Top tips when moving to Canada

Canada always ranks highly in the list of best places to live and best places to emigrate to – and with good reason. People are moving to Canada for the healthy outdoor lifestyle, the scenery, the space, the jobs and the well-run public services.

Here are top tips to make a move to Canada even smoother:

Canada is a bilingual country, with both English and French spoken. But that doesn’t mean every region speaks both languages. New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province while Quebec is predominately French-speaking and many other territories primarily speak English. So, make sure you research properly before deciding where to live.

If you are planning on moving to Canada a visa will be required. Special working visas are available for start-ups, for immigrant investors, the self-employed, caregivers and skilled workers. Canadian citizenship is available for those who have been there five years (and who can show they spent at least three of those in the country) and can speak English or French.

Property prices in major Canadian cities have been rising and there can be huge differences in the cost of getting into the property market depending on which territory you choose. Vancouver and Toronto are regarded as the most expensive.

It’s easy to forget that it gets very cold in the winter in Canada – as low as -40 degrees centigrade in some regions. In the summer, midges and mosquitoes can be a big problem in some areas.

Canada has a publicly-funded healthcare system. It is based on a network of health insurance plans which provide free primary care to citizens only. Most people also have extra insurance to cover additional health needs. So, ensure you are properly covered when moving to Canada.

Canadians pride themselves on being polite and respectful, it’s part of their national identity. So saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ is extremely important – and criticism can often been sugar-coated. For those used to more direct and ‘up front’ communication it may take a while to navigate.

It would be easy to think from far away that Canada and America have a shared culture, but that’s far from the truth. It’s rather like saying that because England and France are next to each other they are both the same.

In Canada, tipping in service industries (cafés, restaurants and taxis for instance) is expected at 15 per cent. Not tipping at all can be seen as rude, so get to grips with the tipping culture.
Obey and understand the smoking laws. Canadians have a love affair with the great outdoors and with clean air – so they can be passionate about respecting smoking laws. Smoking is banned in all public places. Effectively you can only smoke at home and in large outdoor spaces.

Canadians like to think of themselves as friendly and you can expect them to start up conversations freely in bars and restaurants. For those not used to this, it might seem a bit strange at first! But it’s genuine.