No changes to immigration levels in 2014 - Annual Report to Parliament

Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander has presented the Annual Report to Parliament on Immigration for 2013, which sets out the government's plans for 2014. The Immigration Minister plans to welcome somewhere between 240,000 and 265,000 new permanent residents in 2014.

One of the more interesting aspects of the report is a short section which describes ministerial powers granted under modifications by the Tories to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, "which authorizes the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to create small economic immigration programs to take advantage of economic opportunities or to test new program concepts without having to formalize them through a lengthy regulatory process. These programs, which are set out in Ministerial Instructions, are limited to a duration of five years, after which time the program must be discontinued or be made permanent through regulations." If you needed an explanation of all of the tinkering that the Tories have been doing, there it is.

Other highlights include:

• Changes to the Canadian Experience Class - As of January 2, 2013, applicants require 12 months (reduced from 24 months) of full-time Canadian work experience, or the equivalent in part-time work, in high-skilled occupations and now have more time, up to 36 months, to accumulate that experience.
• How the government eliminated the Skilled Worker (FSW) backlog - The report explains that portions of the Federal backlog were pawned off onto the provinces. If the applicants didn't qualify for Provincial Nomination Programs, they were eliminated. Next, they received permission to eliminate 98,000 applications received before 2008 by simply returning the application fees to the applicants. Finally, they simply stopped accepting FSW applications. 
• Expression of Interest Program - this major modification to the FSW program is expected to be fully implemented by 2015.
• Parent and Grandparent programs - The Super Visa program will become permanent, and CIC will begin accepting new applications for permanent residence for parents and grandparents in 2014.

Read the full report here

Calgary Herald - Federal government launches business incubator immigration visa

OTTAWA — The federal government is expanding its new start-up visa program for immigrant entrepreneurs even though it has yet to issue a single visa since the program launched six months ago.

Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced Monday a new business incubator immigration stream to complement existing venture capital and angel investor streams.

As part of the program, entrepreneurs seeking permanent residency in Canada must first gain the support of an angel investor group, venture capital fund or new business incubator before they can apply for the start-up visa.

Read the article here

The Globe and Mail - Obamacare vs. Canada: Five key differences

Antonia Maioni wrote an informative piece the other day about the primary differences between Canada's health system, and the so-called Obamacare system which has just debuted in full in the United States (as well as triggering both a showdown from the Republicans and a shutdown of the government's non-priority services).

To summarize, here are the five big differences Maioni noted, in my own words:

•  It's way more complicated - and now even more so. Canada may have two-tiers of health care, but in the US, there are more tiers than an Ed Mirvish high rise project.
• It's not universal - In Canada, every legal resident is entitled to health care. In the US, not so much. Not everyone gets care under Obamacare: the only thing everyone gets is the right to be able to purchase some level of health care insurance. Woohoo.
• It isn't a "national" program - In Canada, we can expect a common level of benefit, no matter what province is administering the health care plan. In the US, there is and will continue to be a wild state by state variation on the type and range of coverages available to citizens. 
• It's not fair - health care in the US is still a "pay to play" system. If you can't afford good care - you simply aren't going to get it. While we've got to wait in Canada, in general, we are all waiting for a high standard of care.
• It will not contain costs - Obamacare will do nothing in the long run to reign in the cost of health care in the US. As Maioni notes, "Governments in Canada know that health care is a searing financial responsibility, but they have at their disposal cost containment measures – monopoly fee negotiations with providers, global budgets for hospitals – that remain unfathomable in the American context."

Read the excellent article in full HERE

Toronto simmers in anti-development animosity

There is an undercurrent to Toronto these days, and it's not a happy one. The city has been in a development boom over the last ten years that shows no sign of slowing. Looking out my window (as I've shared with you before in this blog), there are no fewer than ten construction cranes, marking the creation of new high-rises for residents and business. And this reflects just one view from just one part of the city. There are over 130 such developments going on city-wide.

The animosity that is developing in the city has to do with what citizens see as unchecked growth. Developers and business seem to get their way here, no matter what the citizens have to say about it. Currently there are a couple high-profile proposals that have the public on edge. One is the expansion of the Billy Bishop (Island) airport. Porter Airlines wants to be able to fly small jets out of the facility, which sits in the Toronto harbour, a short distance from the lake shore. The expansion of the runway to facilitate these jets would impact boaters' ability to navigate, and the noise would impact everyone.

There are thousands of residential condominiums at the lake shore - and all of them would have to deal with the noise that would begin with construction and never end with an increasing number of jet flights in and out of the airport.

The other construction related issue in this neighbourhood is the slow pace at which renovations are being made to a huge stretch of Lakeshore Blvd. This infrastructure project seems to be happening part-time at best, while impacting residents and commuters who use this key city street.

