Landing in Toronto this summer

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nitin.malhotra@khalsa.com - 26 Mar 2006 18:39 GMT

A little background on myself. I am working for an American IT
consulting company in their German office and just received my Canadian
PR. I am planning to visit Canada for a few weeks this summer to
validate my PR and then come back to Germany and plan later for the
final move.

Few questions in that context:

1. Key Tasks which should be done when I will be in Canada and
approximately how much time does it need to do them? Like opening a
bank account, registering with social office, etc.

2. Best/most-economical lodging suggestion for 1 bedroom apartment with
basic facilities like kitchen?

3. Do You suggest renting a car for my stay there or public transport
is enough to move around ?

4. Once immigration has been validated, how many years do I have to
finally move there or loose my PR ?

5. Best time to visit Toronto ? In terms of weather.

6. Best travelling/lodging options between different cities ? Train,
car, flight ?

7. The passport on which my Canadian PR has been stamped has
expired/cancelled (though my Canadian PR is still valid). I will be
travelling with a new passport and will carry the old expired/cancelled
passport with me. Will it be ok ? Or I must get the PR transferred onto
my new passport before flying to Canada ?

8. I will be giving my friend's address for the ID card and in case I
come back before the ID card arrives, my friend will courier the ID
card to Germany. Could this be any kind of problem ?

Would be thankful to anyone who could share his experience with me on
the above points.

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David Peacock - 27 Mar 2006 02:55 GMT

I do not have all the answers that you seek, but here goes:

> 1. Key Tasks which should be done when I will be in Canada and
> approximately how much time does it need to do them? Like opening a
> bank account, registering with social office, etc.

Definately Social Insurance is a must. I would also make a health card
application a priority, but if I recall correctly, you can only do this
once you are officially taking up residence in Ontario. I.e. If you are
just visiting and then plan to come back at a later date, your
application is not valid. This is a question on the form that you fill
in for your health card.

Setting up a bank account is a great idea of course too. I did things
differently as I moved over for good in one trip. As for timing, if you
locate yourself in a good place near all offices etc, you can get this
done in no time. I took two days to get setup for Social Insurance,
Health Card, drivers license and bank account.

> 2. Best/most-economical lodging suggestion for 1 bedroom apartment with
> basic facilities like kitchen?

If you're talking short term, I cannot recommend Sunny Newcomer enough!
These people were *so* friendly, helpful and truly caring. I am not
affiliated with them, nor do I get kickbacks, but I highly recommend
them. They helped myself and my partner with everything from getting our
SINs to finding bus routes.

http://www.sunnynewcomer.com/

> 3. Do You suggest renting a car for my stay there or public transport
> is enough to move around ?

If you plan to be in the core Toronto area, you will find everything you
need by public transit, the TTC. The buses, subway & street cars are
near flawless and very cheap.

If you want to look further afield at smaller towns perhaps, then
definately rent a car. Once you get outside the core of Toronto, public
transit is very bad. There is a notable exception to this rule - GO
Transit trains are excellent and serve a large area inside and outside
of the GTA, but that is only good for getting to and from towns of
course. Smaller towns have very bad and unreliable bus services.

> 4. Once immigration has been validated, how many years do I have to
> finally move there or loose my PR ?

I believe that you have to accumulate 2 years physical presense in every
5 year period.

> 5. Best time to visit Toronto ? In terms of weather.

I love it all year round, but I guess if you want the warmest weather
with the least precipitation, you are looking between the start of June
and the end of September.

> 7. The passport on which my Canadian PR has been stamped has
> expired/cancelled (though my Canadian PR is still valid). I will be
> travelling with a new passport and will carry the old expired/cancelled
> passport with me. Will it be ok ? Or I must get the PR transferred onto
> my new passport before flying to Canada ?

I will leave that to an expert, however, I would not be comfortable with
that situation and would get my visa re-issued into my new passport.
I have no idea how you would go about this.

> 8. I will be giving my friend's address for the ID card and in case I
> come back before the ID card arrives, my friend will courier the ID
> card to Germany. Could this be any kind of problem ?

That is a very common thing to do.

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David Peacock - davidjpeacock@magma.ca

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nitin.malhotra@khalsa.com - 27 Mar 2006 22:56 GMT

Thanks soo much David. I have already looked up at the website of
sunnynewcomer and they do sound interesting.

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David Peacock - 28 Mar 2006 02:01 GMT

> Thanks soo much David. I have already looked up at the website of
> sunnynewcomer and they do sound interesting.

You're more than welcome. Welcome to Canada :-)

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David Peacock - davidjpeacock@magma.ca

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rush - 29 Mar 2006 16:22 GMT

To answer the one question David left out...

If you are travelling within Ontario or perhaps to Quebec, driving
offers the greatest flexibility. The roads are great, and if you've
lived in Germany, figuring out the highways won't be a problem either.
If you'd rather not drive, then there are inter-city bus and train
services.

However if you are travelling across the country, to, say, Alberta or
BC, then you really need to take the plane.

I'd also suggest you take a look at these two sites that will help you
a great deal with the moving and settling-in process:

http://www.immigrationguides.com

http://www.settlement.org

HTH

> 6. Best travelling/lodging options between different cities ? Train,
> car, flight ?

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Immigration Forum / Canada / March 2006

Landing in Toronto this summer