Sorry noob tagging failed (see above post)

Depends on which field you're in, but don't discredit yourself. I have friends who picked up some part time jobs from their prof as assistant (help with research, standby for workshop in case students have questions, etc). Also, if you provide private tutoring on campus for undergrad, you can make quite a lot of money, and you can just take cash.

On the PR application, I think you have to list your family in the same application once you specify that you're married. Not sure, I could be wrong.

Good luck!

I'm assuming here you mean to enroll in a Masters in Canada and come here alone in the beginning and bring your family later?

It's not a bad plan and I've seen many cases like this. After graduation you will be eligible to apply for PGWP, and after using up the 2 years of working in Canada on the PGWP, you will have more points to apply on EE.

If I'm not mistaken, you will NOT have to apply for any LMIA as PGWP will allow you to work for any employer in Canada during those 2 years post-graduation.

As for bringing family (spouse and minor children), I believe you can bring them at any time, subject to your finances. This finance requirement will vary depending on at which stage you want to bring them. If you want to bring them from the get go (Student Visa) then you'll have to show that you have enough money to support them during that time.

I feel like the finance requirement is relaxed a little after you get PR, this is based on my personal experience. I sponsored by husband (US citizen) to come to Canada and get his own PR, and I wasn't asked to show money in the bank, but only asked to show that I do have employment and can be reasonable expected to support him during the gap of time where he is in Canada as visitor to him becoming PR and able to work (it was about 8 months).

My apologies if the above are not clear. Please feel free to DM me if you want to discuss in further detail. Immigration is a long-term goal, I hope you won't be discouraged by how far it feels and I applaud you for taking the first steps towards your goal.

Yes that is the general idea.

I'm currently debating whether to bring family along while i do my masters, or leave them here. Cost of living for 4 i probably can manage, especially if the wife can get a OWP and contribute some income, but pre-schooling childcare i hear are pretty expensive. once they reach 5/6 years old I can take advantage of the free compulsory schooling. however, its touch leaving young kids and going halfway around the world for 2 years or more.

I dont mean needing a LMIA during my PGWP duration, but securing a LMIA/PNP linked job during that time means i get 200/600 points to my CRS - which more or less should guarantee success.

Of course, the current COVID situation means everything is dependent on how they recover. currently schools are on distant learning which is useless to me. And the local unemployment rate is going up which doesnt help.

One thing i like to ask is your experience with racism and liberalism over there. I know the government policy is anti racism, but how are the feeling of the community and public? also, is SJW movement really as extreme as the internet portrays?

Hello gents, im glad that i bump into this topic, was considering whether to start start the process for EE. Tentative CRS points based on calculator ~430. im clear with the immigration process and comfortable in waddling through myself without consultant. I have some questions here, i hope all sifus here could shed some light on the below.


1. Cost of living
- @604weekendwarrior posted his comment on the cost of living below.
- it seems to be the comparison is done cross currency.
- my thought is that comparison of cost of living shouldnt be done cross-currency, it should be done based on your earnings in the same currency. i.e. earn in CAD, spend in CAD; Earn in MYR, spend in MYR.
- Hence, assuming that you earn CAD100k per annum (Calgary/Vancouver/Toronto) vs you earn MYR100k per annum (KL), with incurred expenses in the same currency, which give you a better life?
- p.s. i did a comparison of calgary vs KL via numbeo, let me know if the prices there are reasonable Numbeo
- based on numbeo, it seems that the cost of living in (without converting) is comparable.
- Canadian government takes ~30% of your earnings Alberta Income Tax, whilst the Malaysian gov takes ~15% Malaysia Income Tax, you may have less disposable income in absolute sense, but you make up in terms of quality of services provided by the goverment and purchasing power of CAD (i.e. CAD1 gets you better apple quality than MYR1)?



2. Updates thus far
- i see multiple sifus contributed to this post were contemplating to move to Canada few years ago, and some is already there, hows life thus far?
- Im aware that those ALL sifus who shared their experiences here moved there WITHOUT a job offer and had to start from survival job (e.g. sandwich bar jobs) to start off with, did you manage to get your profession back??
- i see a particular sifus said his life quality increase 500% despite working on survival job in Canada, what about the rest of you here?

