I have just got back from Canada in the last few days. I spent around six months living in and around the Toronto area. Whilst I was researching my trip I did find that there was not an abundance of decent advise online. It is also very difficult to get any help from the Canadian embassy. I am not suggesting that what I will write here will be any better but I will try to answer some questions that I certainly had. Hopefully it will help one or two people out.
Before going.
There are a number of ways of spending an extended period of time in Canada. First if you are just looking to travel around and have some fun you can actually stay in Canada as a British Citizen for six months. You will not be able to work but that is not what everyone is looking for. Also, to the best of my knowledge, this will not require any paperwork.
Second, it is possible to get what is known as a Working Holiday Visa. Canada run this program with a number of countries, I however only have experience as a Brit. The application process is fairly extensive, however, so long as you have a clean criminal record and apply with enough time it shouldn't be a big problem. There are a number of restrictions but I do not see them being an issue for most people involved in this sort of program. Basically you cannot work in a health care profession, child care or attend part time or full time education. That said I believe that there are legal ways around some of these restrictions but I have no experience with it so would not like to comment.
Finally you can apply for a work permit, either pertinent or temporary. These rely largely upon you holding certain skills and/or landing a job before applying. Now I did not actually do this myself but I have spoken to a number of people on the subject. There are a number of different programs available which can be either provincial or federal. It is my understanding that these programs generally require you, effectively, to give the Canadian government a deposit of some description. This may come from your pocket or the pocket of a sponsor company. It is important for me to note here that I did not go through this particular process myself so this info is second hand to some extent. However, hopefully it should give you a brief understanding of what is likely to be expected from you. The biggest advice that I was given with regards to this was to ask lots of questions and to get things in writing.
What I did was to apply for the Working Holiday Visa. The Canadian Government calls this the "International Experience Canada" and you will often see it referred to as the IEC program. When I applied I had to fill out an application form and post it to the Canadian high commission in London. However, it is now possible to apply online or so I have been told. There are essentially two parts to the application the work visa and the IEC section. You will also need a Police check, these are available from the British Police force for around £30.
The biggest problem for me was how unofficial the whole process seemed. At various times the Canadian government will contact you culminating in you receiving a confirmation letter. I was expecting to have to visit the Canadian embassy or to send them my passport but you actually get your visa and stamp upon entering Canada.
Upon arriving
I was very lucky in that I had some family friends who were willing to let me stay with them. However, for most people finding somewhere to live is going to be of the highest priority. Now as with anywhere there are a number of different places that you can go to look for somewhere to live. However, one of the most popular free add webpages in Canada would be Kijiji (http://www.kijiji.ca/). Kijiji is very similar to Craigs list in the USA or GumTree in the UK and really is one of the best places to look for work, cars, somewhere to live etc. Many of the rules regarding rentals are similar to the UK you should expect a contract for example. However, Canada is a lot less regulated in general than the UK so do not be surprised if contacts do not present themselves. This kind of thing you will have to play by ear. Personally I did not have a contact and ended up being evicted over a rent payment issue so I would highly recommend getting a contract.
Second there are a number of piece of paper work that you will need in order to set up a bank account, get a phone and get working. Primarily this is the Canadian equivalent to a national insurance number and it is called a SIN number. You can complete this paper work at a Service Canada office. Its a fairly simple process but it does require you have your own address which could be a problem for someone living in a hostel for example.
Thirdly a lot of people are going to be looking for work. In Toronto I started by getting my name into as many work agencies as I could. I have heard a lot about these agencies, they are actually pretty good at finding work for people they certainly did fairly well for some of my friends. However, they have a lot of people on their books and so you need to contact them on a regular basis otherwise you just get forgotten. Ultimately I ended up working for a company I was put in contact with via my last UK employer.
The minimum wage varies across Canada but you should expect to earn somewhere in the region of $10 per hour as a minimum. I was working as a computer technician and was earning something like $13 per hour. Being paid bi-weekly is also common in Canada.
That should cover all of the basics at least roughly. I will write another entry that will cover my experiences what I did etc.
