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This post may contain affiliate links and that means I may earn a small commission when you click on the links at no additional cost to you. Don't worry, I only recommend products that I use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. Leaving your country can be a challenging journey. I will show you a list of 40 things to do before moving to Canada based on my own experience planning the entire trip from Chile to Canada. I have separated the content in different categories so you can easily navigate through them. Before I jump right in, here is a story that happened to me because I did not have this information. If you are in a hurry, pick from the table of contents below for what you are looking for. Table of contents General Information Services & Subscriptions Health & Insurance Savings & Banking Home & Organization Documents & Paperwork Education Pets Work Essentials for your trip It was January 5, 2021 and in the middle of the Chilean summer, I went to the phone company with two clear objectives: to cancel my monthly plan and an insurance that protected my cell phone in case of damage or theft. Everything went smoothly, we were already in pandemic so I had to wait a bit but finally I arrived at one of the more than 40 counters in the main office. I explained what my objectives were there and the executive helped me. I signed what I needed, she confirmed that everything was in order and that I was going to receive a final invoice with the difference from the last bill, and I left. I was walking to the bus stop and realized that I couldn't use Google maps to see my bus coming, because I no longer had internet.... of course... it made sense, I had just cancelled the plan. So I went home, with one more task checked off my list. Since my trip was a month away, it was a huge relief. A month later, when I was already settled in Canada. I started receiving bills in my email from my cell phone insurance. I contacted them by email and the response was that I had not cancelled it. You can't imagine the frustration I felt, the only answer I got was "You have to come physically to the office to cancel the insurance" - I freaked out. I complained by email, by social media, I asked for the recording of the office camera, and finally I formally complained to the institution that protects consumers in Chile (SERNAC). I don't know what the successful measure was, but I don't receive any more invoices. I do not want you to go through this anxiety about forgetting something important, we know it is not like forgetting to take your wallet when you go to the supermarket around the corner. I have compiled with my personal experience 40 things you should do before moving to Canada. I will present you tips from a financial point of view, related to the trip itself, preparation at home and much more.... so here we go! General information 1. Create a checklist with your to-do list This is the most important for me that is why I have added it as number one. My partner always tells me that I create a checklist for everything, but I do it because it really helps me. I suggest you create a checklist after brainstorming the things you need to do before traveling. If you prefer, you can get my FREE 3-page checklist below. This is going to be useful for going back and checking your progress. Think about your daily life, the bills you pay, and the things you do in your day-to-day life to start checking what you need to do to get everything in order in your home country. Think that once you leave your country it is difficult to go back to fix something you did not close before traveling. Services & subscriptions 2. Cancel phone and internet plans I put this here because this caused me headaches as soon as I arrived in Canada. If you have a phone (you most likely have one) with a monthly plan and/or a monthly internet plan for your home connection, be sure to call the company and check how to cancel it. Check ahead of time if you have to inform the company in advance, if you have to physically sign something, and don't be like me: double-check if it's 100% canceled. 3. Check if you have to waive any subscriptions As I mentioned in the exercise at the beginning. Brainstorm your daily life activities to see if you have any subscriptions to a service that you will no longer be able to use. In my case, I had a subscription to a small company that removed the organic garbage from my home weekly and we had to notify them that we were leaving and would no longer be using the service. On the other hand, you could go through the subscriptions you have but are not using. It would be a sort of cleanup that I assure you will help you save money. Other examples of subscriptions could be Netflix, Amazon, etc. 4. Check if you have to notify your social security or pension plan This is going to depend on your country and how this system works. In my case, I didn't have to do anything. Leaving my job was enough, but check if you have to give advance notice or if you have to do any paperwork. Think that you are not going to work or get a salary in your country, so you will stop contributing money to your pension plan. Check how it works and what are the steps to follow. 5. Check your donations If you are committed to some causes and currently give money frequently to support institutions or foundations. I suggest you review your donations. I had some automatic payments scheduled to withdraw money directly from my Chilean account, so if I wanted to keep supporting I have to be aware of always having money in that account. On the other hand, if you know you are not going to have a job or enough money to cover the donations you make periodically. Be sure to cancel them. 6. Return any devices I am not sure if this is something that might apply to your situation or maybe it can give you an idea of something similar. I mean to return to the companies that delivered services to you, all kinds of devices, e.g. roadside charging devices, cable TV, internet modem, landline phone, security cameras, etc. Make sure if you cancel a service or there is something that you will no longer use. Return it to the company that provided it. It will also help you to declutter your space. Health & insurance 7. Check if you have to formally resign from your country's healthcare system This is similar to what I mentioned regarding the pension plan. It is going to depend on how your country's healthcare system works. In Chile, we have a private and a public system. My partner was part of the private system, so he had to physically go to sign to finalize the contract with them. In my case, I did not have to resign because I got a transfer to the company where I was working, which kept me with the same Chilean salary, but for the purpose of this post, it will depend on your situation and your country. Be sure to research beforehand if you have to notify the health system or sign any papers. 8. Cancel insurance that does not cover you abroad If you are paying for any insurance for yourself or your family, I would recommend you review the conditions of that policy. From a personal point of view, I had life insurance in my country, so I sent them an email to ask if that policy covered me in case I was abroad. With that, I could rest assured whether I could continue with the insurance or have to close it. This can apply to health insurance, cell phone insurance, life insurance that does not cover accidents abroad, unemployment, and many other things. I don't want something to happen to you, but it's better to be prepared. 9. Get medical checkups Since you already know your local health care system, I would suggest you get a general medical checkup and get some routine tests done if it's something you feel you need. I am vegan and was in the process of getting my B12 and vitamin D levels checked, I got an order but unfortunately did not organize my time to go and complete the tests there. Once settled in Canada, and without an Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), which is the card that gives you access to public health in the province of Ontario. It was expensive and took me a long time to figure out here how to do it and where to go. Savings & banking 10. Save more money than you think I don't know how to stress this enough. It depends on the country you are coming from, but at least in my country, the cost of living in Canada is much higher than in our home country. I suggest you save as much money as you can. If you have already decided which province you want to live in. Use the internet to get an idea of the cost of living, rent, transportation, groceries, etc. Consider that you are going to arrive and maybe you won't have a job right away and you will need to buy some things for your house, advance payments for housing, etc. 11. Eliminate or reduce your local debts If you have saved enough money to close local debts, I recommend you do so. You will have peace of mind and will not have to worry about paying them from abroad. I decided to use part of my savings to cover my student loan. It was not easy but I did the math and it was necessary because in the long run, it would be more expensive than paying once. So I suggest you review your debts and find a way to close most or all of them if it is below your means. 12. Check to see if you have automatic payments on your bills Sometimes to make it easier to pay bills at the end of the month, banks give you the possibility to set up recurring payments or automatic withdrawals directly from your bank account. If you have any services that deduct money directly from your account, be sure to cancel or stop the service in case you are not going to use it. And again, call the bank to see if you have to sign anything on paper. 13. Create an international bank account This is totally up to you, but you may have saved up some money when you are ready to travel that you want to bring to Canada. Check online to see how you can bring the money or transfer it. What I did was to set up an international bank account, I did it with Scotiabank. In short, it was expensive, because the Chilean bank charged me a commission for each dollar transferred, but somehow it was very useful. When I opened my account in Scotiabank Canada, they took the money from that account and it was immediately deposited there, so it was worth it. When I was already settled in Canada and had my Canadian account. I decided to use a service called Currencybird that allows transferring Chilean money to Canadian dollars quickly and with less commission than our bank and it worked perfectly for me. There are other services like Western Union, Remitly, and others if you want to check them out. For more details on financial preparations, make sure you check Preparing your finances for a move to Canada: What you need to know. Home & organization 14. End your rental contract If you currently live in a rented place in your home country, be sure to let your landlord know ahead of time so they can accommodate a new tenant while you leave. This can be helpful if you want to maintain a good relationship with the landlord. Remember that your trip may be temporary and you may later return and have a choice in the same place. 