Contracting in Canada

[herman_g]

Unless you have a rare or management skill it will be hard to get into Canada. I have a Canadian wife and being a spouse we go straight to the front of the queue which is still 10 months long. You cannot just go to Canada and find a job then apply for a visa - you have to be offered the job before you arrive and have that job cleared by immigration prior to your arrival. There is a shortage of hardware/software management but not to much on the developer side


All the info you want is here Home - Citizenship and Immigration Canada - Canada

Wow - I'm a little surprised to hear that, but following your link, that seems to be true!

When I last lived back in Canada I recall how parliament wanted to increase the annual quotas from 120,000 to 150,000 and their was laughter in the commons as they had only managed to attract barely 80,000 in a year at the time.

I have met a number of bobs working here who told me they applied for and were granted PR status but just let their time limits to exercise the visas expire.

[Willapp]

When you say 10 months is that the total time from application to when you could actually move?

Supposing I got a written job offer from a Canadian company, would I then have to wait 10 + months before I could start working there? Surely no company would wait that long for a new employee?

I do have a friend who's a native Canadian and owns his own (fairly large) business and is trying to help me out, but unfortunately his business isn't in the right industry for him to hire me personally, so it's limited to helping me find a company who would give me a job using his existing connections.

[Zero Liability]

Tech, Finance and Resources mostly.

Which is best for finance/banking? Or are both equally good?

[chinglish]

When you say 10 months is that the total time from application to when you could actually move?.

Yes for a residence visa. You can apply from within Canada but it is a much longer process and you may have to leave the country each time your visitor visa expires unless you are lucky to get extended.

Supposing I got a written job offer from a Canadian company, would I then have to wait 10 + months before I could start working there? Surely no company would wait that long for a new employee?
.

No - you could apply for a standard work visa but the company must first have the offer cleared through immigration - you can't just get any company to write a letter. Your skills must be on the short list etc

[v6g]

Which is best for finance/banking? Or are both equally good?

Toronto is more skewed to the financial sector, Vancouver is more resources & tech - but some of each in either.

Permanent Residency processing time varies - not sure what it is now - usually more than a year. However, if you have a very-specific in-demand skillset, and can secure a job offer before you come, then you MAY qualify for a temporary work permit - processing time is much faster (2 weeks when I did it ... 11 years ago). While here on a temp visa you can apply for residency and citizensip etc...

Work permit limits you to 1 employer only, at 1 location only - although spousal permits are unlimited. Work permits have no restrictions on buying real estate but be careful if selling real estate as a non-resident ... there's an extra tax.

[trebor123]

That's the advice I got when I was over in Vancouver last year even if you are only going to be there for a few months. There is even a provincal business advice centre next to the Waterfront Skytrain station that can help you get started if you are looking in BC. All the guys I am working with over there contract through their own LTD.

Why should you incorporate even just for a few months?

[knight007]

Why should you incorporate even just for a few months?

I don't think you should.
Having been over to canada and done it, I would not advise to incorporate for a short term venture.

[trebor123]

I don't think you should.
Having been over to canada and done it, I would not advise to incorporate for a short term venture.

I am going to be in Canada for 6 months or so before moving to the US. I am currently contracting through my UK Ltd. company for a client based outside Canada(and outside the UK/EU). Should I just continue using my UK Ltd. company in Canada, pay UK corp tax and pay Canadian tax on personal income? Is there a more efficient way?

[knight007]

I am going to be in Canada for 6 months or so before moving to the US. I am currently contracting through my UK Ltd. company for a client based outside Canada(and outside the UK/EU). Should I just continue using my UK Ltd. company in Canada, pay UK corp tax and pay Canadian tax on personal income? Is there a more efficient way?

I'm not sure if any agency would want to engage with a UK based company.
Of all the ones I've dealt with, they all require the company to be incorporated in Canada and money paid in canadian funds to a canadian bank account.

[trebor123]

I'm not sure if any agency would want to engage with a UK based company.
Of all the ones I've dealt with, they all require the company to be incorporated in Canada and money paid in canadian funds to a canadian bank account.

Like I said, my client is not based in Canada or the UK. I was contracting remotely for them from the UK through my Ltd. company and have kept them on as a client now that I have moved to Canada. Basically I need to see an accountant here to determine the most tax efficient thing to do, as this is a complicated situation. I imagine I will need to set up a Canadian corporation. If anyone has any advice, it would be appreciated.