I may as well warn you up front that this immigration thing is expensive. It is going to cost you financially and emotionally. I will cover the basic costs and then warn you about the little extras that you must also be aware of.
Application Fees
The basic adult application fee is $500 Canadian. This is for the Principal Applicant, the Spouse and any adult dependant children. There is a reduced fee for children under 18. Please Note:- this fee IS NOT refunded if your application fails for any reason.
Right of Landing Fees
This must be paid by all adult applicants (including adult dependant children and refugees). You can pay it at the time of application in order to avoid delays or you can wait until the visa is granted and then pay it. They will not send you the visa until you have paid this fee. At the moment it is $975 Canadian. In theory there is a small chance of being able to get a loan for this fee for refugee status applicants. I do not know if anyone has been successful in getting a loan. For most of us, however, this money will have to be found and paid somehow. This fee IS refunded if your application fails.
Landing Funds
They want to know that you have enough money to survive for the first several months after landing . Do not underestimate this. The first few weeks and months after landing can be extremely expensive indeed.
Medical Fees
Every applicant has to have a full medical and all applicants over the age of 11 must also have a chest x-ray. These costs can vary enormously. When we applied (in the USA) it cost us about $120(US) each. I understand it is now running as high as $350 per person depending on where you apply. It is up to the doctor to charge what (s)he feels like charging. We need the medical so we must pay. Also, be aware that applicants are often told to go back for further tests. Once again you have to cover these costs. There are some occasions where the application process has been so delayed and drawn out because of background checks or other delays in approval that the medical expires (it is valid for one year only). If this happens you will have to pay for another set of medicals, regardless of whether the delay was your fault or not. If your application fails you obviously do not get this money back. Medicals must be obtained for all dependent children whether they will be accompanying you or not. If you have dependent children living with an ex-spouse/partner and the children will remain with that person they still need to get a medical done.
Background Checks
This has changed since we applied. Now you complete a form that will accompany your application kit.
Bckground checks vary from country to country. There is the cost of acquiring a fingerprint form for the USA - sometimes free, often not. There may be a fee charged by the police to print you. If you can get the police to print you which increasingly they will not do. Then there is the $18 (US) fee per person to the FBI, plus the cost of buying a certified bank draft. In the UK the cost for a background check with New Scotland Yard is 10 Pounds Sterling. (Note: These fees can change at any time).
So you may want to make enquiries about the costs in your country before you start.
Please note, some countries do not have facilities for background checks requested by the applicant. In this case the Canadian government makes its own enquiries. Be aware that this may delay your application.
Costs of getting to the interview.
If you are requested to attend an interview you must consider the cost of getting to the nearest office- often many hundreds of miles away from your location. You can apply for an immigration visa at any office outside of Canada. BUT if you choose one outside of your home country you must be able to travel to that office for interview if required. This can be costly and, perhaps more important, if you are not eligible to visit that country without a visa you may not be able to get to the interview. In which case you can have your file transferred to your home country but this will put you back down at the bottom of the pile.
Other expenses.....
There are all kinds of incidental expenses that mount up too. You may well have to pay for translations of your papers. You will need photocopies. You will need to pay postage (I recommend you send everything registered mail but it is not required). Because of the drawn out process you may find yourself with a successful application and landing papers that will expire in a very short time. You MUST land before that expiry date. I do not believe many are successful in getting a reprieve here. Certainly I have never heard of any. If you do not land by the required date you have to start all over again, complete with another Application Fee. So you may find yourself having to buy plane tickets at very short notice etc. There are costs involved in importing a vehicle. Not import tax as such, but there are still costs.
There will be the cost of telephone calls to try to discover how your application is going. This is one area you can save yourself some money. Don't bother trying call, you get put on hold for ages and they don't tell you anything even when you get through. We all do it though because we are desperate for news. I know you will do it. I'm just warning you not to be disappointed when (if you get to talk to a human being) they can tell you nothing.
They have now implemented online services to check your status. I have not tried it personally but it looks like a terrific tool e-Client Application Status
Post Landing Costs
This can vary of course. But if, like most, you do not have a job arranged be prepared to live for some considerable time with no income whatsoever. You are going to need quite a bit of money just to survive, get a roof over your head, get resumes out, etc. Be prepared for this. This is why the Canadian Government insists on seeing your available funds.
All in all this is a very expensive thing to attempt. You must ask yourself if this is what you want. Also, if you have any doubts about your chances of success you must realise that you could lose a lot of money and still not get to Canada. Emotionally this is a rollercoaster ride. There are going to be times when you will really wonder if you are doing the right thing. The waiting can be awful. The fact that you can't seem to find out anything about your application is frustrating. They tell you very firmly not to make any arrangements to move (selling your home etc.) until you have learned that your application is successful. However, the reality is that because of the delays and long processing time most people have to make some kind of provisions for the future based on a guess.
Has it been worth it? Yes, for us, we think so. But you must be very careful and think about it. If you have any doubts then I recommend that you get legal advice.
Skilled Worker Class