15. Hire a real estate agency (If applicable) If you own the place where you live and intend to leave it rented while you are traveling in Canada. One of the options is to hire a real estate agency to help you with the whole process of finding a tenant, screening, securing payments, etc. This can help you relieve some of the pressure, anxiety and give you back time to focus on other things in preparation for your trip. Personally, I tried to do this process with an agency, but it was getting close to the time of my trip and they couldn't find any potential tenants. So I rented my house to a relative on my own. 16. Sell your biggest possessions If you have assets that are going to depreciate when you are traveling. A good option is to sell them. We sold my partner's car and our motorcycles after a long reflection on how these items were going to depreciate from being stored in our parking lot. So we let them go. It was hard because they were part of our lives for many years and accompanied us on our adventures, but in the long run, this helps to increase our savings for our Canadian project, so it was worth it. 17. Declutter your closet In this regard, I would say: be conscious, honest with yourself, and make sure you travel with only the necessary things. Donate, give away or sell and you will increase your savings and peace of mind. In general, I have never been so attached to buying too many different clothes and I didn't have a big closet, but maybe this is not the norm. So I would recommend going through everything you have in your closet and not traveling with too many clothes. I am sure you will find good quality and affordable prices in Canada. 18. Sell or donate utensils you will not use In the same spirit as number 17, I suggest you extend your pre-trip cleaning to your whole house and do it in advance. We did it and I can tell you it was a lot of work. From selecting the items, posting on a platform, waiting for the buyer, confirming they were going to take it, being home when it arrived, etc. So be patient and do it hopefully months before your trip. We sold bikes, a play station, a baby seat that I used for my niece, etc. Also, consider that if you can't sell them you can also donate them. For example, all the tools that Corita used we gave to a kitten adopted by a friend. 19. Sell or donate your plants This is another detail you should take care of. If you are a plant lover make sure you find them a new home. In my case, we had to give away our SCOBYs to make kombucha so this also applies. Documents & paperwork 20. Check that your passport is up to date This is a priority because a passport is not a document we use every day, we usually check it if we are going to take a vacation once in a while. So make sure it is up to date, and that it is valid enough for your entire stay in Canada. If it is not, make sure you renew it while you are in your country. This can also apply to your national identity card if you have one. 21. Leave a Broad Power of attorney to someone you trust I am not sure if this is something that exists in your country, but you may be able to find something similar. You can consult a notary or a lawyer. I mean a document that allows someone to do what you need on your behalf. I mean that person can represent you to sign papers or whatever while you are abroad, so make sure that person is someone you trust. I did not do it and I regret it, so don't be like me and find out how to get one in your country. 22. Collect information about your common-law relationship (If applicable) In Canada, there is a marital status that applies to couples who are not married but have lived together for at least one year. This is called common law. For immigration purposes, there is a form that you sign in front of a notary and you have to add proof that you are living as a common-law couple, so I think it is important to review this and collect proof of utility bills with the same address, shared bank accounts, shared rental contracts, etc. You never know if this might be useful in Canada. If your marital status is married, be sure to bring your marriage certificate which can be the equivalent for paperwork here. 23. Scan important documents I suggest you scan important documents that you do not want to bring physically, but that could be used to do some paperwork online. You're going to save yourself some headaches and they hardly take up space. For more detail about documents, you should bring to Canada, make sure you check Essential documents to gather before moving to Canada. Education 24. Validate your credentials or degree If you think you have a small chance of coming and your plan is to apply for permanent residence. I suggest you evaluate your credentials in advance. It is expensive and involves following some protocols but it is better if you can do it and you don't have to ask for favors from family or friends while you are in Canada. In this post, I will tell you about our educational credential evaluations. I did mine while in Chile and Aldo did it from Canada. 25. Quote an English course (If applicable) If you have already read a bit of this blog you will have noticed that we are fervent advocates of the working holiday program. The thing is that, as we know, it is a random selection, you may not receive the invitation to apply, but you may still have the desire to travel, as we did. Aldo never received the invitation to apply, but the plan was to come together, so our plan B was to buy an English course for him. We did a lot of research and quoted different courses, made comparison charts and in the end, he chose the same school where I did a course 6 years ago. If you want to practice your English skills while you prepare for your trip, you can use a platform like Italki, they have teachers and tutors from all over the world. The classes are affordable, you choose the availability and help you feel more confident when you speak. I have completed more than 100 classes on it. Pets 26. Find a place for them I have decided to include this option even though it is not the option I personally chose, but maybe it is your case. If you have a pet: cat, dog, fish or whatever and you are going to travel but you have decided that your little friend will not come with you. Make sure you choose a good place for him/her to stay ahead of time. A place where someone will take care of them responsibly, where your pet will get food, water, and have all their needs met. And perhaps more important than the place is the person who will take care of them, who will have patience, and experience and will love them as you do. 27. Prepare your furry one for the trip On the other hand, if when you are planning your trip, the first individual on the plane is your adorable pet (as was my case) there are a lot of activities to complete before the big day. This topic I have covered in another post because there are several details I would like to explain. If you want to see that post click here Work 28. Ask about any possibility of relocation within your current job I have added this option because it was what personally worked for me. I think it may be an option if you work in an international company. If you like your job and you know that the company has offices in Canada. I suggest you check to see if there are any programs available within the company that you can apply for and maybe opt for a transfer from your country to Canada. I was going to leave my job and my manager suggested that I look for a possibility within the company and use an available program. I did and it worked. 29. Quit your job (if applicable) Well, if the possibility mentioned in item 28 is not an option, you will have to proceed with 29. This is obviously going to depend on your personal situation. See if you have to notify your employer in advance if there is a deadline or maximum time you have to comply with to avoid problems and thus be able to leave with peace of mind. 30. Resume and cover letter If you are going to work, I recommend that you prepare a draft cover letter and a Canadian- style resume so you don't have to start from scratch the day you start looking for a job. The Canadian-style resume is brief, tailored to the position you are applying for, without a photo, and without including personal information such as religion or anything similar. Do your research ahead of time and learn about the resume and cover letter. Typically, these are the two documents you need to apply for a job in Canada. Essentials for your trip 31. Prepare a stock of essential medications If you or someone travelling with you has an illness that requires ongoing medication. I suggest you prepare a supply of medications. so that you can be covered while you find out how the system works in the province where you live. Go to your doctor and ask him/her to give you a prescription to carry on the flight in case you have to explain what you are bringing in those quantities. I brought inhalers for asthma and levothyroxine for hypothyroidism and had no problems at all during my trip. I still have stock almost a year later (Maybe I over-prepared the stock). 32. Buy a suitcase (If applicable) You will need a suitcase to carry all the belongings you want to take to Canada. As I mentioned in items 17 and 18, don't go crazy bringing your entire life to Canada. Choose only the items that you will actually use. So, check to see if you have a suitcase or if you will need to buy an extra one. Try to plan ahead so you can buy it on sale and not have to spend too much. I suggest you keep in mind the suitcase you want and then try to buy it on days like Black Friday. 33. Choose the date of your trip Sometimes you have to make tough decisions and set a date as I did. It depends on many things. In my case, it was related to the expiration of my Port of Entry (POE) letter which was February 12, 2021. It was November 2020 and a job offer was not yet in sight. I had already announced several times at work that I was leaving, but I really couldn't leave. On November 9, 2020, I phoned Air Canada and picked a date (January 3, 2021). I bought tickets for all three of us on Air Canada and let Aldo know. Because of COVID-19 that was not our final date, but it was a start. So, be brave and pick the date. 34. Choose your destination city This may be another decision that causes some anxiety, it will depend on several factors. If you get a job offer, there is not much to think about, but if you don't need it, you are free to choose any city, town, or corner of Canada. This is a topic that gives for a lot of debate so you can check some tips about which place to choose in this post. 35. Buy the tickets According to your preferences define which airlines fly from your nearest city to your destination in Canada and buy the tickets. If you are going to travel with a pet I suggest you review the post dedicated to that topic, because you will have to take into account their ticket as well. 36. Purchase travel insurance This is a requirement of the Working Holiday program. You must have travel insurance that covers the entire period of your stay in Canada. I contacted a couple who have a blog and were selling different insurances. We made comparison charts and chose the most suitable one. There are many comments about how useful they are, in our case, in September 2021 Aldo had to use his because he fell playing soccer and had a wrist injury. Just going to the emergency room cost 700 CAD, which paid for the insurance several times over. So consider it in your budget and choose travel insurance. 