Landing in Canada

Taking the flight to Canada was an experience and so was landing in Canada. We were excited and sad at the same time. Leaving behind countries that we had called home for more than 3 decades and going to a new country. You leave behind experiences and a life that you were very comfortable with. And bursting that comfort bubble was the choice we had made, and we were moving forward. Landing in Canada was a breeze.

The Landing:

We had landed at Terminal 3 at the Pearson International Airport in Mississauga. Mississauga homes the busiest airport in Canada, and guess what, it is not in Toronto as many assume. After a long and tiring flight of 15 hours (depending on your origin of flight), it was finally the time for landing in Canada.

The flight was taxiing on the runway, cellphone started buzzing, calls and messages checking if we had landed safely. A sign of family waiting outside to welcome us home. But I had two things on my mind, a pregnant wife and a 1-year old daughter who was burning with fever. She had become ill on the flight due to motion sickness and probably tired from such a long flight. While walking from our gate to the Immigration check point, my daughter started vomiting, she couldn’t hold it in any longer. This is where we were first met with sweetness of Canadians who are always ready to help. My wife quickly changed my daughter’s clothes and an airport staff member came over with a buggy to drive us to immigration. Trust me it is a long walk and riding the buggy was a blessing.

As a New Immigrant:

When flying to Canada as a COPR holder, your status is still not that of a Permanent Resident. You must clear the interview at the port of arrival before your status is converted to that of a Permanent Resident by the immigration officer. There have been a few instances where COPR holders have been returned to their country of origin based on false information provided to Canadian Immigration during the application process. This is assessed by the Immigration Officer at the time of interview.

Don’t worry it’s nothing to panic about, just a few questions that need answering and then you are on your way forward.

During the interview the officer will:

• Make sure all your documents are valid.
• Asks you a few questions to make sure you still meet the terms to migrate to Canada.
• Confirm your Canadian mailing address, so they can mail your permanent resident card (PR card)

P.S. You should have a mailing address that you can provide to the Immigration officer or you can update the address online here. This is supposed to be provided within 180 days to the IRCC.

What are some of the questions you might be asked?

• How much cash do you have in your possession? (You need to declare any amounts you are carrying above CAD 10,000 in any form, Cash, Check, Traveller’s check, Bonds etc.) Details here.
• Do you have any shipment following you to Canada from your country of Origin?
• Submitting your CBSA Declaration Card. Guess what, there are now Kiosks that you can use to enter information digitally and the process has been made smoother and fast.

My Experience:

It was not normal for us to go through the immigration check point. Why? Because my wife was pregnant and my daughter was genuinely ill, you could see it. But I must say that the Immigration Officer was truly generous and concerned about my daughter’s health as he made it kind of fast for me to get through immigration. Another concerned Canadian and it felt awesome.

Normally you would be guided to the Service Canada office in the terminal where you can get your Social Insurance Number (SIN) numbers. In our case, since my daughter was not feeling well, the Immigration Officer told us to get it from any Service Canada location in the city. We were then granted entry into Canada and asked to sign the COPRs in front of the Immigration officer. These were then counter-signed by the Immigration Officer and stamped with the Date of Entry. This is now a legal Landing and Entry confirmation that you have been granted Permanent Residency under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

As Permanent Residents of Canada:

Getting done with the Immigration and claiming your sovereignty as a permanent resident of Canada is a feeling of freedom. Do you have a plan? Did you do your research? Where are you going from here? Hope you did your research and came prepared. Most people do and some go where the wind takes them. I would suggest not to rely on the wind as you might end up lost or stranded.

We were fortunate as we had family waiting for us outside. Remember, I told you that my elder brother had landed in Canada four month prior to my landing. My research was all done before he left for Canada. We had arranged for his stay in a hotel for 14 days prior to him arriving in Canada. From where? Booking.com!! They had a shuttle waiting for them to take them to their abode. We had searched for houses together; I had made a list of houses to see and he had visited these places for viewing and leasing. We will talk about this process in a later blog.

The First Few Days:

These are the most tiresome and busy days for any new immigrant. You must arrange for getting your life in order i.e. getting your basic necessities and documents sorted out.

First:

Since I had not received my SIN Number at the airport, I had to find the nearest Service Canada location to get my SIN number. You must receive SIN Numbers for all your family members, even a day-old child would need one. You can read about it here.

Second:

On my list was going to the bank to get possession of my bank account. I was fortunate that Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) had an Investment Branch in Dubai and I was able to open my bank account from Dubai. Funds were transferred directly from U.A.E. to Canada and I only had to take possession of the account physically from any branch of RBC in Canada.

To get access to these funds, I had to visit the branch with my proof of identity which can be your COPR and Passport along with your SIN Number and a Canadian address. It was easy and simple. Guess what, as a new immigrant, the banks in Canada have multiple offers that you can avail. You are pre-approved for a Credit Card with a CAD 2000 limit so that you can start building your credit history. We will talk about this too in a future blog.

Third:

For an immigrant, the 3^rd most important thing is to find a house that would provide him with a permanent address. I already had a house and an address as my elder brother had already leased one.

Fourth:

Once you have your money available to you, get an ice cream and enjoy it. Done?

Now you go to the nearest provincial services office to register for health insurance. For us, it was Service Ontario, and we registered for the Provincial Health Insurance (OHIP). In Ontario, your health insurance only kicks in once you have spent 3 months in the province as a resident. Just to give you an idea, the GP (General Practitioner) consultations costs CAD 60.00 per visit and medicines are extra. Also, travel insurance only covers emergency visits and not regular checkups. You might want to have travel insurance as you never know when it may come in handy.

To Summarize:

There are a few things that you need to remember as a part of your landing in Canada. I will list them here for a quick review so that you don’t have to worry about them at the time of landing:

1. Having an address in Canada, don’t worry if you don’t have one, you can provide them with the temporary hotel address. This address can be updated within 180 days here.
2. Getting your SIN Numbers, you can not take possession of your bank account or open an account without it. You can either get this done at the Terminal on arrival or from a Service Canada location.
3. Opening a bank account or getting possession of your bank account.
4. Searching for a house, basement or apartment as you would need a permanent address to provide to Service Canada for your PR Card, Service Ontario for your OHIP, Bank for your cards etc.
5. Visiting your nearest provincial Service location for processing your Health Cards or registering you for Health Insurance or Services. The regulations are different provincially. E.g. Service Ontario processes your OHIP and they come in to effect after 3 months of landing in the province.

Landing in Canada is not a walk in the park as many may think but it’s not a puzzle to solve either. Each process after landing in Canada is well defined in your pre-arrival pack but you need to read it and know what you must do. Having a pre-defined game plan always ensures that you play safe and you score. Without one, you are always in a quarry.

I will talk more in detail about these processes in my future blogs so that you can relate to them once you have arrived. More informational pieces to come. Stay hooked.

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