Folks who moved from US to Canada

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Apr 7, 2021 122 Comments

TL;DR: Folks who moved from US (preferably Bay area) to Canada - how has your experience been so far?

Me:
- Indian here. Have made up my mind to not keep waiting in the looonnnggg GC queue.
- Have got the I140 approved but parents are retiring soon and want to spend more time with them and also wish to take care of them in their old age (right now they are fit but years down the line they will be weak and will need support)
- Desperately trying to end being in a limbo (considering EB5 strongly and want to start saving for it but overall finding the timelines there to be discouraging as well - see the timeline mentioned below and feel free to comment on it too if it sounds off / right and any thoughts on that) and thus considering option of moving to Canada (never been to Canada, plan to travel once covid subsides and checkout cities).
- Do not have a PR but my age is less than 30 so I think I can make the Express Entry cut

What am I asking?:
1. If you moved to Canada (did you consider EB5 route?). What were your reasons of moving to Canada?
2. How has your experience been so far? I am in Bay area with decent TC and all factors I hear about Canada (Weather, High tax, low TC, long wait in medical treatments) have been discouraging except for stability and Wlb. Have you found these to be bearable? How did you cope with such trade-offs?
3. With the aim of living with and supporting parents in their old age, how badly can the long waits in medical treatments (specialist visits / MRI / scans, etc) affect the prospects?
4. How was the experience with job search / work quality / mobility (internal/external)
5. Which city have you moved to? Any specific reason for choosing that city?

I know it's a long post with a lot of questions on almost everything that any typical H1B from India would be thinking right now, but that's exactly the reason expect folks to share their experience and thoughts and collectively help out someone guide their life changing decisions.

Thanks in advance for everyone contributing

#h1b #canada #usa #ustocanada #bayarea #tech #visa #workvisa

Household TC: 450K

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TOP 122 Comments
  • Amazon
    biggerLose

    Go to company page Amazon

    biggerLose
    I have no clue why people don't return back to their motherland india.

    Did India treat you guys so bad that you guys are okay with brutal Canadian winters ?
    Apr 7, 2021 28
    • @facebook I don't rush to pick my kids everyday. I don't drive to work, I use paid taxi. Kids activities like sports, dance, swimming, tuition are all within the community. Nightlife is great, food is awesome. We do community activities like preserving lakes, planting trees around them, running marathons, driving to hill stations on weekends. Healthcare is descent. With descent money in the bank, you can afford any luxury you want.
      Pollution is definitely worse than west but still far better than Northern Indian cities. Commuting to anywhere is a nightmare during peak hours but that is how developing countries are. Since I am not driving, I can use the time into something else.
      Apr 26, 2021
    • As far as covid goes, stupidity is everywhere. You won't have to work hard to find it. Doesn't matter if it is india or Canada or America. Look at Florida, vaccine blunders in Canada, Brazil or any other part you like. You just need the attitude to look at things a bit clearly.
      Apr 26, 2021
  • Nike / Eng
    UgCQ28

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    UgCQ28
    Regarding TC
    --------------------------

    450k USD ~ 570k CAD. If you're lucky you'll make 220k CAD in Canada. Above that is virtually impossible. Remember, getting jobs is easy, but getting jobs with high TC is not.

    Regarding health care
    ------------------------------------

    Canada has free health care, but you're not going to be able to sponsor your parents for PR if they have some serious medical conditions. They do that to avoid "burden" to the economy. So much for free healthcare.
    If you have emergency you're treated immediately. But if any treatment is not urgent you are put on a wait-list and triaged. There are clinics where you can get MRI and other tests for cash if you want.

    You can buy your parents insurance in the US with all that extra TC.

    Weather
    ------------------------------

    Other than Vancouver, all of Canada is not worth it for someone who comes from California or places with pleasant weather.

    Cost of living

    --------------------------

    Depending on where you live, real estate prices can vary. Vancouver and Toronto are expensive while other cities and nearby suburbs are drastically cheaper. Overall for the huge TC difference it's really not worth it to live in Canada if you plan to come here to work 9-5, because you'd be in either Vancouver or Toronto.