37. Take your documents with you To avoid extra worry when you have to present your documents at the border. Make sure you prepare a folder with the documents you need to bring. Include in that folder all the documents you sent to IRCC for your application, that is, no matter what your status is, worker, student, visitor, make sure you bring everything printed so you don't have to go crazy looking for information on your cell phone when you just arrived in Canada. 38. Unlock your debit and credit card for international purchases This is going to be super useful. If you have a credit or debit card in your country that can be used abroad, contact your bank to find out what you need to do to activate it so you can make purchases abroad. Sometimes this takes a couple of hours, so don't leave it to the last minute. 39. Exchange cash In addition to item 38, I recommend that you exchange some of your money for Canadian dollars. Just in case your cards don't work when you arrive or you need to buy something in cash. In general, most places have access to pay by debit or credit card, but it's just an extra precaution in case the system doesn't work. 40. Rent a temporary place If you are travelling from your country to Canada, I suggest you rent a temporary place such as a hotel, room, Airbnb, booking.com, or other. Whatever is most convenient for you. The idea is to have enough time to look for a permanent place. Be careful, I have heard that there are many scams with people who supposedly rent while you are still in your home country. Do not do that, Do not pay any money upfront when you are not seeing the place. I rented an Airbnb for 30 days in Toronto to complete my quarantine (15 days at the time) and then had 15 days to find a permanent apartment for the rest of the year. I hope this comprehensive list can help. There are a number of things we didn't do and then being here was a struggle. Always check if there is anything specific to your country that is not included here and also if you have any other tips let me know in the comments section below so we can nurture this list for the rest of the community. If you're already in Canada, what was one thing you didn't do before travelling that you discovered while you were here that was important? Let us know!

This post may contain affiliate links and that means I may earn a small commission when you purchase on the links at no additional cost to you. Don't worry, I only recommend products that I use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. Maybe you have already decided to move to Canada and start thinking about what matters in your life and what you want to bring with you on that trip. I'm sure that if you are here, it's because you have an adorable cat, and in your mind, there is no way you can leave it behind. You may be wondering: How can I take my cat to Canada? What steps should I take to travel with my cat? You will find 12 tips for travelling to Canada with a cat. This was part of my experience travelling from Chile to Canada with Corita (@Corita_bella), a beautiful, almost 8-year-old calico. I'll cover information on documents, training, transportation and more. Here I explain why my story involves a cat on this trip. Please see the table below to jump right into the content. Table of contents 1. General airline research 2. Know your pet's characteristics 3. Buying the right carrier for your pet 4. Train your kitten 5. Airplane ticket 6. Visit the veterinarian 7. Paperwork 8. Hiring an agency 9. Fasting and food 10. X-ray inspection 11. Find a pet-friendly space 12. Food and bedding upon arrival As you can see on the About Me page of this blog, Cora (aka Corita) is the CEO of our household. In 2016, one of my goals was to adopt an adult cat. I did it because kittens are always cute and people like them, so I wanted to give an adult one a chance. I went to a shelter I knew and went to pick out my cat. Her name was Margarita; she was a year and a half old and was recovering from a cold and coming off a course of antibiotics. She had a cough, and I could hear her snoring when she breathed because of the cold, but she was cleared for adoption, so I took her in. That was on May 14, 2016. I've been with her longer than I've been with my partner. So, she is entirely part of my life and my dreams; for that reason, she was number one with an airplane ticket from Santiago to Toronto. However, the journey did not start that day; it started many months before, and I will explain the whole process in this post. Let me share a list of tasks related to travelling with a pet. I will cover from when we bought the cat's travel bag until she arrived in Canada in order of occurrence, so you have an idea of what you need. If you want to know what happens after arriving, review 15 things your cat needs when settling in Canada. 1) General airline research When you have to travel with a pet, you must obey the airline's policies, the country you are leaving and the country you are arriving in when transporting pets. That said, I recommend you start looking for information about the airlines flying from your country to Canada. This way, you can narrow down which airlines you can count on for this trip. From a personal perspective, I decided to look first for the airlines that have direct flights to avoid too many stopovers and more stress for her. In our case, there was only one airline available: Air Canada. So we chose that option. To look for flights in incognito mode, try the pages Google flights, Skyscanner and Kayak to have an overview; then, you can go to each airline to buy directly with them. Each airline has a set of requirements that must be met. That brings us to tip number 2. 2) Know your pet's characteristics Once you've identified which airlines fly from your country to Canada, you'll need to be clear and handy about your pet's characteristics, such as age, weight, height and width. You need the age because your cat has to be at least 12 weeks old to travel; at least, that is one of the conditions on the airline we initially chose. The weight will define whether your cat qualifies to travel in the cabin or the baggage compartment. In my case, my cat weighed 4.0 kg and could travel in the cabin. From what I remember when we looked up the information, your pet has to weigh a maximum of 4.5 kg with the carrier included. The height and width will be helpful for tip number 3. 3) Buying the right carrier for your pet Once you have pre-selected the airlines that fly from your country, you have your pet's characteristics. I encourage you to visit the website of each pre-selected airline to find out what requirements they have for the pet carrier; by this, I mean the maximum size of carrier allowed. The height and width of your cat will be critical in finding the perfect carrier, as it must allow your cat enough room to stand up, turn around and lie down, all under the seat in front of you. At the time of our search, in early 2020, Air Canada offered a choice of a soft or hard-sided carrier, and this is still in effect. We selected the soft because the height was 4 centimetres more than the hard. These were the dimensions Height: 27 cm (10.5 in) Width: 40 cm (15.5 in) Length: 55 cm (21.5 in) In this case, we contacted an agency specializing in pet transport to see our options. They were fantastic; they even visited us home so we could try the suitcases and see what was most comfortable for our cat. This can be done directly at a pet store, but we wanted to be sure that the carrier we were comparing would be suitable for the flight. 4) Train your kitten From my perspective, this is the most crucial step and has to be done with time and patience. We have to train our pets to feel comfortable inside their carrier, to reduce stress and allow them to feel safe while travelling. At this point, I had already purchased the carrier I mentioned in the previous tip. We started this process months before our trip; I would say at least ten months before the actual trip. For all the details on how we trained our kitty, visit How to train your pet to travel to Canada. 5) Airplane ticket You must pay a fee to travel with a pet, depending on the airline. In our first attempt, we bought it with Air Canada, and it was 100 USD approx. We did the whole process of buying the tickets for my partner, myself and Corita over the phone, and they linked the pet with one of the passengers. I recommend rushing through this process because there is a limit on the number of pets that can travel per plane. So you must ensure your cat has a place on the plane you are travelling on. I recommend that before you buy, you ask if there are spots for pets on that plane. On other airlines, you must buy and then call to find out if there is a space. Note regarding the passenger who has the cat under their ticket. It matters who the person carrying the pet is because it is impossible to change it if there is a cancellation (At least on Air Canada). Because of the pandemic, our first flight was cancelled, and the second flight changed from a direct flight to a stopover in Brazil. We decided I would travel that route, and Aldo would wait with Corita for the next direct flight. Since Corita was tied to my ticket, we requested to change it to Aldo's name, but eventually, I had to buy her ticket again, and then they processed the credit note for the previous ticket because it systematically would not let them change the pet for another passenger. 6) Visit the veterinarian I advise you to do this ahead of time to ensure everything is okay and just in case your kitty needs any medication. So far, to enter Canada, the requirement is to have the rabies vaccine, but check to see if your country has any additional requirements to leave. I would suggest checking your country's requirements, as in our case, the paperwork had to be issued very close to the trip, which was stressful. 7) Paperwork You must be careful with the paperwork because it depends on your country and government regulations. In our case, the authority required us to have a medical certificate provided by a veterinarian no more than ten days before the trip, and with that, we had to request an export certificate, which was delivered four days before the trip. It was stressful because we had to order the document online, but we had to go 2-3 days later to pick up the paper physically. Due to COVID, the office was only open a couple of days a week, and a huge queue was waiting for the documents. 