sweetrie:
UNN does electronic verification too

Awesome! More schools need to get on this. It would be a huge relief for medics.

@ecfmg question. Its sent by regular post. They wait 60 days and if they haven't got a response they send another and wait another 60 days then send another. After the 3rd time you can then request and pay for it to be sent by courier.
Only OAU to the best of my knowledge right now does ecfmg verification electronically. I hope this helps.

Someone asked about visa refusals I can't remember the moniker.
I had a UK visa refusal. I answered yes for the questions that asked about that and I explained that I was refused a UK tourist visa on xyz date and reason for refusal was insufficient documents and I attached the visa refusal letter since I still had it thanks to my obsessive habit of keeping documents. Then I also mentioned my subsequent UK visa grants and trips after that refusal. You can do the same for the U.S.

@bigfido, @ugoiyke79e, @esosa4real and all hailings oh!

esosa4real:
ALBUM TITLE: "CIC CHRONICLES"
ARTIST NAME: DR. XOSA aka "I must blow'�

Track 1- Collabo (aka IELTS jam ECA) ft vcole


So as i promised months ago, this is my 24 - track album dedicated to cic and it's relatives (nairalanders and whatsappers) on this wonderful day of my PPR!!
Ppr mall yaff come...... i am I the music studio.....I yaff blow!! ����������

OMG!!!!!! congrats bro!!!! Finally! I guess my appearance was led by the "spirit today after all.lol!!!

Hello everyone. Congrats to all ppr, ita recipients and newly landed prs. All the best to all those awaiting ita and ppr. It'll happen soon. It's been forever and this thread is so long now, can't catch up. @40manlappy, @onlineise, @bigfido, @esosa4real #ugoiyke76 @slowlybtsurely et al. Greeting oh.

ladeonas:
please anyone know an airline that would allow twins with just ONE adult?

i.e pay for extra seat for both babies or one of the babies?

I'm sorry but no airline would let you carry on 2 infants with one adult. It's an aviation rule so applies to all carriers. So you'll have to attach the second infant to another adults ticket as an infant in arms. Or pay for an infant seat. Either way in arms or on a seat each infant needs an adult.

einsteino:


Thanks for this.

You're welcome

SlowlybtSurely:


How can "-6" and "not so cold" be in same sentence?

I never thought they would be too but it's a real feel of -8°c now and to me it's cold but not so cold. I don't even know how to explain it. Lol!

Some programs I know of in Calgary at the moment.....corporate readiness training prog aka CRTP, youth skills connection (by career connections), opportunities knock program, CIWA links to success. This is not an exhaustive list. These are just the ones I know of.

Not all programs are paid but it helps improve your job search skills and resume writing and interview skills plus provides a good opportunity for networking which is key. I guess more research online would yield better results.

salford1:

I also had one of my kids at RGH.
6 months already...How time flies....

Time flies. Reluctantly waving goodbye to double digits today. Cleared out all my "non-boots shoes and "summery tops last night. Sigh.

Someone asked about snow photos. I put up some when it snowed here on october 1st.

@damonas I would really prefer if you ask your questions here if you don't mind. Unless it's really personal info. It's just easier for others to also benefit in my opinion. I had my baby at Rocky view and got referred to an ob from my gp. It may take you a couple of weeks to get an ob referral just because the way the system runs your gp may end up taking all of your prenatal consults and may even take your delivery. I wanted an ob because I was concerned about certain issues so I requested and insisted until I got one.

@einsteino about jobs. Well, in 2 days I'd have spent 6 months in Calgary. First 2 months were spent pregnant. I'm in a licensed profession so I may not be the best person to give reviews about jobs but about 2 months ago I attended a job fair and got a job but I ended up declining that offer because it involved working with kids which is not my strong point and also because I applied for and got accepted into a government funded program that gives employability skills training and an internship and I opted for that because it would give me more benefit in the long run and i get paid too. Most new migrants in the health sector tend to work as care aides but I'm a bit glad I didn't have to because honestly I'm not well suited to those jobs. In my opinion, you would get a job if you keep searching. It may not be your dream job initially but you won't starve.

Welcome Merrymum.

@damonas please kindly ask your question here. It's easier that way and benefits others as well.

@ballerz it's $145 For an advanced grade 5 road test in Alberta and $22.50 For the license when you pass. Affordable instructors charge $110/2hrs. So if you do the math that your $200 was affordable in a way. I wonder why the dealership didn't sell you the car. If I'm not mistaken you can buy and register your vehicle with your foreign license. That's what we did when we landed initially.

@yimiton, you'll find one that would waive those requirements for you. Just keep on searching.

Ogundre:
Hello people. So I got my golden email on Thursday October 19th at 4:07am. Best email I ever woke up to. Sent my passport to Accra yesterday. My timeline
AOR:August 1st
MP/IP1: August 15th
NA2: August 17th
IP2: September 7th
PPR: October 19th.

I plan to land sometime between June and July next year though.

Congrats. Great time to land. Good weather.

pauloverdi:

Thanks for the explanation. One more question abeg: whose name should we use to apply for the daycare subsidy? Husband or wife? Please advise abeg

It is a family application. Both spouses apply for it. Usually wife is the primary applicant and husband is the co applicant. Review the requirements based on your province though. I only know the process for Alberta.

