Can an American just move to Canada?

Only if you're hot, OP.

No..

Not only can’t Americans “just move to Canada,” right now we can’t cross the border at all, except to go to Alaska - and they keep close watch on people in transit to make sure they don’t make any detours.

I remember reading a book years ago about an American in the ‘60s who fled to Canada to avoid the draft. He assumed he’d be welcomed with open arms, but instead he was met with a lot of cultural indifference and occasions of outright hostility. I’m sure the legalities have changed since then, but I imagine the dislike is the same.

What a stupid question.

I have a friend who just packed up and moved to Canada about 10 years and has remained illegal. He works online for a USA company.

Looked into it on a whim years ago. It's not easy to get in. For one thing, there's careers/trades they desire and those they're indifferent to, that's a big factor. Expectation of gainful employment or sponsorship already in place. Their "cultural knowledge" requirement includes some level of French language. It's competitive, I'm told.

No...Covid!

Nobody wants to move to that frozen hellhole.

It has nothing to do with Covid. You can't just move to another country any more than people from other countries can move here (legally.)

Move to Mexico instead

I've visited Canada on more than a few occasions, love it, and could happily live there. I also have Canadian friends on both coasts. I can't imagine being treated rudely if one behaves in a dignified, civil manner. If I was fortunate enough to be granted residency i would do my best to contribute to Canadian society by being a kind and considerate resident. I already do that here in the US so it would not be a stretch.

Sadly I have obligations here that prevent me from leaving, but if I did I would move near a really wonderful friend so I know at least one person who would tolerate this Ugly American.

I'll trade citizenships with you.

No. That’s why I laugh at all the “I’ll just leave if Trump wins” posts I see. Believe me, I would dearly love to escape this horrible country too, but it’s just not easy for us.

You have to be a highly skilled worker in a needed trade. Maybe a doctor or engineer could get in legally after a lengthy process. Famous actors. But not everyday office workers.

If you get in and stay illegally I’m not sure if you get the social benefits like free healthcare

You sound sweet, R12. I'd approve your immigration.

Maybe if Trump wins again Americans could seek asylum?

I have family in both Vancouver and Montreal, and have visited both many times. Not once has anyone been rude to me, other than the usual weirdness of big cities.

However, tell your friend to do some more research - it's not that easy to just uproot and move there.

If you're a Muslim terrorist you can get in no questions asked.

Liar, R19.

if you have tons of money, sure

I seem to recall not too long ago they may have had an open immigration period? Lots of refugees from Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Then they closed it again. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

My favorite author is Canadian Louise Penny. She writes an awesome mystery every year that come out in early fall. I have her latest, "All the Devils are Here" and am waiting until my Christmas tree is up so I can read it in my big overstuffed chair by the tree.

In my mind, I will move to the fictional town of Three Pines, outside of Montreal. It is the perfect place (except for all the murders) where I would gladly live.

If you have not read her books, please do, and start at the beginning (they get better with each new addition to the series) and spend some time in Canada as an escape from our current chaos and pain.

Block R19 and your life at DL will be much better

Yes,Rose, put on antlers and work backwards over the border. Everyone will think you're a moose.

Regarding author Louise Penny, her most recent book takes place in Paris, a departure from the Canadian locale. If you're not interested in reading the entire series, please read "How the Light Gets In" (my favorite) which gives an insight into the minds and hearts of artists and poets that is remarkable.

Oops, my favorite is "A Trick of the Light", not the book above, although it is excellent, too.

Just marry a Canadian.

No and the shitty thing is, Canadians are now taking our jobs. My workplace let go the entire accounting staff that was based here in CA. They replaced them with Canadians working remotely. Same thing for other departments at my work. Canadians work cheaper because their cost of living is less, so now they are taking American jobs, but for us to go there and attempt to do the same, we're SOL.

Hurry before they build that wall

It's easy.

R27 R26 R23 I'm another Louise Penney fan. I'll be starting "Bury Your Dead" sometime this fall. Love those books! They seem to be getting better and better as the series progresses.

bye, felicia

You need a job that will sponsor you or if you can become a permanent resident. My sister in law became a permanent resident when she married my brother. It took a lot of money and they hired a lawyer.