8) Hiring an agency If you think all this paperwork will be too stressful and demanding for you. You can always hire specialized agencies that do pet transfers between countries. We only paid for the medical certificate to ensure the document was complete and with all the information, but we did the rest ourselves because we could not spend so much on this. In this case, we went to the same company where we bought the carrier. 9) Fasting and food Make sure you follow the rules regarding the fasting period so that your pet doesn't have to feel uncomfortable going to the bathroom in her carrier, but somehow this will be unavoidable. Corita fasted for 8 hours on the vet's recommendation, so her last meal was just before leaving home. Due to COVID, several flights were cancelled, and the final route they took was Santiago (Chile) - Atlanta (USA) - Detroit (USA)- Toronto (Canada). My partner brought snacks for her because it was a long trip (almost 20 hours with two stopovers) and gave them to her on the last flight. My partner was prepared and brought extra absorbent layers in his carry-on luggage, so when he realized Corita peed or pooped, he could replace them with new ones in the bathroom and had no problem. 10) X-ray inspection One of the surprises my partner encountered at all the airports was that he had to take her out of her carrier and go through the x-ray with her in his arms. This was the same way at all three airports they stopped at. That was stressful for both of them because it was unexpected, noisy, and crowded, but they went through it without problem, and she went into her bag repeatedly. 11) Find a pet-friendly place Another thing you have to keep in mind is to plan where you will live as soon as you arrive. Make sure that it allows pets; most platforms have a filter where you can add this. This reduces the range of places you can stay, but believe me, there are always options available. 12) Food and bedding upon arrival Plan what you will do to have a litter box, litter, and food for your kitty for the first day. You can travel with some small food packages when they are completely sealed, but be sure to check with the airline. I suggest you Google Maps your neighbourhood and see any pet stores nearby, or you can search online. Some I know of here are Pet Smart and Pet Valu (I currently use this one for food and litter), and also Amazon.ca is an excellent option, primarily since they can deliver the same day or the next day. This is the litter box I bought for Corita on Amazon. The last step is to let her rest because the situation is very stressful, regardless of the amount of preparation. Days after the trip and exploring their new place, they start to feel like they own the house again. I hope this helps you coordinate and figure out how to move to Canada with your furry friends. In conclusion, always check if there are additional regulations in your country, check the airline, and most importantly: Train your pet so you can alleviate stress for them and yourself. If you would like to check what happens after arriving, check 15 things your cat needs for settling in Canada. And now, tell me, what step are you on..... what is your struggle when planning a trip with a pet? Please let me know in the comments section below.

Oh right! If you are looking for information on this page it is because you have already received an invitation to apply (yay!) or you are curious to know what the next step is in case you receive one. In this post, I am going to show you what the next steps are once you have received an invitation to apply to the Working Holiday program including all the screenshots you will find in your application, the documents you have to gather and, the deadlines, so you can be prepared. I hope you find it very useful, I have prepared it based on my experience applying to two working holidays, and it has worked perfectly for me. If you are still unclear about a working holiday, I invite you to visit this post, where I explain the generalities and the most common questions about this program. Table of content Receiving an invitation to apply Accept the invitation Complete your profile Collect the documents Upload documents Pay the fees Wait for a response 1. Receiving an invitation to apply In my own experience, this is the most exciting day! Usually, when there are any updates to your profile that you have previously created on Canada.ca you will receive an email that goes something like this: You will log into your profile with your username and password and you will see that you have a message. IRCC always sends you a message that includes a letter explaining what is going on. Below that message, you will see this lovely message. Here you can clap, cry, dance or whatever you feel. In the View the applications you submitted section. You will find something that says International experience Canada and current status Invitation received as shown below: That means you are lucky to have received an invitation to apply for this program. In general, you have 10 days to accept or decline the invitation (I hope you accept it) and then 20 days to submit your application. I would recommend you not to accept it immediately until you check how long it will take you to find the necessary documentation. If the next 20 days is enough, go ahead and accept it, but check first. 2. Accept the invitation As I mentioned before, I recommend you check step 4 first before accepting the invitation so you have an idea of how long it will take to retrieve the necessary documents. That's going to depend on your country and how long it takes to handle the paperwork. (So, let's check step 4 first and then you can come back). Once you are ready and willing to accept, you go into your profile, and if you scroll down, you will find an area that says Continue an application you haven't submitted and you will find a line that explains how many days you have left to accept the invitation. In this example, there are 2 days left to submit. Accepting the invitation is super easy. Just click on the action to the right as shown in the image below that says Start application, highlighted in yellow. You will now see that the action has changed to Continue application and the days left to submit have changed to 20. Those are the days you have available to submit your application. 3. Complete your profile Once you have accepted the invitation to apply, you will be taken to a new screen where the system will ask you to complete additional information. The screen should look like this: As you can see you will have to digitally fill in at least 4 forms. Personal details of the applicant Contact information Work and education details Application details Below I will explain them one by one. 3.1 Personal details of the applicant In this section you will be able to check the information you entered when you created your profile, there are some data that you will not be able to change. You will find 6 sections inside, and you will have to navigate and check the information inside all of them. The sections are: Names Personal Description Marital status Language details ID documents Immigration history and citizenships The first section within that form is about your Names, check if the information is correct, and click next. The second section is about your date of birth, country and gender, make sure the information is correct and click next. The third section is about your marital status, fill in the information according to your situation and click next The fourth section is about language details The fifth section is about identity documents (ID) . As the profile is created with your passport that information is probably already considered. You can add national identity documents if they apply to you. And the last section contains several questions. Read them carefully and answer them according to your personal situation. After completing the form, you can click Validate to have the system check for any missing answers and then you can click Save and Exit. You will return to the previous page and you will see that the status of that form has changed from in progress to complete. Before submitting it you can double check the information, and you can also complete some of this information and then come back to continue working on it so it is not mandatory to complete it all at once. 3.2 Contact Information In this section, you will find 4 sections and you have to follow the same exercise, check the information, complete what is missing and continue. The sections are: Language of correspondence E-mail address Phone Address In the language of correspondence, there will be two options: English or French because these are the official languages used in Canada. Choose the language you are more comfortable with and click Next. Next you will have to enter your email address, make sure you type it correctly because any information will be sent to that email address. The next section corresponds to your phone number And then, you have to include the address where you currently live. Again, when you complete the form, you can check it with the Validate button and then save and exit. You will return to the main page, and you will see the status updated to complete. 3.3 Work history In the work history section you will find 2 sections: Work history Education history Next, we will move on to the form associated with work history. In this form, you will need to include information about your employment during the last 10 years, including any government positions you have held. If you have been a student during that period you will also need to include this. Make sure you don't have any gaps and complete the entire history including if you were unemployed. I would recommend writing it down on a piece of paper being clear on the job title, start date, end date (if applicable), employer, city and country. And also the system does not organize it by date, so if you enter the information randomly you will end up with a random list and not organized chronologically. Especially if you have had several jobs. In my case, I have exactly 10 years of work experience so I organized it on paper first to have everything ready to complete this form and make sure I don't have any gaps between them. You will see a screen like this and you will have to add one by one your experience: Under Occupation you'll find several options, you will not have to enter your specific position. You can do this when you have to submit your resume as part of the documentation listed in step 4. Be sure to select the appropriate occupation here, because then a new drop-down list will appear to narrow down your job title. This is the first drop-down list: Depending on the area you select a new drop down list will appear, i.e. if you had a job related to the occupations of arts, culture, recreation and, sports you will see the following: Once you have completed all your work history, you will see all the details at the end, check that this information is correct and click next. This is just an example of my application. Next, you will have an item for education history where you will have to answer Yes or No depending on your situation. If you do have post-secondary education, you will answer Yes to the previous question and more fields will appear, such as the following: Once you complete all the required information, you will return to the previous page and you will see the work and education details status as complete. 