Canada!!

[Jackass]

I'm getting all excited now!! Applied for my police cert about a week ago, will be applying for the 09 visa as soon as it's available. I'm prob not going until about April / May anyway, but it will be such a relief having everything in place and I'm only a plane hop away!

juvenal

[Jackass] wrote: »

I'm getting all excited now!! Applied for my police cert about a week ago, will be applying for the 09 visa as soon as it's available. I'm prob not going until about April / May anyway, but it will be such a relief having everything in place and I'm only a plane hop away!

I've had my (three) police certs for the past two months now, and am sitting here with my thumb in my ass as the OH waits for me to arrive over.

It's so frustrating, as USIT Canada are impossible to speak to, and from what I can gather seem unwilling to be proactive in weeding out the rest of the watiting list. I'm sure not all 34 people in front of me want to go before Christmas at this stage, although I think you've 60 days to accept the position; so there are people sitting on offers now who probably have no intention of going.

A close friend of my sister did this. She was offered a place a couple of years ago, and could travel up until 31 December. She dithered around, knew that she wouldn't end up going, but nonetheless didn't cancel her place. It irritated me that she didn't as there was probably some other soul out there at the time waiting on the edge of their seat for an offer. I know of another girl who entered the DV Lottery for the US a couple of years ago, and then decided she wasn't going, and was subsequently won a place in the lottery. There's enough genuine candidates out there waiting without people taking up space on a whim with no real intention of following it through.:mad::mad::mad:

I'd be gone tomorrow if they offered me a place.:(

juvenal

Up another 7 places this afternoon - I'm now in the high 20's.

This is going to be very tight! COME ON!!!

Bonnie's Babe

Picked up our police certs this evening and will send them off tomorrow! Great that the 2009 programme is opening in December. We intend to go at the end of May/beginning of June so we should be ok for that timescale. Do you know if you can make a joint application or do my boyfriend & I have to apply seperately?

juvenal

Bonnie's Babe wrote: »

Picked up our police certs this evening and will send them off tomorrow! Great that the 2009 programme is opening in December. We intend to go at the end of May/beginning of June so we should be ok for that timescale. Do you know if you can make a joint application or do my boyfriend & I have to apply seperately?

AFAIK you'll have to make separate applications - there's no facility to make an application as a de facto couple for the one year work visa. Obviously you'll also have to include separate police certs etc.

You should have no problem travelling together, but all the other processing will be done as two separate individuals.

If Garthicus is around, he might be able to shed more light on it. I think he may have gone over with his wife or long-term partner. My OH is a Yank so I don't know too much about the couple thing.

Naked Lepper

was thinkin of going in 2009

wondering if its not just u have a year from when u leave country

might go at end of 2009 and wud like to stay for the whole year so if i applied in dec wud my visa automatically start from feb or whenevr it was issues?

bit unsure bout this whole thing

fun.bobby1981

Naked Lepper wrote: »

was thinkin of going in 2009

wondering if its not just u have a year from when u leave country

might go at end of 2009 and wud like to stay for the whole year so if i applied in dec wud my visa automatically start from feb or whenevr it was issues?

bit unsure bout this whole thing

I was in the same boat myself & I got to the end of the waiting list for the 2008 programme. I sent an email asking if my visa was not granted before the end of the year, would I then have until the end of next year to enter Canada.

They replied to say No. At most you would have a months grace before you would have to enter the country for the visa to be valid.
I made this mistake also in thinking that the visa was valid for 1 year from date of issue, but it is actually stated in the T&Cs for the visa that for the 2008 programme, the travel period must be between 01/01/08 and 31/12/08.

If you are planning on travelling later in 2009, you will have to apply on the 2009 programme. They have said that there is a plan to have a similar programme in 2009, but no details are finalised.

Basically I asked about cancelling my application under that circumstance & they said they could do it & refunded the full charge to my credit card.

Naked Lepper

So if one applied on Jan 1st 2009 they would have until Dec 31st 2009 to leave the country and begin their year working holiday??

fun.bobby1981

Naked Lepper wrote: »

So if one applied on Jan 1st 2009 they would have until Dec 31st 2009 to leave the country and begin their year working holiday??