I think it’s just as difficult as it is for a Canadian to move to the us.

If you're an educated professional it's very difficult. If you're a refugee fleeing some third world shithole they'll roll out the welcome mat for you.

[quote] Canadians work cheaper because their cost of living is less

Bullshit.

We are just used to being shafted.

R17 Americans have been repeatedly denied asylum in Canada. You have to provide proof of persecution to a court.

Canadian cost of living in the major cities worth living in (there are only 4 of them, 6 if you stretch it) is ridiculous and much worse than all but the most popular/expensive cities in the US.

Cost of living is higher in Canada versus the USA. But because of the exchange rate American companies get a 25% discount paying Canadians.

Honestly it's really difficult to move to Canada unless you have some special skill(s), marry a Canadian or have a lot of money to invest and buy your way in. You can try the Quebec route if you speak fluent French or you can use your in demand skill but you will more than likely be placed somewhere you don't necessarily want to live (for at least 2 years).

I think, unless the immigration law has changed, that you can get into Canada as a "landed immigrant" (our version of "permanent resident") in one of these three categories:

1. sponsored by a family member who is already a Canadian resident or citizen

2. invest a substantial amount of money into starting a Canadian-based business

3. (most common, I think) point based system, based on your education, occupation, age group, the ability to speak, read, and write English/French, and, if you pass a certain point threshold, then you need to prove to the Immigration Canada that you have enough money to support yourself until you find a job, pass a medical exam, and prove that you have a clean police record and are not wanted in any country where you lived as an adult. Even for some relatively minor offences, you may need to obtain some kind of legal clearance before you pass all those hurdles and are given the permanent resident visa. In addition, you need to be interviewed in a Canadian embassy or a consulate abroad, but that is often waived depending on your nationality or the level of concern your file raises with Immigration Canada.

Forgot to mention: Quebec has a sort of independent immigration process where e.g. the fluency in French factors in much more heavily.

You can't immigrate to Quebec unless you're proficient in French. It makes sense, why take someone who can't speak the language in the first place?

Denmark also does this. They won't even let you fill out an application unless you know Danish.

Refugees, of course, are exempt from this. And all other rules.

[quote] It makes sense, why take someone who can't speak the language in the first place?

***ahem***

The cost if living is definitely more in Canada unless maybe you’re in San Francisco or New York.

r46 don't start with that "The Southwest was originally Mexican" horseshit. It was basically an unincorporated area that Mexico had no idea what to do with, was sparsely populated and didn't really give a shit about it when the US took over. It was only after Americans built cities and a functioning infrastructure and society that Mexico decided that they wanted the land back. Tough shit.

My grandmother is Canadian!!!! She’s lived in the US since she married, no idea if she has dual citizenship or how that worked? Could I use that to get citizenship there? I also have Polish grandparents, I’ll take fucking Poland at this point, beggars can’t be choosers.

What if you don't want to work there? My friend's wife is a semi-famous actress. I think the plan is for her to keep working in American jobs but they'd just live in Canada. (The husband doesn't work. He lives off her.)

I think Americans are allowed to live in Canada for six months, R50. If I were American, I'd come in May and stay till the end of October if you're concerned about weather. Everywhere has nice weather during those months, aside from the far north.

r45 But don't most Danes speak English? Danish is not exactly a major world language.

God I wish Americans could move to Canada. But they have no use for us. I get it.

I have such an idealized version of Canada at this point - it sounds like heaven compared to present day America. I’m in NYC and if there was an opportunity to move to Toronto or Montreal, I would take it in a second.

Canadians on this thread - aside from the high cost of living, care to offer other reasons you would ever chose America over Canada?

I know a guy in NY who is from Toronto and hasn’t gone back yet. He can work remotely from anywhere. I don’t get it. I would go back so fast - between COVID and Trump - my god - get me out of here.

R53 I lived in Toronto for a year and it didn’t seem all that different from NYC. Just a smaller version. Colder and much windier.

Vancouver seemed to have a lot of traffic issues (at least there was the one day I was there.)

R53 I would choose America solely so I could live in New Orleans. We have no city comparable to it. I just love the city so I wish I could live there.