3.4 Application details This is the last form you have to fill in this part of your application. Here you will find 4 sections: Applications details Intended work in Canada Background questions Contact consent request In the application details, you will need to answer if you have ever participated in International Experience Canada. Answer this according to your situation. You will then enter the Intended work in Canada section. Most of the questions here will be pre-populated based on the creation of your profile when you entered the pool of participants. As I understand it, if you intend to work in one of the occupations listed, you will need to submit a medical exam in the next step. You will then move on to the background questions, which you will obviously have to answer based on your personal situation. Make sure you read carefully, understand the questions and answer accordingly. After this, you can validate with the button in the center of the screen and then click save and exit. At this point, you will have completed the profile, and in the next step, you will see a document checklist based on your answers in these previous sections. The document checklist should look like this. Remember that this post is based on my experience, so it is possible that, based on your answers, you may have additional documents to retrieve. If you scroll down this page, you will also see a space for optional documents and fees you will have to pay. Again, this is an example I got on my application, so your page might be slightly different. 4. Collect the documents Okay! You've gotten to this point, so I imagine you've either completed your profile and know the documents you need to retrieve or you've read step 2 of this post and are being cautious before accepting the invitation. So let's talk a bit about the documents you have to upload. In any case, in each document you have in your checklist, you will see a column that says Instructions with a ? sign with more information. 4.1 Family information In the example I showed you above, one required document is the family information form (IMM5645). This is a document that you have to fill in with your family information (spouse, common-law partner if applicable, your children, parents and siblings) regardless of whether they are travelling with you or not. You have to download it from the link in your application. Some of the issues I have read about this form is that sometimes it is not possible to open it when you click on the link to the family information form that appears on the page. What you have to do is save it to your computer and then open it with adobe reader. You will see that it asks for a signature, but it is not necessary to sign. You can complete it digitally and then upload it. At the end of the process, when you upload all the documents, you will be asked to add your name as a declaration that all the information is true and that signature covers your entire application. 4.2 CV/resume You must upload a Curriculum Vitae with your work history, education and qualifications here. See below for instructions for this item: I have seen questions about what is the required format, actually, there is no required format to upload here. Just make sure it is in English or French and contains all of your history. You can use the same information you have added in your profile to add to your resume. If you have no idea about this, email me at julieta@happy-soy.com, and I will send you the format I used to obtain my 2 working holidays so that you can complete it with your information. 4.3 Passports/Travel documents In this section, you must upload a legible copy of your valid passport that you will use to travel. That copy must show your information, such as date of birth, country of origin, and any pages with stamps, visas or markings, if applicable. 4.4 National Identity Document If you have a national identity card in your country, as was the case for me, you must include it here. In the case of Chilean applicants, this corresponds to our carnet de identidad. Scan both sides, and that's it. Please see here for instructions, especially for citizens of the United States, Denmark who live in Greenland, or citizens of France who live in St. Pierre and Miquelon. 4.5 Digital Photo In this case, you have to upload a photo, see below the characteristics of this photo. As I took my first working holiday at a time before the beginning of the pandemic, I went to a store where the photo was taken and asked for a digital copy. The store was already aware of the Canadian requirements. For my second working holiday, I used the same. I have read that it can be done with your cell phone; just make sure to follow the requirements below: 4.6 Police Certificates This document will depend on your country. In this link, you can find exactly what the police certificate means for your country, taken from the official canada.ca website In my experience, this document can take the longest to retrieve. Some considerations you will have to take into account are: You must submit the police certificate for each country where you have spent 6 months or more. You have to submit the documents in PDF including the certificate in the original language and the English translation. Check in the link I mentioned above what a police certificate means. In the case of Chile, you have to present Hoja de vida del conductor and certificado de antecedentes para fines especiales. It does not matter if you do not have a driver's license. Both documents can be obtained from the registro civil website with your unique password. 4.7 Client information In case you need to upload any additional documents, there is a space for it; according to the instructions it is for a letter of explanation if required. Personally, I did not use this space. 5. Upload documents Once you have collected the required information or if you already have some of the documents, you can upload the documentation. To do this, click on the right option of the document you want to upload (e.g. resume) in your document list, and you will see the following: Then click on Choose file, you will search for the document on your computer, once you have selected the appropriate file, click on Upload file. Do the same process with each of your documents. Once you have uploaded all your documents, you will see the details in green with the file name and options, appearing as updated information. Yey! so you have completed all the required information, everything is uploaded, and you are ready to go and pay the fees. 6. Pay the fees As I mentioned before, as I complete this post with the 2022 process, you must pay 2 fees. The IEC participation fee of 156 CAD, and the open work permit holder fee of 100 CAD. Additionally, if you are applying for a permit to enter Canada for the first time, you should also see the biometrics fee here. In my case, I already had them the first time, which is why they do not appear in the example. So, once you have uploaded all the information, you will scroll down and see the fees; if you are ready click Next. Once you click Next you will see a page called Your declaration and Electronic Signature. On this page you will see the list of documents and details saying you have not yet submitted with IRCC. Then you will see the summary of fees, a notice about personal information and a declaration. Be sure to read the information to be clear. Next, if you agree with the information provided, select the appropriate option and then complete your signature with your given name and last name. After that, the system will ask for one of your security questions, answer accordingly and your signature will appear according to the information you provided and the Transmit and Pay option is the next step you have to follow. You will again see the Summary of fees, and you will need to click Transmit and Pay. You will then be taken to a page like when you purchase something online. You will fill in your credit card information, and if everything is OK, you will see a Transaction Approved like this. 7. Wait for a response Once you have paid, you will be taken to a page confirming that you have successfully submitted your application, and 4 steps will appear. You can read the details below: From this submission, all you have to do is wait for confirmation of your approval, rejection or for IRCC to contact you by leaving a message on your profile in case there are any additional documents you need. If this is the first time you are applying for a Working Holiday, and you have never given your biometric data. You will receive a message asking for them. Be sure to investigate where the biometric data is given. Usually, it is at an institution called Visa application center (VAC) where you have to schedule and go with your passport. They will take your official photo and scan your fingerprints. Here you can find more details filtering by your country. I hope this post has been helpful in your process. If you have any questions that you think I can help you with. Feel free to contact me on Instagram at @julietafromhappysoy, and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