Shine1177:


Hi Vcole, the bold has been my line of consideration, I've been reading from page 0 and I've got load of information here. I will appreciate if you can throw more light on it. Thanks.

The Canadian student visa thread has more info. I don't know much about it as I arrived Canada as a pr.

Welcome freeradical!

@teatop1234, you should note that the process of arriving Canada as a pr and as a student or a sowp holder are very different. I strongly advise that you and your family apply for your visas together. Husband for student permit, you for sowp and kids on dependent visas. You would get more info if you go on the Canada student visa thread.

It is worthy of mention that some families have moved to Canada like this and often times the spouse gets a job and within a year is able to sponsor the whole family under the cec class for pr.

Those schools you mentioned are private schools. Masters academy is the best school in Alberta while clear water and Webber fall into the top 10. So you should understand why their fees are on the high side. Aside from fees, there is no guarantee your kids would get admitted because they usually have a wait list and admission is competitive. That not withstanding, if you are interested in those schools then you should contact them to find out their wait list procedure. The public schools are free and don't require any fees. I don't know about the school you mentioned but if you are looking for "scholastic" schools within the cbe school system then you should look up "tlc" schools and read up about their wait list procedure.

Riverclose:
Thanks Salford1, will google and read up. I intend to pay for my mortgage and credit card from 9ja income, wanted to get more details on that. Thanks though.

Well, you would have to explain your source of income each time you bring funds into the country. Also you'll pay tax on your declared foreign income. I think that's about 25% now. Nigeria does have a tax treaty with Canada http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/webarchives/20071126043921/http://www.fin.gc.ca/news99/data/99-115_1e.html . A tax consultant is best to discuss and clarify issues with income tax. As per mortgage, your down payment would be a minimum of 35%.

@oohunt please land before your medicals expires. Otherwise your copr would become invalid. You would not have the option of repeating your medicals. That option only applied to the fsw pre-express entry era when often times applications were still being processed while medicals expired.

Congrats freeradical

Good job glitteringstar!

@ballerz you wan use laugh kill me @gender writing.

@oohunt congrats!!
@bigmove you are welcome

salford1:

The 18k is likely for money spent on daycare/dayhome in a year. A friend of mine spent close to that for 2kids. She got around 3k back just on child care after filing her tax return though.

The cellphone plan is not high. That is virgin mobile which is the next cheap network with good coverage after the likes of fido, koodo and freedom. If you want to know what high rates are, try bell, rogers or telus, the last 3 have no joy at all...lol

Shaw internet/TV plan is $145 per month on a 2 year contract. Would drop the tv to the limited package of $25 plus $80 internet package when my current contract contract ends since we hardly watch tv, and we are also trying to limit the kids exposure to television.

Canada is very diverse such that important things like work, cost of housing, schools e.t.c varies across towns, cities and provinces. It's not easy to give a one size fits all answer..

Before landing, I read through josh's story posted by yokus a few pages back. His template on mistakes to avoid when just arrived worked well for my family.

That $18k is probably for people with kids going to private school in Aspen
Daycare for both my kids in a year would be $9600 (infant and toddler both full day progs).
I was on virgin but it was becoming an abusive relationship. I'm on freedom mobile and I pay $40/month. With a new cellphone which I got recently it's an additional $35 so $75/month now.
I use Shaw and internet and cable for now I pay $90/mth for the first 1yr on a 2yr contract.
In a nutshell it's all about what works for you. I read josh's story too like 1yr and a half ago and it did make a lotta sense.

oohunt:


I am always inspired when I read from you vcole.

I do have a help but I am not worried because with proper planning (as in planning everything like you have described) it will be okay.

I am looking forward to seeing Canadianfly's routine.

Thanks oohunt, I appreciate.

@salford1, being on a government support program or being low income does not prevent one from inviting a friend or relative but it raises a red flag for any visa officer if you are sponsoring them for that visit because if you are low income or on some sort of support to help subsidize your living costs then how do you intend to provide board, warmth, feeding and transportation for said guest(s)?

Hello everyone. Part 2 and it's over 200 pages already
Where my people 40manlappy, onlineise, esosa4real at al. Copr don land?

MostBlessed:
With great joy and deep gratitude to God, I am happy to announce that I have received the PPR mail at last!!
My time line is ;

AOR in February 21st 2017
NA in April 28th 2017
Ip2 on the 29th of September 2017
PPR mail on the 2nd of October 2017

Many Thanks to all elders and members of this forum for their selfless contributions. @Jesusdway, Triv, 40manlappy,dupyshoo, vcole, Salford, esosa 4real.... etc

Guys please on planning... the way further,
What is the best way to convert funds from naira to Canadian dollars and also open an account in canada /transfer the funds into canada.

Congratulations!

Ehrnie:


Hi vcole - many thanks for your input...always appreciated. So, I've got a question Re: Proof of Address (PoA).