If you have some skill and won't be a burden to the health system it's fairly easy. Even easier if you try for places other than Toronto or Vancouver - places no one wants to live, like Halifax.

R53, cost of living is high but wages are as well. For instance, my friend is a teacher and makes 100k, plus benefits and pension.

Canada to Americans: You'r not welcome.

Geez, you'd think they'd be desperate for people. All that empty space and an aging population.

I know. The Canadians should be begging us to move there.

R60 Most of that empty space is simply not where most people would choose to live, climate-wise. The isolation and weather conditions of the far north are not exactly tempting.

If Trump wins I want to move to Britain. My grandfather died serving Britain in North Africa. My grandmother and mother came to the USA from Britain in 1946. She was an American citizen by the time I was born here in the USA. I still have cousins there. I wonder how difficult it might be to settle in Britain. Would I have to go through less hurdles because of my family history?

R26, I see the pr department at the author's publisher is working over time. Really good product placement (wink wink nudge nudge)

R63 Given your recent ancestry, you most likely meet the requirement for an ancestry visa, but the Home Office (the govt agency here that deals with immigration) is currently a shambolic mess and buried due to the Brexit and Covid debacles. I'd highly advise to consult and use an immigration solicitor (lawyer) to guide and facilitate any visa application for you as this is the worst environment to attempt immigration I've seen since living in the UK.

R48, Yeah, the history is a tad more complex than your summary.

The fact that Mexico forbade slavery was a major issue. Not "infrastructure" (laughable on its face).

R53 isn't it called Quebec City?

R67 I'm not R53, but Montreal and Quebec City are two different cities, but both in the province of Quebec.

I’d wait and see how Trumpesque (Québécois) Canada is set to become before you decide to emigrate there.

I used to work in an immigration capacity, many years ago, before it was the political CF it is now. Canadians were often surprised to learn that they couldn’t just “move here”, so let’s cut OP some slack.

R29 - it's not the cost of living, it's that the US dollar is worth more in Canada. It goes a lot further. The cost of living in Canada, particularly the major cities, is quite high.

Australia loves Americans! Come to Australia!

[quote] there's careers/trades they desire a

Oh, dear.

What if you're a retiree?

My guess is, R73, that either you have to be sponsored by a family member who's Canadian or set up a small business in Canada.

If they ever lift covid restrictions I wonder what the longest vacation you could take in Canada would be?

R67 - No... it’s called Montreal. Quebec City is a different city.

R73 you can’t just retire there, you would have to start a business or live somewhere else half the year.

If you are an American who stays in Canada for six months though I wonder if you are entitled to any benefits.

^you're not.

r67=Miss Teen South Carolina

[quote]Australia loves Americans! Come to Australia!

It is notoriously hard to immigrate to Australia. And with good reason. The economy has been booming and they pay a living wage. If they opened the door just a bit, they'd be swamped with Asians from nearby population centers.

Vancouver is full of unbearable Asians now.

r80 So is California.

If you moved the border north by 100 miles, 90% of Canada would be living in the US.

The flood of Hong Kong money after 1999 completely destroyed the property markets in Vancouver and Toronto, housing is as expensive in these cities as it is in Manhattan or San Francisco.

The Canadian gov't. never should've allowed it. It was pure greed.

Just find a Canadian to marry, OP.

What is happening with all the TV shows that film in Vancouver? Are they letting the actors return and cross the border?

So if you're not a citizen of canada do you have to buy private insurance?

R87 Yes. Canadian Healthcare is available only to citizens and legal residents who live in Canada at least half of the year.

You need a provincial health card to receive services. If you don’t have one, you’ll get a bill.

So, get the bill and don't pay it. What will they do? Ruin your American credit rating.

FF' the racists at R80 and R81

r91 YOU spend time in Vancouver and see how irritated you get. They're fucking AWFUL.

New York City's mayor, Bill deBlasio and his (ex-Lesbian) wife Chirlane., entered Canada on the way to their honeymoon. The U.S. didn't allow flights to Cuba and they wanted to meet their idol,Fidel Castro,

Cape Breton Island was willing to take us after the 2106 election.

I wonder if the offer still stands?

[quote] Cape Breton Island was willing to take us after the 2106 election.

Oops. Obviously, I meant '2016' not '2106'