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How to Get a Canadian Visa

By Darrel Russel, eHow Editor

Canada is one of the world’s most exciting countries. Where else can you be in a major metropolitan area like Toronto or Vancouver one day and travel to the barren wilderness the next all while staying inside the border? Canada is a very popular place for people to immigrate, which is why Canada has a very specific system for applying for Visas.

How to Get a Canadian Visa Step11Determine the type of Visa you need. The Canadian government offers a variety of Visas for newcomers. These include temporary work visas, visitor, holiday, skilled worker, student, family, marriage and business. Step22Visit the Canadian government’s visa website and take their free assessment. This will help you save time and effort filling out visa applications if you will not qualify. The purpose of the assessment is to help determine which visa is right for you and whether you will have a chance applying. Step33Find employment in Canada. This is a necessity for a work visa and is your best opportunity for remaining in the country. For all work visas this is a requirement and often you have to prove the job’s permanence. Step44Get accepted to a university in Canada in order to get a student visa. While it is possible to get a visa for high school study, this is the most common and usually the easiest to acquire. Proof of acceptance is a huge step in the visa process. Step55Marry a Canadian citizen. This is another way to quickly obtain a visa. Canada will award you a visa if your spouse is a Canadian citizen, this will also help you if you ever choose to try to become a naturalized Canadian citizen down the road.   

Canada Visas, Permits and Immigration

A Canadian immigration visa offers great opportunities for you to work and live in Canada. There are many types of immigration visas for your specific needs or requirements. The Canadian Skilled Worker visa can provide permanent residency in Canada. If you just want to visit Canada, a Temporary Resident Visa or TRV is required. There are 2 visa classes you can choose from, and these include: Immigration Visa•    Permanent Canadian Visa; and
•    Temporary Canadian Visa.

A popular visa program intended to attract people with lots of experience and skills is called the Skilled Worker Visa. Canadian immigration also allows special visa type for business immigrants. The Canadian Government’s Immigration Department also allows the province of Quebec to choose its immigrants.
Permanent Immigration VisaUnder the permanent immigration visa, one must have minimum points in education, work experience, age, adaptability, arranged employment and language ability.

If you’re interested in business immigration to Canada, you can apply as an entrepreneur, a self-employed individual, or as an investor. You need to prove your skills and pass a minimum mark for the Business Points Test.  

For those applying under the Canadian family visa, they have to be sponsored by an eligible permanent Canadian resident (for those aged 18 years) or by a Canadian citizen. They also need to undergo medical and security checks.
Temporary Immigration VisaUnder the temporary immigration visa of Canada, the applicant should be issued a work permit to be finalized by the HRDSC or Human Resources and Social Development Canada organization or sector.

The skilled worker’s visa is intended for those applicants who have experience working in a thriving Canadian industry. To qualify, you must pass the minimum points required for work experience.  You need to prove that you have the funds and earn enough score in the 6 selection factors.

Tourists or visitors are required to submit a temporary resident visa before their departure from Canada. As a visitor, you will be provided a temporary visa if attending a business meeting, visiting relatives, participating in conferences, or going to cultural shows or pleasure trips. 
Immigration LawThe Immigration Act in Canada was created in the year 1976 by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.  It centered on who must be allowed to enter in Canada. This Act provided more power to the province of Canada in defending their culture and setting their own immigration law. At present, individuals who are considered as a burden for social health and welfare services can be refused entry to the country.

This also created alternatives to exile immigrants for less serious medical or criminal offences. Starting from deportation, the immigrant is banned from entering Canada and for the rest of the deported immigrant’s life. The government will then issue a twelve-month departure notice and exclusion order. This law also merges all previous legislations dealing with the immigration office.  It further prohibits immigration to Canada for a group of unwanted people, primarily people who are either physically or mentally handicapped. The bill gives the government the right to deport unwanted immigrants.

However, Canadian lawyers are doing their best to help foreigners as part of Canada’s immigration rule. This is because it is difficult to deal with Canadian migration. The lawyers help out family members in Canada to support their families and later on facilitate their entry to Canada.  Likewise, Canadian businessmen assisted by the lawyers also recruit foreign workers. These lawyers help people who were issued deportation orders from Canada.

The Canada Immigration and Refugee Protection Act emphasized the significance of immigration in Canadian economy and society. It also made Canada a culturally diverse nation. It also states the government’s commitment to allow family members to join them in Canada.  It tries to integrate immigrants while protecting the safety and health of all Canadians. The refugee program, on the other hand, plans to implement Canada’s international legal obligation and give balanced considerations to all Canadian immigrants and citizens being persecuted.