Not necessarily true. You would have to apply under the 2009 visa programme. This would be advertised on the front end of the usit website as exactly that. As I understand it, the 2008 programme is still open.

Its just a case of checking back regularly in 2009 to see if they have started the 2009 programme. You could also try emailing canada@usit.ie for more info

bigpinkelephant

Getting my police cert is proving to be a nightmare.

I applied to my local station. They told me it goes to the district station and would take about a week.
A week and a half later I ring the district station. They tell me it is done by the local station again.
I ring the local station. They tell me it goes to Harcourt St.
I ring Harcourt St. They tell me it goes to the Vetting Office.
I ring the Vetting office. No answer. I look them up on Citizens Information and it specifically says no, they don't do police certs, these are done by the Central Records Office in Garda HQ...who told me to ring the Vetting Office..but it says on Citizens Information that the Vetting Office don't do police certs for travel visas..

Can anyone help???

mac123

did anyone else have to pay €6.35 to get their police cert? not sure if i got the right form, dont think the guard was either. do you have to send anything away?

juvenal

bigpinkelephant wrote: »

Getting my police cert is proving to be a nightmare.

I applied to my local station. They told me it goes to the district station and would take about a week.
A week and a half later I ring the district station. They tell me it is done by the local station again.
I ring the local station. They tell me it goes to Harcourt St.
I ring Harcourt St. They tell me it goes to the Vetting Office.
I ring the Vetting office. No answer. I look them up on Citizens Information and it specifically says no, they don't do police certs, these are done by the Central Records Office in Garda HQ...who told me to ring the Vetting Office..but it says on Citizens Information that the Vetting Office don't do police certs for travel visas..

Can anyone help???

mac123 wrote: »

did anyone else have to pay €6.35 to get their police cert? not sure if i got the right form, dont think the guard was either. do you have to send anything away?

There is no charge for the Garda cert. I spoke to a contact, and he told me to write a letter to my local Superintendant, with the following information:

- Full name
- Date of birth
- Place of Birth
- Current and all previous addresses in Ireland
- Embassy/Consulate that the cert was for (in this case, the Canadian Consular Authorities)
- a pre-addressed and stamped envelope

I dropped it into the local station, addressed to the Super. A few days later I was called by a Garda, who just double-checked the information and asked me what my occupation was. He then told me it would be posted out to the address I had indicated on the envelope. It arrived about two weeks later.

This is not a Vetting Cert (like they do with individuals working with children etc.) It's essentially a form that states you have no arrest or conviction record in Ireland, and is stamped, signed and dated by the Super.

[Jackass]

juvenal wrote: »

There is no charge for the Garda cert. I spoke to a contact, and he told me to write a letter to my local Superintendant, with the following information:

- Full name
- Date of birth
- Place of Birth
- Current and all previous addresses in Ireland
- Embassy/Consulate that the cert was for (in this case, the Canadian Consular Authorities)
- a pre-addressed and stamped envelope

I dropped it into the local station, addressed to the Super. A few days later I was called by a Garda, who just double-checked the information and asked me what my occupation was. He then told me it would be posted out to the address I had indicated on the envelope. It arrived about two weeks later.

This is not a Vetting Cert (like they do with individuals working with children etc.) It's essentially a form that states you have no arrest or conviction record in Ireland, and is stamped, signed and dated by the Super.

I looked up the Garda FAQ (as stated on Usit site) and wrote a letter exactly the same as you - Name, DOB, Copy of birth cert, every address lived at, purpose of certificate and stamped self addressed envelope.

I then went to my local Garda station to hand it in, and just double checked with the lady to see was that all I needed, and she said "oh no, you have to fill out the form" so she went and got a form (a plain piece of white paper with the above questions on them & spaces to write the details...she took about 5 minutes - short of the paper actually being warm I'd swear she just typed it up in the back office! The exact same information I had in the letter - but we must fill out the official forms & documents! :rolleyes: hehe - you can't get away from the fact they're civil service!)

So I filled that out and she took it, said she didn't need a copy of my birth cert and that she sends this on to her district office and then they complete it and send it back - the whole process takes no more than 4 weeks.

