advice on Canada's express entry

[Collie86]

Hi everyone,

I just wanted some advice on Canadian migration. Has anyone tried the Canada express entry path, and what was your experience like? Is it difficult?

It would be great to hear from anyone that can suggest a good Canadian migration agent in the UK. If you have details, feel free to share/dm.

Thanks all

Yes I’ve done it, it’s not easy ! Took a long time living in limbo on work permits to finally get PR but we got there and it’s worth it

Thanks for the response, I'm a single female, living outside of the UK. I went through the online questions on the Canadian immigration site, and it says I'm eligible to apply.

Should I apply when I'm back in the UK or is it ok to apply from outside of the UK? I'm seriously considering it, but I would have to get started soon as the process looks lengthy as you noted.

We applied from already within canada, I’m not sure if current residence is a factor I’m afraid.
you will need to go online to the ircc website and go through the portal and go through the drop downs to confirm eligibility.
qualifications and education will need to be converted by a company called WES, you’ll need to sit English tests (everyone does even if from U.K.) and get your points for that.
you’ll need to provide travel history for last 10 years. Work experience history.
youll
need to obtain police certificates and disclose any criminal history.
be wary of immigration consultants a lot will take your money and rip you off !
it’s a complex process. Once you have all of your info above you can submit a profile and then you’ll be given an amount of points , canada then does money draws and sets out an amount of points so eg anyone who has over 480 can then submit there full application to apply.
it’s also worth noting it’s easier to get into canada on an IEC working holiday (depending on nationality you can get a permit for 2 years ) it’s less complex you can come and work and get some Canadian work experience and apply when here.
there are different groups for express entry you mention we applied under Canadian experience class as already worked here and got point for our jobs - other routes I’m not sure on !
take a look at canada visa.com a lot of info on there :) good luck it’s an amazing country to live in

Also depending on the province you are looking to live in ….. it’s extremely expensive I’m in Ontario just outside Toronto and pay 4000 per month rent (dollars) approx 2800 gbp. Bc is similar - you need a LOT of cash

Thanks so much for the info. I'm in a technical industry so I've been looking at the site you mentioned and applying to Canadian jobs direct. I don't know if the second part helps, but I figured it was worth a try. The jobs I applied for are based Calgary, Alberta. Unfortunately, I don't think I qualify for the IEC because I'm 36.

I don't think that being inside/outside the UK matters - if you are eligible you are eligible and as you say the sooner you start the better. The only thing is address changes - CIC are very, very slow at processing change of address forms which made me nervous and I was only moving within Toronto. However you can watch your application's (non-)progress on their portal on the internet and the paperwork does get updated in the end.

The other thing I would say is that being from the UK is not an advantage in terms of immigration for Canada. Being from another NAFTA country is a big (i.e. huge) advantage. Being from a Commonwealth country isn't a thing.

If you are trying to get an employer to sponsor you, they need to do a labour market impact assessment (LMIA) and show that there is no Canadian who is suitably qualified before they can offer you the job. That can be a high bar depending on how specialised you are in your field.
My husband and I had the same qualifications, and I actually had a couple of extra years experience on him. Because he had a US passport, it was much easier for him to get a job offer than me though because he didn't requires a LMIA.

It’s hard getting a job whilst not resident already in canada (hard but not impossible) I think the tech industry is supposed to be good in Alberta (cheaper there too !) and they have an advanced pathway once your here and have an employer. Getting a lima is not easy and tricky for employees to be motivated to do it if they are not desperate for your skill set.

The "work around" I see a lot is individuals signing up for 1 yr 'Master's with co-op' courses (and OP would do that in Calgary). They are then job hunting in Canada with the help of the university and don't need a work permit., The interested employer takes the individual on as a "paid co-op" student and then converts them to full-time permanent employee at the end of the year when they get their masters and automatically get a Canadian experience work visa and then they can apply for PR.
I am not sure of the details but there must be tons of Chinese, Iranian and Indian websites that explain it all.

This is all very helpful. To be honest, the express entry system is a bit daunting for me right now because of the requirements and the fact that I would just like to go and see the place and possibly work if I could (of course I know it's not that easy) all things considered. The option of studying and working at the same time could actually work, but I cannot afford a masters - nor do I need one for my field. It would need to be a self-funded course (sort of like a 1 year technical course) or something, maybe certification.

For reference, I'm a technical writer with basic experience in cyber security.

I will have a look at what could qualify me for study/work.

No one actually needs of these courses! They are an immigration back door. Be very aware of the very expensive ones run by private colleges set up in shopping strip malls! Cybersecurity is a hot area for these types of courses and the truth is that I don't know whether their really are jobs at the end of them. It would be a massive gamble and you could end up in deep debt and no visa/job. Only consider this path through a proper, reputable university whose name you recognize!!!! Ask questions about how many students in previous cohorts got permanent full-time employment at the end.

I am finding it hard to imagine a technical writing position where there are no Canadians who are qualified to do the job. Now, if you said that you were a qualified nurse/family doctor/health care worker, a skilled construction trade worker, certain types of engineers (probably not CE/SE) you would be golden.

Why Canada OP?