The Permanent Resident Card is required for permanent residents re-entering and leaving Canada. This has improved the country’s boundary security. The bill allows a child born outside Canada to be adopted by a Canadian citizen and receive Canadian citizenship.
Immigration Work Permits To work in Canada, a foreign national should receive authorization permits. A work permit is a document issued by the Immigration of Canada. It allows foreign individuals to work for a limited time at specific jobs. The work permit is issued only by the Canadian Immigration Officer after the HRDC or Human Resources Development Canada has approved the job offer of a Canadian employer to a foreign national. The Human Resources Development of Canada allows the Canadian Immigration Officer the right to determine whether the foreign worker has a positive, negative or neutral impact on the labor market.
Immigration PointsIn order to migrate to Canada as a skilled worker, you should get enough points. The minimum points for education in Canada is 25 points. For work experience, it is necessary to obtain a maximum of 21 points (1year is 15 points, 2 years 17 points, 3years 19 points, and 4 years 21 points). For language skills, it is required to get a maximum of 25 points (primary language goes for 16 points and secondary language come with 8 points).
Immigration Allowance Under the Canadian skilled worker class, you have to prove that sufficient settlement money is available for you to be successful.  You should have enough money to support you from the time you enter Canada until such time that you find a job. The required funds also depend on the number of family members who will join you.  The range for single is 10,000 Canadian dollars and for a family of eight or more is 25,000 Canadian dollars.
Canada Immigration RestrictionApplicants with a criminal record in any country or with financial problems may be refused during the process of their application.  They may also be refused if they:

•    fail the medical exam;
•    fail to present any of the requested documents or information by the immigration office;
•    fail to give proof of language skills; or
•    fail the background check.

The federal government of Canada created a group called Citizenship and Immigration Canada. This is responsible for the immigration criteria, visa level requirements and refugees. It also focuses on the citizenship application process and on the final stage of citizenship immigration. The Canadian Citizenship and Immigration maintains the number of people entering Canada and approves the types of immigrants entering Canada.  

This page describes how to apply for a work permit.

Remember that in most cases, you have to apply for a work permit from outside Canada. Your employer also has a role in the application process.

If you apply to work temporarily in Quebec, you must meet all the federal requirements and you must get a Certificat d’acceptation du Québec (Certificate of acceptance) from the province.

1. Check the application processing times. How long it takes to process your application varies depending on where you applied. You can check application processing times in the I Need To… section on the right-hand side of this page.

You can speed up the process by:

including all the necessary information with your application notifying the visa office of any changes to the information on your application avoiding unnecessary inquiries to the visa office providing photocopies and documents that are clear and legible providing certified English or French translations of documents, where required, and applying from a country where you are a citizen or permanent resident.
Your application will take longer to process if the visa office has to take extra steps to assess your case. For example, extra steps are required if:

there are criminal or security problems with your application your family situation is not clear because of an event, such as a divorce or an adoption that is not yet complete or child custody issues that have not been resolved the local visa office has to consult with other Citizenship and Immigration Canada offices in Canada or abroad you require a medical examination.
2. Obtain an application package. The package includes the application guide and all the forms you need to fill out. Download and print the application package.

Before you fill out the application, you will need:

a written job offer from your employer proof that you meet the requirements of the job (for example, proof of certain education or work experience) and the positive labour market opinion on your job offer from Human Resources and Social Development Canada (HRSDC), if one is required. In some cases, you can submit your application while you wait for the positive labour market opinion. See Concurrent processing in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.
If you need an HRSDC opinion, it is up to your employer to get it and send it to you. For more information about HRSDC opinions, go to Frequently asked questions in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.

Remember, even if HRSDC has given a positive labour market opinion, there is no guarantee that you will get a work permit.

Some jobs do not require an HRSDC opinion. For more information on those jobs, go to Work permit: Who can apply in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page. For these jobs you will require:

proof of identity in the form of a valid passport or travel document that guarantees that you will be able to return to the country where it was issued and if you are not a citizen of the country in which you are applying, you must also provide proof of your present immigration status in that country.
After your employer gets confirmation that you can be offered a job, the employer will send you the labour market opinion confirmation letter. You must submit the detailed job offer with the application.

Now you can apply for a work permit at a Canadian mission abroad.

3. Determine where you will submit your application. You must submit your application to the visa office responsible for the country or region where you live. You must have legal status in your country of residence. For a list of visa offices, go to Find a CIC office in the I Need To… section on the right-hand side of this page.

In some cases, you can apply for a work permit when you arrive in Canada, or from within Canada. For details, go to Work permit: Who can apply in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.

4. Determine if you need a passport and a temporary resident visa. If you want to work in Canada, you must meet the requirements for a work permit. You must also meet the general requirements for entering Canada. This means that you might also need a passport and a temporary resident visa.

A temporary resident visa is an official document that is placed in your passport. To find out if you need a visa to enter Canada, see the Visit section on the left-hand side of this page.

If you require a temporary resident visa, you do not have to apply for it separately or pay a separate fee. If your work permit is approved, the visa will be issued at the same time as the documentation you need to enter Canada as a worker.

If you are a citizen or a permanent resident of the United States, Greenland or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, you do not need a passport or a temporary resident visa to enter Canada. You must, however, provide proof of citizenship or permanent residence, such as a national identity card or an alien registration card.

5. Pay the correct processing fee. There is a fee for applying for a work permit.

For current rates, go to Pay my application fees in the I Need To… section on the right-hand side of this page. In many countries, the fee can be paid in the local currency.

Check the website of the visa office responsible for the country or region where you live for more information on fees, including how to pay them.

Your fee will not be refunded, even if your application is not accepted.

6. Submit the application form. Once you are sure your application form is complete, sign and date it, and check that you have included all the required documents and fees. Make sure you have the right receipt for the fees.

Remember, your application will be returned to you if it is not properly completed or if documents are missing.