So I think I'm coming up to 2 weeks ago now, so we'll see how it goes - luckily I'm in no rush as I'm going in '09, so I've given myself a lot of time to get this, but it seems a bit of a joke to get to be honest!

mac123

yeah the form they gave me was for the central vetting unit. i told him it was for the canadian visa and he asked the other guard if he knew what i needed and he came back with that. the garda website says its free too...ah small town garda stations, theyre really not with it!

juvenal

There seems to be different nuggets of information coming from different sources in AGS

I also had to get an FBI check (US$18 + postage), complete with a full set of fingerprints taken by an authorised organisation (CA$45), an AFP (Australian Federal Police) check (AU$105 + postage), complete with another full set of fingerprints taken by an authorised organisation (CA$45).

Thank God the Garda one only cost the price of a stamp - I better get in now with all this expenditure!

[Jackass]

Yeah it free except for a stamped self addressed envelope.

But I spoke to soon above, as mine arrived today

Just says "I confirm [Jackass] has no criminal convictions". And is stamped etc..

So good to go on that front!! Yeay!!

It also says strictly for the Canadian authorities only which is a bit weird. I don't mind but I was having a last minute dilema about going to Perth, so would have had to apply all over again. But I'm gonna stick to my guns with Canada.

portally

hi folks
Im thinking of getting the student visa for canada for 2009. I did the under 35 visa two years ago and now I am finishing a masters degree which I presume allows me to get the visa as a student. If someone else knows about that they might let me know. I really wanted to stay last time but could not figure a way out to extend or get a new visa - all the sponsorship seems to be linked to one employer and the federal emigration system takes about 4-5 years.
There seems to be a loop hole with the state nominated pnp system where if your job description matches a list of professions in short supply.
I am under the impression that I could get a determinant residency card which is like a american green card for canada with in a year if I got an employer to sponsor me with in the first 2 months of getting to canada. That would be sweet because getting sponsored from Ireland is a nightmare.
If anyone has any experience of this type of thing they might let me know - ive done a fair bit of research into the issue and its really confusing - im just looking for the easiest way to live in canada for a few years.
In my experience the worst thing about the years visa is that your just getting used to the country and then you have to leave - I want to try to avoid that again if i can..

jagerluvinliamo

Hi , i have a quick question.

I what first come first serve basis are the visas awarded.

Is the first people to register for the application that are given priority.
Or is it the first people to submitt the a fully completed application.

I am just wondering cause it looks likely i won't have a garda cert in time for nov 25th.

bigpinkelephant

Hi guys,
My friend was offered a place, and sent in all her paperwork to Usit.
Unfortunately she forgot to make a copy of her police cert.
Will she get it back?

[Jackass]

I wouldn't say so, but a copy is worthless anyway, you need the origional. She could contact USIT to see if they would have it on file, but if it's sent off the chances are pretty slim she'll get it back.

She could always contact the gaurds and request a duplicate. That way might be easier.

jagerluvinliamo wrote:

Hi , i have a quick question.

I what first come first serve basis are the visas awarded.

Is the first people to register for the application that are given priority.
Or is it the first people to submitt the a fully completed application.

I am just wondering cause it looks likely i won't have a garda cert in time for nov 25th.

Hey,

It's the first people to register and accept their place. As far as I know, you don't need your Garda cert to accept it, but the place will be held for you until you can get all your documentation together. But once your offered a place from the waiting list, you've got it.

portally wrote:

hi folks
Im thinking of getting the student visa for canada for 2009. I did the under 35 visa two years ago and now I am finishing a masters degree which I presume allows me to get the visa as a student. If someone else knows about that they might let me know. I really wanted to stay last time but could not figure a way out to extend or get a new visa - all the sponsorship seems to be linked to one employer and the federal emigration system takes about 4-5 years.
There seems to be a loop hole with the state nominated pnp system where if your job description matches a list of professions in short supply.
I am under the impression that I could get a determinant residency card which is like a american green card for canada with in a year if I got an employer to sponsor me with in the first 2 months of getting to canada. That would be sweet because getting sponsored from Ireland is a nightmare.
If anyone has any experience of this type of thing they might let me know - ive done a fair bit of research into the issue and its really confusing - im just looking for the easiest way to live in canada for a few years.
In my experience the worst thing about the years visa is that your just getting used to the country and then you have to leave - I want to try to avoid that again if i can..