I have only described two of over 100 major development and infrastructure projects going on in the city right now. Residents are upset with unchecked growth, with construction that never ends, and with the city seemingly ignoring the impact of these projects on anything but the tax base.

Whether anything will slow the train of progress is hard to say. Political will at the municipal level seems almost non-existent. But that's life today in Canada's largest city.  

The fifth season of the year

In almost every country around the world, people experience four seasons. We all know them well - Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. But in Canada, there is another season. It lasts from late September until late May or early June, bridging Fall, Winter and Spring. Just what is this season called? Why, Hockey Season, of course!

And it started last night.

Hockey is Canada's national sport. It eclipses all other professional sports, and is enjoyed by boys and girls, men and women of all ages. Canada has a long and storied history with the sport. During the season, you can find a large percentage of the population in front of their TVs every Saturday night for "Hockey Night In Canada" on the CBC. The play by play announcers, host Ron McLean and not forgetting "Coach's Corner" lead Don Cherry are household names in this country.

If you are planning on becoming a permanent resident of Canada and want to understand something about the culture and values of Canadians, you could do a lot worse than by learning about the sport of hockey, and just as importantly, the "values" of hockey.

Dale Rosenberger, in an article for the United Church of Christ noted 11 life lessons that can be learned from hockey. I find all of these lessons can also be found in the character of Canadians

• Grace and strength meld beautifully.
• Team play is the best kind.
• Brace and protect yourself against a world of trouble before you engage.
• Diversity doesn’t always look like a UNICEF card.
• Courage can be learned only in the crucible.
• If you want to feel a deep glow inside, achieve a goal.
• Biggest doesn’t mean best.
• It is unhealthy to hide human wrongdoing and sweep it under the rug.
• Politeness and passion mix well.
• Life is uneven; deal with it
• Be approachable.

Happy Hockey Season!

CIC's "Expression of Interest" program - welcome to the dating game

Pick an analogy: The Dating Game, match.com, e-Harmony...The CIC's proposed next step in modifying the economic immigration stream, the "Expression of Interest" program feels like a bad date just waiting to happen.

Here's the CIC explanation:

A major next step in building a fast and flexible immigration system will be the creation of a pool of skilled workers ready to begin employment in Canada, a commitment made in Economic Action Plan 2012.

Inspired by an approach developed by New Zealand – and now also being used in Australia – an Expression of Interest application system is the model the Government of Canada plans to use to create this pool of skilled workers.

Under an Expression of Interest system – or EOI – prospective immigrants fill in an online form indicating their “interest” in coming to a host country as permanent residents. The form can include information that relates to, for example, language proficiency, work experience and assessed education credentials.

Assigned a points score and ranked, these expressions of interest would then be entered into a pool from which candidates that best match a country’s national and regional skills needs can be drawn and invited to submit an immigration application, subject to priority processing.

In effect, the EOI form submitted by a prospective immigrant is not an application itself but only a first stage in the assessment of a potential candidate. Not all candidates who file an expression of interest are invited to apply for a permanent resident visa.

Consultations with provinces, territories and stakeholders on the development of an EOI system for Canada are underway. Of interest to CIC is the potential for a larger role for employers in the immigration program, leveraged through EOI.

As part of ongoing consultations, CIC has held roundtables with employers in a number of cities to discuss how such a system could help meet employer needs. A report on these recent discussions will be available on the consultations section of the CIC website soon.

With the elimination of the Federal Skilled Worker backlog, CIC anticipates being able to move to an EOI system that will: avoid the build-up of inventories and improve processing times; and make the immigration system more responsive to labour market needs and increase the likelihood of skilled immigrants’ success.

So, you're a potential immigrant: you put your name into the program by spending some money on things like proof of language proficiency and credentials (components of the current Skilled Worker program), let the program know your skills, and then? You wait. You wait, passively, until some employer or recruiter spots you out of the thousands of others who will put their names into the pool.

I don't know many economic immigrants who are passive by nature - do you? Was it passive immigrants that settled the prairies? That built the railroads? That mined the coal? That squeezed the tar sands? Will they wait for Canada, or take their skills to a country more willing to accept them?

The government says that they will identify candidates that "best match a country’s national and regional skills needs", but if you think the Tories who are designing this program are going to bring more individuals in who don't have jobs lined up, you haven't been paying attention to the immigration issues in Canada.

So, you're a potential employer: are you going to really shop for a new employee from this pool? Or are you going to use your regular recruitment methods? After the ruthless elimination of the Skilled Worker backlog, the "fast track" will be the standard track for Skilled Worker candidates. As it stands, a job offer in Canada puts you at the head of the queue.