This post may contain affiliate links and that means I may earn a small commission when you click on the links at no additional cost to you. Don't worry, I only recommend products that I use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. If you're wondering what a Working holiday program is and how it can help you get out of your comfort zone and enjoy the world out there, this information will be helpful for you. In this post, I'm going to explain to you in simple words what this program is, what are the requirements you must meet to participate, and common questions about this program. I explain this based on my experience since I came to Canada with this program so I have gone through the process. I leave here the story of how my process went, and in the table of contents below, you can find answers to your specific questions. Table of contents What is a working holiday program? Who can apply for a working holiday program? Do I need anything specific to apply? If I apply, am I guaranteed a work permit? Is this program free of charge? What do I need to know if I receive a POE letter? How long is a working holiday in Canada? is it the same as the International Experience Canada program? Can I apply for a Working Holiday without English or French? What type of jobs can I have? Do I need to prove my level of English or French? Can I travel with my children? Where can I live with a working holiday in Canada? Can I travel with my pet on a Working Holiday? Do I need to have a degree to apply for a Working Holiday? Do I need to hire an agency to apply for a working holiday? How can I create a profile? In 2019, I was facing a stressful year at my job and felt that having a salary was not enough to be happy. I started looking for information on how to travel for a period of time, and at the same time, I had some examples of people I knew who were abroad enjoying life. Our first choice was not Canada. At that time, I was 29 years old, and my boyfriend was 34. We checked the information and our country (Chile) only had 3 Working Holiday agreements that allowed people between 18-35 years old to apply: New Zealand, Canada and Hungary. The rest only included people between 18-30 years old, and my boyfriend would not be eligible. So we did further research and found out that for New Zealand October 9, 2019 was the day everyone had to apply. The system was different than Canada's, but long story short, we couldn't get a spot on that visa. I filled out all the information, but when I hit the button to pay for the visa, the internet crashed, and I couldn't get it. Aldo couldn't even open the home page. Well, people say everything happens for a reason, right? The next day, talking about resilience, I started reading about the Hungarian and Canadian processes. We learned that Canada was launching 2020 in December 2019, so we learned how to create our profiles, and on December 12, 2019, we created them. We were both in the pool of participants, but it is essential to mention that this program is for individual applicants and the selection is random. So it's not just creating your profile; you have to have some luck. On January 20, 2020, I received an email saying I had a new message in my account, and I got it! I had an invitation to apply. I cried, but in this case, because I was so happy and excited. Maybe right now you feel like I did in 2019, or you are just curious to explore the world and know what options you have. That's why I will give you an overview of what the Working Holiday program is all about and help you understand if you are likely to apply for and use this program or another similar program. So, let's dive right in! 1. What is a working holiday program? In simple terms, a working holiday program is an agreement between two countries that allows people who meet specific requirements to work and travel for a certain period of time. The intention is to have a cultural exchange, learn new things, travel and finance that travel with the work you get. 2. Who can apply for a working holiday program? This will depend entirely on the agreement between countries, but the first requirements to check are age and country of citizenship. I have compiled the information related to Working Holiday Canada, so I invite you to review the following table. Usually, the age range is between 18-29 years old, 18-30 years old or 18-35 years old. It should be noted that I captured this information at the beginning of 2022, so I suggest you check the official website of Canada.ca, where you can find the most updated information. 3. Do I need anything specific to apply? In general, you have to be a citizen of the country indicated in point 2. The only document you need to have on hand to create your profile is a valid passport with an expiration date that allows you to live in Canada for the duration of your work permit. 4. If I apply, am I guaranteed a work permit? Unfortunately, no, you are not guaranteed it. You create a profile with your passport information when the application period opens. With this you enter a pool of participants, then Canada sends out random invitations; if you receive the invitation, then you apply for the work permit. Once you receive the invitation, you have to gather a series of documents requested there, submit them all, pay the fees and wait for a response. I explain all this process in this post How to apply for a Working Holiday If you are approved, you will receive a letter allowing you to travel and receive your work permit at the airport of entry to Canada! Yey! 5. Is this program free of charge? The profile creation is free, but once you are the lucky person who receives an invitation to apply and submit your documents for review, you will have to pay the fees. In this case, the fees are the open work permit holder (100 CAD) and the IEC participation fee (156 CAD) for the period of 2022. This adds up to CAD 256. In addition, during the processing of your application, you will be asked to give your biometric data, which means that you have to go to a special place where your photo is taken and your fingerprints are scanned; this is done by an institution authorized by Canada. The cost of the biometric data is about 85 CAD. These biometrics are valid for ten years, so if you apply for a second working holiday or any other type of permit, you will not have to pay for the biometrics again. 6. What do I need to know if I receive the Port of Entry (POE) letter? Once you have received the invitation and completed the steps indicated in this post, everything went well, and your application was approved. Then, you will receive a Port of Entry letter (POE letter) that allows you to travel to Canada and obtain your work permit at the border. You should note the following: You have one year from receiving the POE letter to enter Canada and activate your work permit. You must prove that you have 2500 CAD to live on for the first few months. You must have travel insurance to protect you during your stay in Canada. You cannot travel to Canada with dependents under this work permit. The decision to issue you the work permit rests with the border officer if they consider that you meet all the requirements. 7. How long is a working holiday in Canada? It depends on the country; generally, you can work from 6 months to 2 years. See below the time I have compiled for you. 8. Is it the same as the International Experience Canada program? For Canada, all programs where young people can travel and work are grouped under the International Experience Canada program. Under this umbrella and depending on the country, you can find one, two, or three categories: Working Holiday Young Professionals Co-op Each category has different requirements to participate, i.e. for Young professionals, you need a job offer to apply, and you receive a closed work permit that allows you to work only for that company in that specific position. For Co-op, you must be a student applying for a Co-op period outside your country. For Working Holiday, you have access to an open work permit that allows you to work with any employer and even change employers if necessary. 9. Can I apply for a Working Holiday without knowing English or French? Yes, you can. Although you will need at least a basic knowledge of English or French to understand the information on the official website. So far, there is no requirement associated with knowing English or French to apply for the program, but I recommend you to practice a bit; you can use platforms like Italki (that I personally used) to improve your skills in English. 10. What type of jobs can I have? Normally, I have seen temporary jobs such as picker, waiter, cleaner, dishwasher, etc. But you can also get a professional job. In my case, I came as a quality control specialist for a pharmaceutical company, and I had no problem. The important thing is to inform your employer that your work permit is only for a limited time. You can have any job you can get with the limitations of your work permit. You cannot work in childcare, primary/ secondary school, and health service field occupations unless you have presented a medical certificate during your application. If that is your work intention, enter the information on your application. All this information is printed on the work permit you receive at the border. 11. Do I need to prove my level of English or French? As I mentioned in point 9. So far, there is no requirement to know English or French, and you don't need any kind of proof to demonstrate your English/French proficiency under this program. But, I would like to point out that the job you can get will depend on your level of English or French. If you can speak in an interview and explain yourself in the language, you will have a better chance of getting a more technical job. I recommend the platform Italki to practice. 12. Can I travel with my children? You cannot take your children or spouse as dependents on your working holiday, but they can apply for a visitor or work visa when they travel with you. You can find more accurate information here 13. Where can I live with a Working Holiday in Canada? This work permit is not tied to a location, so you can go anywhere you choose in Canada. You can find more information on choosing the best place for you in Canada at this post. In addition, you can learn how to rent your first home as a newcomer or know a little bit more about the city of Mississauga as your destination. 14. Can I travel with my pet on a Working Holiday? Yes, you can. You can find more information in this post about how to travel with your cat, if it is the case. You can also check what you need to settle with your pet in Canada. 15. Do I need a degree to apply for a Working Holiday? In most countries, there are no requirements regarding degrees. Only for Mexico, you need to be a student. 16. Do I need to hire an agency to apply for a working holiday? No, all the information is on Canada.ca, and you can also find blogs like this one with people who have already applied to the process. If you have already received the invitation, I invite you to review this post, where I explain the steps to follow after receiving the invitation. If this is extremely difficult for you, you can hire someone, but the process is still random, and maybe you will spend money to create your profile, and you will not get the invitation. 17. How can I create a profile? After reading this post, I hope you feel motivated and want to create a profile on the official website. For more information, visit the post How to create a profile for a Working Holiday. Make sure you enter your information on the official site; no site can assure you that you will receive an invitation, and you don't have to pay to create a profile. Don't fall for scams. Unfortunately, there are some. If you are the lucky person who receives an invitation, check out this post with all the steps you need to know. I hope this article has shed some light on how a working holiday program works, and I encourage you to create your profile to increase your chances of being selected in the random rounds of invitations Canada sends out. This stage is free, so why not? Maybe this is the push you are waiting for to get out of your cozy comfort zone and try new adventures; I recommend it. If you want to see daily content, follow me on Instagram.