I looked into the skilled visa and it takes approx 3 years I think? I might apply for that now, even though I'll be going over in 09 too. I plan on getting sponsored, but I don't know how willing companys will be to do this at the moment. Particularly in my industry (finance) presumably permanent contracts for residents are tough enough to get, never mind sponsoring!! Do you know how much does it cost for a company to sponsor you? I'm considering offering to pay this to the company if I can afford it. Could be a quick fix. Why would you need employment in the first 2 months to be able to get sponsored?

I don't see why you wouldn't qualify under your current studies as it's full time study?

portally

I was going to try for the provincial scheme
http://www.aved.gov.bc.ca/provincialnominee/welcome.htm

I think you can get a residency with in a year if you get sponsored and everything lines up. I think you might be right though the credit crunch could put an end to that plan. My plans of been a long term ski bum could be in trouble

flyingdagger

Will be flying to Vancouver on Dec 12th.Have sent off my resume to about 16 agencies,only 4 have gotten back to me.A friend of mine warned me that they tend to be laid back in replying to people. Does anyone have any reccommendations re recruitment agencies for admin work?

CiaranC

flyingdagger wrote: »

Will be flying to Vancouver on Dec 12th.Have sent off my resume to about 16 agencies,only 4 have gotten back to me.A friend of mine warned me that they tend to be laid back in replying to people. Does anyone have any reccommendations re recruitment agencies for admin work?

Better off waiting till you get there. SWAP will hook you up with the info you need to get work.

kallstrom86

I just saw a poster in my college for the USIT canadian visa. Anyone who's done this know how much it comes to all together. I know the registration opens on 25 november and the visa costs 489 euro but how much should i be expected to pay overall including flights etc?

Blarney92

kallstrom86 wrote: »

I just saw a poster in my college for the USIT canadian visa. Anyone who's done this know how much it comes to all together. I know the registration opens on 25 november and the visa costs 489 euro but how much should i be expected to pay overall including flights etc?

Paid €1592 last year for flights,visa, CHC fee, ISIC card and insurance.

rochie16

Blarney92 wrote: »

Paid €1592 last year for flights,visa, CHC fee, ISIC card and insurance.

Sorry for the ignorance but would you mind explaining what the CHC fee and ISIC card are.

Also, anyone know what its like getting work if you opt to not get the visa?

mac123

Does no-one else here think that its absolute robbery that we have to pay €489 just to get our application in? The visa charge works out at about €100 and we have to pay €389 extra for paperwork and support services, things that i could easily do myself if it were an optionis...such a scam, and i still have the rip off flights to look forward to!

amcalester

mac123 wrote: »

Does no-one else here think that its absolute robbery that we have to pay €489 just to get our application in? The visa charge works out at about €100 and we have to pay €389 extra for paperwork and support services, things that i could easily do myself if it were an optionis...such a scam, and i still have the rip off flights to look forward to!

plus your medical insurance doesnt cover dental (found that out the hard way) and if you need to go to an emergency room you still have to pay and then claim it back off the insurance. All in all its more expensive than it should be but well worth it. I went in 06 and loved it.

Marty84

Hi its prob asked all the time but I cant seem to get my head around the working/visa system in Canada,basically im looking to head over in early 2009 for a few months to work,I have a trade not sure how much this will help me in regards to work permit or visa.Can anyone tell me can I just go and find work or do I have to apply for a visa and stuff...Cheers for any help

portally

yes your right - usit are a complete rip off. They do you on the visa, the flight and then the health insurance. It will probably be nearly €2000 in the end especially if you want to fly to Vancouver.
The good side is that its a fantastic country and well worth going. From what i seen it was not that easy to get work with no visa, they seem to have a much stricter system then the USA. Also if you want to do a winter season on a ski hill its impossible to get casual work because the companies are all multinational and require full visa details. Getting the usit visa is the best option even though they take advantage of people.

redsurfer

hi all

i want to head to canada in the new year not sure yet if i want to stay for more then a year yet. and i wondering where is the best place to go, get a job and have a laugh, etc, i not a student so usit no good to me

[Jackass]

USIT Visa is for under 35 visa available to people under 35 and you don't have to be a student or anything. Here's the link: http://canada.usit.ie/nonstudent_programme_2009/

NaiveMelodies

is there no way of applying for a visa through the canadian embassy??