I always thought I could purchase a phone line and use the bill processed for that as a PoA to open a bank account. But now, if I truly need a PoA to purchase the phone line, how do you suggest I go about this - considering the fact that I wouldn't have my own accommodation asap and I intend to open a bank account asap for my PoF?

Hi Ehrnie, to be honest I can't remember if I showed the cell phone provider my lease agreement as proof of address. I do remember that I took it along. Maybe others who have landed in recent times and purchased cell phone lines could chip in here?

@bigmove just to clarify, your husband would be applying for a student permit while you would apply for a spouse open work permit aka sowp and your child on a dependent visa right?
If this is the case then please go online as well as the Canada student visa thread on nairaland to ensure that you have as much info as you could possibly have to ensure that you turn in a visa application that is devoid of errors and stands a good chance of getting approved.

All things being equal, you would be fine. He'll go to school while you'll work at getting a job or staying at home dependent on your choice. It'll also be a good idea to start the process for permanent residency via express entry soon after you land. That way in about a year or so if all goes well , you could all change status and you would be able to go back to school for less than you would pay as an international student. Otherwise after he graduates, he'll be eligible for a post grad work permit which I think would be valid for 2yrs.

@Triv, I don't know much about Varsity apart from the fact that it's in the NW and close to Dalhousie. However the NW of Calgary is alright.

@hephgirl I did a post on cost about 3 pages back. You can click on my moniker to see it.

@thewatcher, the cell phone bill is issued immediately after you conclude the transaction. However if I'm not mistaken I think you need a proof of address for the cell phone provider?.....i can't remember. I know I took my lease agreement along but I dunno if they requested for it.

@thecanadianfly I agree with you in the sense that the UK vs Canada living ish seemed a bit counter productive in my opinion.

We are all different and have diverse views on life. However the decision to relocate from point A to B is always individualistic. People have moved from urban to rural areas, first to third world countries and vice versa for their personal reasons. There is no right or wrong here. A permanent residency status does not equate citizenship and the good thing is that you can choose to either not land or land but yet not reside in Canada and after 5yrs you lose status. So if it doesn't seem like you want to live there, then that would be a win win situation for you. I think that there is even a provision to renounce the PR status before it expires if you so desire.

So @dupyshoo, if a move to Canada seems too much of a risk for you and your family in the near future then it's up to you to make a decision that works out in your collective best interests. One size never fits all

salford1:
There is going to be an important announcement by the minister of immigration today. I am sure it's good news.

Fingers crossed

Hephgirl:
Thanks for this.... My toddler is active too....
I read day care is for only 3 hrs some pages back... Seeing 8-5 just makes me so so happy.

I know the struggle. Lol! The 3hrs is just for preschool. Daycare centres and dayhomes have different operating times based on the provider. Some open at 6.45 or 7am or 7.30am. Some close at 5pm or 5.30pm or 6pm. As a general rule a child can't spend more than 10hrs of care in a day.

maygreaves:


Hello Madam, does that mean you don't have your Nigerian Licence anymore?

No be only madam. Hello Oga, Madam or Oga-madam.
No I do not. It's illegal to possess any other drivers license alongside the Alberta DL. So you submit all drivers licenses in your possession to the registry.

yimiton:
@Vcole, thanks for this very informative post.

Please when people talk about these 'menial' jobs, I always wonder what they really mean. For clarity, please give examples of the available blue collar jobs and how one can get them.

I think menial jobs are minimum wage paying jobs. $13.60/hr now in Alberta. Those are like Wal-Mart cashier jobs, kfc/mcdonalds etc etc front desk kinda jobs. I may be wrong but I assume these are what menial jobs here are. I met a lady recently who works part time as a customer service representative at superstore and said she gets full dental coverage and added health benefits from that job because its unionized. It was interesting to me to hear that a "menial job" had a benefits package.
Most jobs here are applied for online or by dropping your resume off at the office of the proposed employer or by word of mouth.

dupyshoo:
Vcole, good to know that you are adjusting well. I will definitely consult you whenever we plan to move finally as Calgary is one of our 3 preferred locations.

Hola! No worries. I'll help in any way I can.

Thetherapist:

A quick question please. Especially to those who got PR while pregnant. How did you scale through medicals while pregnant knowing fully well that radiological findings is part of the medical test. Or you got pregnant after medicals? @vcole and others. Abeg help me torchlight this. Thanks

You have the option to wear a protective jacket and get the xray done if you are pregnant or you decide to defer the xray until you are delivered of your baby after which you would then get it done. If you choose the latter then your application would remain suspended until you conclude medicals. I was about 8 weeks pregnant or so when i got my medicals done but i was not aware that I was and so I got my xray done without a protective jacket. If I was aware that I was pregnant I would have opted to get the xray done with a protective jacket.
I believe a radiographer had a debate over the matter on the express entry thread back then.
It's up to you and what you feel comfortable with after obtaining all the requires information and discussing with your doctor.

laborel:
Thanks @vcole for this...
Meanwhile, I'm so sorry for the assumption.

You're welcome

TheWatcher212:


Hey Ms Vcole, could you please share your experience and how/what you did to ace the knowledge test? Thanks

I did that already. Please read my previous posts from August or so.