It's true that when you step out of your comfort zone you feel uncomfortable... it's not called the comfort zone for anything, is it? Going from relatively normal life in our country to moving to a country with a different language, and different systems, without support networks, is a big change and quite a shock. However, we believe that this experience has made us grow in different ways. That's why I have compiled in this post 15 reasons why living abroad will make you grow. Here is an anecdote that happened to me on my first day of onsite work, but you can skip it if you prefer and go to the item you are looking for in the table of contents below. Table of content Improve your language skills Relearn everything from scratch Meet people with different backgrounds Be a new person Cultivate new habits Be a tourist in your new place Research everything to be prepared Be vulnerable Celebrate small accomplishments Be humble Appreciate what you have Prioritize what matters Feel closer to the people you are with Challenge yourself with new changes Expand your mind When I arrived in February 2021 in Canada, I immediately started working, but since we were in a pandemic, I did the entire training period working from home, from the Airbnb I had booked for the first month. In March things got better and we started going once a week. In preparation for my first day of physically going to work, I studied the map to get from Mississauga, where I live, to Brampton, where my job is. I had to take two buses: the 66 and the 511. I had the map open and running for the entire trip so I knew which bus stop was my bus stop. All went well on the first bus, I got to the first stop and waited for the 511 to arrive. It was arriving, I got on the bus and the driver said something to me that I couldn't understand with my poor real-life English. I told her I was going to Mississauga road, which is the street and she said, "we are not going there". I didn't know what to ask and I had to get off the bus, I froze!!!!! How the map had lied to me.... to me that I always plan everything!!!! I couldn't understand... I refreshed and refreshed my map and the same 511 appeared. I waited again and again and there were also fewer buses. Finally, I had 20 minutes to get to Brampton and decided to take an Uber, in 10 minutes I arrived at my destination. (what a relief) When I arrived my Manager was waiting for me and told her what had happened to me... it turns out that just that day... the 511 line had a coronavirus outbreak with several bus drivers unable to work, so they decided (just that day) that they were not going to cover that area. I felt very uncomfortable, it had been a long time since I had felt a sense of helplessness without knowing much where to turn, but that day I learned that no matter how much we plan, things can go off course, so you have to be prepared. You may be asking yourself: would it be good for me to live abroad for a while? Will it change my perspective? Will I lose years of work experience in my home country if I do? If you are thinking about this... I'm going to give you a list of 15 reasons why you will grow if you leave your country for a while. Let's see what resonates most with you, but I'm going to cover everything from meeting new people, developing new habits, strengthening your language skills, and more.... let's dive right in! You're going to... 1) Improve your language skills It doesn't matter which country you choose. Once you get there, you're forced to speak in the local language to get to the simplest things. When you go to the supermarket and the cashier asks you a lot of questions if you want to buy a coffee, ask for an address, etc. You will start to understand better each time you repeat the visit and you will feel more confident. I'll be honest, sometimes you just don't get it, so make sure you don't get a credit card or sign something without knowing what it means. Worst case scenario, just say, I don't understand, can you repeat that, please, or can you speak more slowly? That might help. If you then decide to go back to your home country, you will have experience in the new language that can help give you a professional edge. 2) Relearn everything from scratch You will have to settle in a new city, a new culture, a new place and things that may be normal in our countries may be different in this new place, so you will have to learn almost everything from scratch. One of the things that still affect me today is everything related to banking. I got a checking account and since I didn't have a Canadian credit score, I was able to apply for a secured credit card. This means I have to deposit an amount (1200 CAD in my case) which the bank holds and they give me a credit card with 1000 CAD on it, in case I don't pay, they will take that deposit. I have to log in weekly to my account to pay the amount I bought because if I use more than 30% of the total amount available it impacts my credit score. In my country, if you pay on time you are already considered a good person (financially speaking) and they raise your limit more and more as you pay on time and that's it. Here the system is different, it takes time to build a Canadian credit score, plus it depends not only on whether you pay on time, how long you have the card, what percentage you use, and more. Obviously, when you arrive you have zero history and it does not help if you have a good payment history in your country. 3) Meet people from different backgrounds It doesn't matter if you are going to a new country, studying or working. You will meet new people. In our case, I met my coworkers and Aldo, his classmates from different parts of the world. Once you start conversing, you start to see a new picture of people living in other countries, with different beliefs, and cultures, and it's amazing. I have a coworker from India and I love to ask her about her hometown and her family, and she is very nice. Also in a country like Canada where a high percentage of the population is immigrant, you will start to meet people from other countries who experienced the same things you did at the beginning and they will look for ways to help you. 4) Be a new person You are almost literally born again. You come to a place where no one knows you and you can be anything you want. I'm shy and even in Spanish I have a hard time socializing, but then I realized that if I don't speak it's hard for someone to talk to me, so I learned how to start conversations but that was a big jump out my comfort zone. At the same time, you will learn new things about yourself, as you face new challenges, you will notice that you can overcome whatever comes your way, especially during the adaptation period. 5) Cultivate new habits Being in a new place, you'll start to learn from the people around you. We started to see that people go to parks and that there are always people exercising in the morning, so we included walking every day in our routine. Today we walk almost 10 km a day whether it's sunny, raining, or snowing. It's amazing, isn't it? 6) Be a tourist in your new place You will want to make the most of this adventure, so you'll start exploring your surroundings and learn where the locals go. You will visit a new place every weekend and create fantastic memories. You will not need to plan a vacation because you'll have this whole new place to get to know and explore. 7) Research everything to be prepared You will find yourself with a lot of paperwork to do. Like the health card, renting an apartment, getting a driver's license, looking for a job, etc. You'll start consulting other experiences and looking for different sources to get an idea of what you have to do. We did this and, in some cases, we arrived at the office to pick up our papers and something was missing. So be patient and be prepared to get rejected and have to come back in another week. 8) Be vulnerable You will feel frustrated and you may cry (in my case, it was quite a bit at first). But then you will have learned something new and know that you are capable of overcoming that challenge and many others. I cried a lot in the beginning, I was alone for the first 2 months. Aldo and Corita were in Santiago and had to wait to be able to travel. It was hard to face important decisions and do everything alone, but here we are. Visit this post, if you want to know the 25 challenges of moving to a new country 9) Celebrate small accomplishments You will start celebrating the little things - really - and they will give you satisfaction beyond your dreams. One small accomplishment we got was buying a cart to transport our groceries home from the supermarket. It was only 20 CAD, but it made our lives so much easier. We even took pictures the first day as if it were a late model car. 10) Be humble As you are starting from scratch, you won't have the material things you might have had back home. No car. No money. Nothing. You will start building step by step your new self and it will be a great lesson in humility. 11) Appreciate what you have As a newcomer, you will not have the freedom to buy too many things, but you will be able to focus on what you have. Your partner, your pet, the place where you live, good health, and in time you will feel that you don't need more than that to be happy. You will realize that the most important things are the memories that you generate with this experience, the material things will take a back seat. 12) Prioritize what matters The life of a newcomer is not easy, especially from a monetary point of view. If you like to buy fancy things or like to revamp your closet every season, you might suffer a bit at first. You will have to focus on grocery shopping and feeding yourself because prices are likely to be higher in Canada. You will have to use your money for what matters. 13) Feel closer to the people you are with (partner, spouse, etc.) I'm sure this trip has strengthened our relationship. Most of our plans have been discussed on our morning walks. I think this jump from our comfort zone, made us both grow and we have generated more confidence in what we can do together. 14) Challenge yourself with new changes You will learn to overcome challenges and that will grow your ability to adapt to change. I am not saying it's easy because I would be sugarcoating this experience, but after overcoming them you will start to feel unbeatable. I always plan everything and I am slowly learning to embrace uncertainty and try to live what is present in my life right now. 15) Broaden your mind By being in contact with people from different backgrounds your mind will expand and you will learn new things, you will see that the world is full of other points of view and ways of living. You will be nourished by what other people teach you. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and that you now feel energized and motivated to look for options to take a trip or get out of your comfort zone for a while. I read somewhere that in the end, you regret the things you didn't do more than the things you did do, so why not take the risk? Tell me in the comments, have you thought about taking a break and exploring what else is out there? What makes you hesitate to travel abroad or get out of your comfort zone?