Theres no way im paying those Wonkers at usit a penny more than i should

Zillah

We don't have a Canadian Embassy, you have to do it through USIT.

juvenal

Zillah wrote: »

We don't have a Canadian Embassy, you have to do it through USIT.

Actually, we do have a Canadian embassy in Dublin, it's just that they don't handle visa/immigration issues as they're handled by the High Commission in London.

http://geo.international.gc.ca/canada-europa/ireland/menu-en.aspx

I would imagine what the CIC have done is to outsource the pre-processing to USIT, so that any application paperwork is fully complete when the High Commission personnel receive it. It make sense from the Canadian's point of view, as it means that they don't have the burden of dealing with idiots who cannot complete application forms and submit relevant documents on time. It means less staff in the High Commission, and less customer service issues as USIT are the middle-men.

From a customer point of view, the main issue is that it is essentially a cartel operating at the moment. There is no alternative to USIT when looking at the Canadian option, whereas the US have USIT and SAYIT (who are far better in my experience), so at least there's a little bit of competition and onus on the travel agents to ensure that prices are reasonable and there's a certain degree of customer service. I mean, you cannot even contact the 'USIT Canada Team' by phone, email is apparently the only way.

As a result of this, USIT can charge what they wish for flights to Canada under the programme (see that they can't be booked through the online engine ), as they have a monopoly on the Student and Under-35 visa applications. What USIT cannot do, however, is adjudicate on visa applications from a suitability point of view. They have no jurisdiction to say that Applicant A is granted a visa and Applicant B is not, only to ensure that the paperwork etc is complete and that the applicant meets the criteria as prescribed by the CIC within the terms of the program. It is then sent by USIT to the Canadian High Commission in London for processing, and the CHC know that they are getting a complete application with all relevant documents etc., as USIT have already done the donkey work.

mac123

juvenal wrote: »

Actually, we do have a Canadian embassy in Dublin, it's just that they don't handle visa/immigration issues as they're handled by the High Commission in London.

http://geo.international.gc.ca/canada-europa/ireland/menu-en.aspx

I would imagine what the CIC have done is to outsource the pre-processing to USIT, so that any application paperwork is fully complete when the High Commission personnel receive it. It make sense from the Canadian's point of view, as it means that they don't have the burden of dealing with idiots who cannot complete application forms and submit relevant documents on time. It means less staff in the High Commission, and less customer service issues as USIT are the middle-men.

From a customer point of view, the main issue is that it is essentially a cartel operating at the moment. There is no alternative to USIT when looking at the Canadian option, whereas the US have USIT and SAYIT (who are far better in my experience), so at least there's a little bit of competition and onus on the travel agents to ensure that prices are reasonable and there's a certain degree of customer service. I mean, you cannot even contact the 'USIT Canada Team' by phone, email is apparently the only way.

As a result of this, USIT can charge what they wish for flights to Canada under the programme (see that they can't be booked through the online engine ), as they have a monopoly on the Student and Under-35 visa applications. What USIT cannot do, however, is adjudicate on visa applications from a suitability point of view. They have no jurisdiction to say that Applicant A is granted a visa and Applicant B is not, only to ensure that the paperwork etc is complete and that the applicant meets the criteria as prescribed by the CIC within the terms of the program. It is then sent by USIT to the Canadian High Commission in London for processing, and the CHC know that they are getting a complete application with all relevant documents etc., as USIT have already done the donkey work.

yeah, joke of a system really. i wont be able to get my application in next week now cause i cant get 489 together for it but if i could apply direct it wouldnt be a problem.

NaiveMelodies

Just another query, it says with the under 35 visa that you can only go on the 18th of march.
Can i not enter as tourist on an earlier date and begin working on the 18th?

Cazlou

only1stevo wrote: »

Just another query, it says with the under 35 visa that you can only go on the 18th of march.
Can i not enter as tourist on an earlier date and begin working on the 18th?