This dating game is stacked in favour of no one. In my opinion, immigrants wont benefit, and employers wont use it. It's a shell game for the uninformed. It gives the impression that economic immigrants will have a better chance at success if they come into the country through it. What do you think the real impact of the program will be?

UPDATE 2013: Changes to the Skilled Worker program and their relation to my eBook

Since I published my eBook, How To Immigrate To Canada For Skilled Workers: The Authoritative Guide To Federal And Provincial Opportunities in April of 2012, there have been some modest changes to the Federal Skilled Worker program. None of these changes have made the book obsolete - it is as valuable to skilled worker applicants as ever. The adjustments the government has made simply re-balance the program's points system to be more in keeping with studies that show younger applicants, and those with strong language proficiency have the best opportunity to integrate into the Canadian economy. 

There is only ONE new requirement not covered in the book, which is the Educational Credential Assessment. CIC now is requiring applicants to prove  their foreign educational credential is authentic and equivalent to a completed credential in Canada. 

Here's what's changed in the Federal Skilled Worker Program since the publication of my book:

• There are currently only 24 approved occupation categories  that skilled workers must have experience in, in order to apply (these can change at any time, as the government tries to estimate market demand for these skills).
• New language proficiency threshold: Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 7 in all four skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) is the new level applicants must achieve.
• Arranged Employment - Previously, employers have applied for an Arranged Employment Opinion (AEO) from Human Resources Skills Development Canada when they wished to hire a foreign national on a permanent, full-time basis and support their employee’s application for permanent residence through the FSWP. Starting on May 4, 2013, CIC will no longer accept AEOs in support of an FSWP application. Instead, most offers of arranged employment will require a Labour Market Opinion.
• NEW Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) - Another important change that takes effect on May 4, 2013, is the introduction of the educational credential assessment (ECA). Prospective applicants may start the process of getting an ECA before May 4 if they are planning to submit a foreign educational credential. However, applicants should keep in mind the other program eligibility requirements listed above, i.e. whether they have a qualifying offer of arranged employment or are applying under the PhD stream or eligible occupations stream; and if they meet the minimum language threshold through a designated third-party test. Applicants who have Canadian educational credentials do not need to get an ECA, unless they are also submitting a foreign educational credential in support of their application. You can read more about this new requirement here

Good luck with your Skilled Worker class application!    

Canada & The United States: Bizarre Borders Part 2 by CGP Grey

This great little video explains the border between Canada and the US in hilarious fashion. Enjoy!

Preparing for the Canadian citizenship test

In a little over a year, I'll be applying for Canadian citizenship. I'm excited by the possibility of becoming a citizen of my new country, and there is the added benefit that I don't have to give up my US citizenship unless I chose to.

One of the major parts of the application process is the citizenship test. Any individual between 18 and 54 who meets the basic requirements for citizenship has to take this test.

There are lots of ways to prepare for the test, including classes, books, even apps (like in the Google Android Play store). In order to prepare, I have been using two apps that CIC offers. One is the app version of Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship. This study guide is offered in many forms, including print and PDF. The app makes the content available, in a primitive way, to smartphones and tablets. I am also using CIC's sample test generator, How Canadian are you , eh? 

Why am I using just the CIC's tools? Simple. It is only the content found in Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship that you will be tested on. Any other material you might learn about will be good for you and your understanding of Canada, but you will only be tested on the content of that study guide.

The guidebook is a challenge. It's poorly written, with fact after fact jammed in one on top of the other. And the test might ask you about any of them, in a number of ways. For instance, here's a fact from the guide:

The Vikings from Iceland who colonized Greenland 1,000 years ago also reached Labrador and the island of Newfoundland. The remains of their settlement, l’Anse aux Meadows, are a World Heritage site.

And that fact could be part of the test in the following ways:

• What peoples reached Labrador and Newfoundland 1,000 years ago?
• Which Canadian site is listed as a World Heritage site?
• Where did the Vikings who reached Labrador and Newfoundland come from?
•  How many years ago did Vikings first visit Canada?

So, you have to know this material inside and out. That's why I'm only focusing on the CIC materials. If you are taking a class, be sure that they teach from this source as well. It really is the information, the only information, that the test will be based on!

Not being there

You have to understand I love pets. I love dogs and cats. I've raised a few and they are really, as predictable as it sounds, like your own children. My brother's puppy passed away suddenly last night of natural causes. He was almost 14 - and that's a long life for a beautiful, large dog as he was. My last few years in the US, he was like my dog too - a wonderful companion. One of the most difficult things to cope with emotionally when leaving the US was leaving him, and knowing he wouldn't understand why I wasn't there anymore. And now I'm also not there to give my brother the support I wish I could. This too, is part of the immigrant experience, and something that troubles the expatriate mind.