One of the most challenging decisions to make before travelling to Canada is choosing the city or town where we want to live. You may be wondering what is the best city to live in Canada? Honestly, I think there is no correct answer to this question because it will depend on different factors that suit your preferences. However, here are 13 tips on the factors to consider to make an informed decision. I leave here the story of how we decided on the city of Mississauga, located in the province of Ontario, but if you are still starting your search, you can check out the table of contents below. Table of contents 1. No specific preferences 2. Migration program 3. Job offer 4. Weather 5. City or small town 6. Type of work 7. Study 8. Near tourist attractions 9. Permanent residence 10. Lifestyle 11. Outdoor activities 12. Language 13. Budget In our case, we went through several alternatives. I had been in Toronto for three months in 2015, so we ruled out that option at first. Our first option was to look for information regarding the Atlantic provinces; Aldo wanted to go to New Brunswick because it was like the south of our country. I don't remember why we started to like Ottawa, maybe because it is close to the French area but still part of Ontario. Because of the COVID situation, the requirements to enter Canada on Working Holiday changed and a job offer was required to travel, so we could no longer freely choose which city to go to. I started looking for a job, which wasn't easy in Chile. On the one hand, I applied to a couple online but never received a response. On the other hand, when I presented my resignation to my manager, she encouraged me to look for an internal option in the same company but in Canada. I never thought about this option because, in my mind, this work permit was for a temporary job. By the way, I have been working in this company for almost five years. Long story short, I found an internal program. I applied for it and got a position in Canada. As the physical location of my job was in Brampton and Aldo was going to study in Toronto, Mississauga was in the middle for both trips, so we decided on Mississauga. I have seen that this question is repeated in the different forums of foreigners in Canada: which is the best city to live in Canada? I will tell you that there is no right or wrong answer because it depends on personal and professional preferences, but to make this search easier... I bring you 13 tips to find the best place to live in Canada. You will find some characteristics to consider to choose the place that fits your interests. Here we go! 1) No specific preferences Suppose you have no idea which province you want to go to. I suggest you start with a general review of the information available on the internet about each province that belongs to Canada. In case you don't know, these are the provinces and territories of Canada: Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, British Columbia, Alberta, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. The three territories are the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon. Doing this exercise will give you a general idea of each province's main characteristics and may allow you to choose one of your interests. 2) Migration program It is essential to be clear that you must manage the documentation allowing you to enter Canada as a student, worker, permanent resident, etc. Therefore, you should check if there is any requirement in the program you are going to migrate or use to travel that binds you to a job offer, a specific province, or something that limits your alternatives. For example, the working holiday program allows you to settle in any province in Canada. Another example is that the Atlantic province migration program is restricted to Atlantic provinces. 3) Job offer If you are coming to work and a job offer is required. You should focus on looking for a job before choosing the location, as was our case. For more details, you can read How to get a job in Canada as a newcomer. If a job offer is not required, that will give you the freedom to check other features. 4) Weather This is one of the things to check, although, with all the climate change, the seasons are a bit crazy and in places where it never snows now, there are snow storms, but you have to be prepared. Usually, the west coast has milder winters, not as cold, not as snowy, but you have to like the rain. Places near the lakes have snow, but less than the northern areas. 5) City or small town If you like to have everything close at hand, access to big supermarkets, shopping malls, entertainment and the movement of big cities, you probably prefer to choose a city. Some examples are Toronto and Ottawa in Ontario, Quebec and Montreal in Quebec, Calgary and Edmonton in Alberta, Victoria and Vancouver in British Columbia, Saskatoon and Regina in Saskatchewan, and Halifax in Nova Scotia and more. But if you like calm, quiet, a little more silence or fewer people, you will have to choose a smaller town or city. Some examples are Niagara on the lake in Ontario, Jasper in Alberta, Squamish in British Columbia, etc. 6) Type of work Suppose you do not need a job offer but have experience in certain areas. It will help if you are looking for specific provinces where it is easy to find a job. For example, suppose you have experience in hospitality services and ski jobs. In that case, you should look for something in places like Banff in Alberta, or experience in finance - look for cities with financial industry or experience linked to the sea - you could look in the Atlantic provinces. 7) Study This is easier; if you are coming to Canada to study, try to find a place close to your university or institution where you are going to study. 8) Near tourist attractions If you are a person who enjoys taking pictures or you want to feel like you are always on vacation, and you like to travel, you can consider looking for a place that is close to the tourist attractions you dream of seeing. This way, you won't need a big budget to go there. For example, we love Niagara Falls, and I think it has been the place we have visited the most since we have been here, it is only a two-hour bus ride away (it is less by car), but we enjoy going there. 9) Permanent residence If it is in your plans to migrate permanently to a particular province, you could start by checking what programs are available so you can move there first to see if you want to settle there permanently. One option is applying for Express Entry; visit How to create an Express Entry Profile if you want to know more. 10) Lifestyle Do you consider yourself a quiet person, or do you like crowded places with lots of events? This may give you a clue about a particular city or town. 11) Outdoor activities I will say that so far, most places I have visited in Ontario have lots of parks and green spaces, and during the summer, there are activities everywhere. But in this case, if you like to run every day or have a dog that needs to go out daily, you might want to look for areas with parks all over the city. I would recommend Mississauga; we love it. There are so many green areas that every day we can go to a different park and it is safe for families and with activities for every family member. If you want to know more about Mississauga, visit this collection of 14 parks and trails to visit with your family in Mississauga. 12) Language There are two official languages in Canada: English and French, but not in all provinces; both languages are commonly used. If you are better at French, I recommend you to look for the province of Quebec. From what I understand, English is more commonly used in the rest of the provinces. 13) Budget Another thing to take into account is the budget. The prices of houses, apartments, basements and all the options can vary if you are in the center, near the main streets, near the subway, etc. So check beforehand how much you can afford to pay for a place and go with that. As I mentioned at the beginning, there is no right or wrong answer because it depends on personal preferences. I hope this article has helped you decide. And tell me... what cities or towns are you considering coming to and living in Canada? Let me know in the comments below to nurture this community with more information.