If you go to the Passport/Visa FAQ section it says:

If I pay today, how long do I have to wait before I can go?
The dates for entering Canada are from 18 March 2009 to 31 December 2009 and obviously you have to be approved by the Canadian High Commission before you can depart. If you wish to leave any earlier, please contact us at canada@usit.ie and explain your circumstances – please note you are only able to depart for Canada once your actual documents have been issued.

But I don't think you can go as a tourist first. If I recall correctly, it's meantioned somewhere else in the FAQ's that a requirement is that you can't have been in Canada within the year previous - I would assume this means being there before your VISA kicks in too!

Gerry The G

hey guys

i too think the usit visa fee is robbery, considering the j1 is only about 70eur at the moment. also www.goforless.ie will be doing the student canda visa too but i have no idea of the costs.

worst comes to worse ill just do the j1, or fork out an extra 400 to go to canada!

jagerluvinliamo

Does anyone know if this goforless.ie crowd will be doing the under 35s visa aswell.

Is this their first year doing it cause i have never heard of them before

portally

i phoned the goforless crowd today and they said they would not have the visa until January - its a pain in the arse because ive already signed onto the usit thing - goforless will probably be a lot cheaper..

absinth

Just foud this thread via another forum. I'm planning to apply for the u35 visa but was hoping to avoid giving any of my money to USIT if at all possible, so I'll check out the go for less crowd on Monday.

I might be going to a wedding in the states in April, and was thinking of heading straight to Canada from there, either by land or air. Surely I don't have to book my flights with USIT if I'm applying for the visa through them?

Bonnie's Babe

absinth wrote: »

Just foud this thread via another forum. I'm planning to apply for the u35 visa but was hoping to avoid giving any of my money to USIT if at all possible, so I'll check out the go for less crowd on Monday.

I might be going to a wedding in the states in April, and was thinking of heading straight to Canada from there, either by land or air. Surely I don't have to book my flights with USIT if I'm applying for the visa through them?

Does anybody know if goforless.ie do the U35 working programme or is it just the student visa?

pelacho

so did yis apply today?

off the mark pretty quick at 10 this morning. application was sent and all by 10:05

best of luck and hope those that didnt make last years programme make it this year

Cazlou

Yip!!:D
Despite a few hiccups with the March arrival date not being accepted, I changed it to April and off it went! Yay!!!!:D

juvenal

Cazlou wrote: »

Yip!!:D
Despite a few hiccups with the March arrival date not being accepted, I changed it to April and off it went! Yay!!!!:D

Looks like mine went through also - I'll await an email and visa card charge for definite confirmation!

Had several attempts with the estimated arrival date, I posted it as soon as possible, but it wouldn't accept it until about the fifth time.

Anyway, totally forgot to make note of the confirmation number, but everything looked ok, so hope to receive an email by Thursday.:)

Bobon

juvenal wrote: »

Looks like mine went through also - I'll await an email and visa card charge for definite confirmation!

Had several attempts with the estimated arrival date, I posted it as soon as possible, but it wouldn't accept it until about the fifth time.

Anyway, totally forgot to make note of the confirmation number, but everything looked ok, so hope to receive an email by Thursday.:)

Had the same problem myself with the dates but changed it to April also.

Woohoo, come on!!

Cazlou

juvenal wrote: »

Looks like mine went through also - I'll await an email and visa card charge for definite confirmation!

Had several attempts with the estimated arrival date, I posted it as soon as possible, but it wouldn't accept it until about the fifth time.

Anyway, totally forgot to make note of the confirmation number, but everything looked ok, so hope to receive an email by Thursday.:)

Yeah, I was trying to enter the 18th March, so then tried up to a week after, then mailed USIT, they replied - mightily speedily may I add - and said to put 1st April for the moment, then I can change it on the forms:cool::)

juvenal

Did anyone get a basic confirmation email from USIT, or is it just a case of wait and you'll get the one with application form in the next three days?

http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/230-2459353-320-180.smil

Cazlou

juvenal wrote: »

Did anyone get a basic confirmation email from USIT, or is it just a case of wait and you'll get the one with application form in the next three days?

I gather all we have is the confirmation number til we get the email in a few days!