3. Job prior to landing (Assuming i got my PR via Express Entry sorted first)
- Im earning quite well in KL actually, for me to move to Canada without a job is a daunting task and will 90% deter me from doing so.
- some context on this, im a chartered accountant (doing more of strategy and investment kinda job), had couple of years of "canadian experience" by dealing with canadians matters for my current employer
- also i will be able to get a CPA Canada designation with some paper works and hassle of going through some processes.
- Given the context above, is it actually possible to get a job PRIOR to landing in Canada? especially in COVID times, i believe all interviews have to be done online
- also for sifus already established themself there in Canada, especially in similar field that im in, any advice on how best to secure a job first?

4. next step
- for those who toiled multiple years in Canada with a PR, do you see yourself signing up for citizenship?
- have you considered moving back to malaysia for retirement?

This post has been edited by dankers: Jul 6 2021, 01:52 PM

I can share my personal experience to answer some of your questions.

SURVIVAL JOBS, QOL ETC

For reference, in Dec 2017 I moved to Canada without a job offer. At that time, I left behind in KL a senior executive level job in an O&G with a paycheck of MYR8.5K a month. When I left, I did not have any substantial assets left behind (no house, car sold).

After landing, I got survival jobs starting in a literal sandwich shop, then moved to other retail jobs (petrol station, supermarkets, big department stores) for about a year.

During this time, I make roughly CAD2k a month working retail jobs at min wage x 40 hours a week.

From this income, my expenses as a single person to live in Calgary, Alberta are roughly:

$500 - room rental all utils included
$400 - food
$80 - health insurance
$180 - car insurance
$100 - gas
$200 - groceries & other essentials

During this time which is about the whole duration of the year 2018, I managed to keep sending CAD400-500 a month back to Malaysia.

During this time, my quality of life personally improved compared to when I was in KL. Most memorably: I have a working car paid off in cash, I have a comfortable living quarters, I live in a safe neighborhood surrounded by parks, I had healthcare coverage which became essential when I was diagnosed with a major health condition in Oct 2018.

In 2019 I got married so since then, I am on dual income with my spouse, so my experience financial-wise after that may not be of interest to you.

I don't have data on how QOL will compare after I get qualified and get back to working in my profession. I will try to come back here and update once that happens, hopefully soon.

JOB PRIOR TO LANDING

On your question about finding and securing a job:

If your profession requires some sort of re-qualification process, chances are you won't be a good candidate for the market until you are here and after you have completed the process.

I personally have spent the past 3 years being "underemployed" as I undergo the requirements to be qualified as a Canadian lawyer. But this length of time was mostly due to me taking it slow and easy because I had some health issues that I had to deal with. For example I was only done with my exams in 2020, when technically if I had started in Jan 2018 I could have been completed by Dec 2018. Today in August of 2021 I am approaching the finish line of that re-qualification process. From what I have gleaned from my mentors and network, I should be able to find a job close to the level of position I had in Malaysia as soon I hold that qualified status.

NEXT STEP/STAGE

Citizenship seems to be a sensitive topic amongst the other Malaysians I have met here in Canada. I suspect it's because our current Malaysian laws does not allow for dual citizenship, hence anyone who wants to apply for Canadian citizenship will have to be prepared to let go of their Malaysian citizenship.

Technically, you can keep your PR for an unlimited period as long as you fulfill the residency requirement. I have met Malaysians in Canada with clear plans to go back to Malaysia for retirement, but then again, this is also not an easy topic for conversation as people feel like this is a very personal topic.

Finally and as always, don't hesitate to DM me if anyone want to have a more personal discussion. I don't check this forum often but a DM should notify my inbox.

Do you think the move was worth it? Any regrets?
Considering you downgraded yourself from a corporate executive to a manual labour type of role

Also, how long do you think you'll need to regain similar position that you had back in Msia?

Thanks for sharing btw.

thanks for the respond mate.

have you secretly thought about how life would have been different if you didnt make the move there in 2017? How would it be different?

What is the easiest step to immigrate to Canada, heard they are openings for immigrants.