other fees that I have even forgotten about.

After a couple of weeks wife made some contacts and ended up choosing a birth center in Ottawa which was only $1500 cheaper than a hospital and only an hour and a half but does not offer epidural and if any complications arose then they would end up in the hospital.
She did a tour of the birthing center and found it fantastic. I decided to go to Canada from the USA myself to check out the center.Pre natal and the birth center visits were conducted every other week to check the progress of both mother and baby and it was all smooth sailing and I travelled back to the USA.

Arrived back in Ottawa 2 days to due date and unfortunately Wife went under 2 weeks overdue. On the day contraction started 2AM and made a call to the midwife and we were asked to come to the center at 4AM and off we went. Stayed at the center (i went to sleep at that time till 10AM LOL) and major contractions started at around that time and the actual labor process started. She came in at 3cm and later opened up to 8cm within a couple of hours. She was being attended to by 3 midwives and an elderly relative of hers who was extremely experienced in birthing and she was actually allowed by the midwives to chip in with her experience as they saw her doing some stuff that gave them confidence in her.

After a long contraction period of sever pains and only about 1.5 hours of pushing, the baby came. A boy at 3.5kg healthy with no complications from either the mom or the baby. No washing or cleaning of the baby whatsoever, just wrapped in blanket. We had a choice of going home after all the checks on mother and baby was done or could stay at the center for 24 or 48 hours at no extra charge. Food and drinks are available a-la-carte and at any time of the day or night. We decided to stay there overnight and left in the afternoon the next day. Once we got home, they bathed and cleaned him.

So tatal cost of the birthing

$CAD5,000

includes the prenatal and after delivery checkups. They also did a home visit 2 days later to check on the baby poo and pee, as well as his weight soft spot in his head. Three subsequent home visits were conducted to check on the progress of the baby. Food, transportation are also a big part of this process so that should not be discounted. So my wife would spend about $CAD100-150 per week on food and transportation.

Now to the paperwork.

In Quebec unlike Toronto were you have a turnaround time of about a week to do the birth declaration/registration (i'm not sure which one), you will have to do Birth Declaration with the state of Quebec. After the delivery, the center/hospital will give a form to confirm that the birth took place there and you will be given a copy of that form which you will take to the state of Quebec to do the declaration, where you will fill the child's full name, the parents names etc. But the catch is, it takes 15 working days for this declaration to be entered into the states system before you even apply for the birth certificate. We did the declaration the next working day and the waiting began. I would think that the declaration may not take the whole 15 days and after 10 or so I went in to inquire and negative and went in 2 times after that nothing. Eventually just the 15th day it was registered late in the afternoon and the next morning first thing we went to do the same day service for the birth certificate as oppose to having it mailed out which will further delay it.
We took the birth certificate and went into the embassy to apply for the travel certificate which was done the same day and we went to the passport office to apply for the passport and also chose the same day service as we had an itinerary that showed we will be traveling soon. We dropped off the passport application in the morning and picked it up in the afternoon and it was a 5 year valid passport.

From the birth to the declaration to the birth certificate and passport application took exactly 3 weeks and they left 2 days later and i went back to the USA to fly out from there.

All in all it was a mixed experience with emotional and physical distress.

My advice to anyone seeking this journey,

DO NOT UNDERTAKE THIS JOURNEY IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH MONEY OR MOST IMPORTANTLY IF YOU DO NOT HAVE EMOTIONAL SUPPORT WHETHER IT BE FAMILY OR FRIEND. BECAUSE YOU CAN PAY THE HOSPITAL OR CENTER ITS ONLY MONEY BUT YOU CANNOT BUY EMOTIONAL SUPPORT

Secondly, you cannot buy the privilege of being a Canadian or any country in the west that offers Jus Soli citizenship as it is a key to traveling the world easily without much hassle and the medical and educational advantages that comes with it. No disrespect to my african roots as I am proud to be african.

Mental and emotional wellbeing or the benefits of being a citizen. If you have family who will offer you that and financially capable, then bingo go for it, but if no mental and emotional support, even if you have the financial means you might regret. So it comes down to what is more important to each individual.

Congrats hadigel on safe delivery and everything worked out as planned.am curious on why u prefer Canada than USA as choice to give birth.thanks

.

Hello Fam

Pls we need more visa stories,Poe stories etc to keep the thread going

Thank you!!

Titim:

Congrats hadigel on safe delivery and everything worked out as planned.am curious on why u prefer Canada than USA as choice to give birth.thanks

Medical coverage for life ?