    Overall
    -------------------

    In your situation, I wouldn't recommend Canada, unless you plan to go there with a goal of starting a business or some venture. Your overall quality of life isn't going to be any different. Infact, with lower TC, it can be worse.
    Apr 7, 2021 13
    • Facebook
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      OP
      @Microsoft: compared to the prices in Bay area this still sounds better sepcially as we are talking about ~1.5M USD in bay area vs ~1M CAD in GTA (if I understood correctly). How are the mortgadge rates and returns on real estates though (are they better with such increasing prices?)
      Apr 8, 2021
    • Oracle
      ByoE85

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      ByoE85
      Interests rate in Canada are typically less than US for mortgages. I don't know what they are right now but when they were about 2.5% in the US a few months ago they were about 1.75 - 2% in Canada. Keep in mind mortgage in Canada works differently. They don't tend to have 30 year fixed. Instead you can get them fixed for 3, 5, 7, 10 years, and then the mortgage renews after that and you get a new rate.

      Another side mention - look into TFSA accounts. They are an awesome investment building tool in Canada that are similar but better than Roth.

      Another thing to add - capital gains is taxed much better in Canada than US. Half of your gain is tax free, half is considered income. No short term or long term stuff.
      Apr 9, 2021
  • 1. Moved because hated long GC process.
    2. Wait times are exaggerated. If you ask them to put you on priority list, they call you when they have any cancellations. I have waited more in the US than in Canada.
    3. You pay for your parents insurance. Only 10k applicants get selected every year for Grand parents and parents permanent residency program. But super visa is good option. Also, IRCC is more humane than USCIS and gives exceptions.
    4. Vancouver (for weather and close proximity to Seattle)
    Apr 8, 2021 19
    • AMD
      isvara

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      isvara
      This, other points worth mentioning are not having to worry much about school districts and universities here are really good and cheap if you plan to have a family. you can also just work remotely for a US company after you get citizenship if you really want to get paid in USD. Have lots of family and friends that work in the US and work remotely in Canada & travel occasionally to the US offices (pre-covid). I mentioned being a citizen because there might be some residency requirements of working within Canada to be able to convert your PR -> Citizenship.
      Apr 9, 2021
    • Oracle
      ByoE85

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      ByoE85
      Yes, in Canada you don't typically need to worry about school districts - the variation is not anywhere as stark as in the US. Universities are also significantly cheaper including world class ones like Waterloo, Toronto, McGill etc.
      Apr 9, 2021
  • Why not india op?
    Apr 7, 2021 11
    • New / Eng
      a-z0-9

      New Eng

      a-z0-9
      OP your parents have lived their own lives and are old, so live yours. In as much as you ought to take care of them, don’t move back to India simply because of that. Pursue your own goals and find a common ground
      Apr 8, 2021
    • Salaries in Bangalore are shooting up like hell. Awesome work benefits and descent health cover. Modern communities are top notch with awesome weather.
      Apr 26, 2021
  • Just want to point out that your parents won’t get Canadian PR automatically based on your Canadian citizenship. Canada has a lottery system and it may take years before their application is selected, provided you try every year and they are lucky. Yes, they can come on a super visa but they won’t get the medical benefits.
    Apr 7, 2021 14
    • A lot of Punjabis in Canada are from small villages, so I don’t know if Hindi speaking people would be able to converse with them that easily. Those Punjabis speak different kinda dialects and they don’t speak Hindi. Based on that, it might be difficult to socialize if you aren’t from Punjab but more and more people are moving here from other parts of India, so the scene should be changing...
      Regarding other aspects such as food etc., I don’t see any issue but would like to hear others’ perspective
      Apr 28, 2021
    • Amazon
      MagicWorks

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      MagicWorks
      This Punjabi thing is bs.. Whether your parents will adjust here has nothing to do with Punjabi majority. I’ve seen parents of various friends enjoying their stay. Well, whether parents will enjoy
      Out of India for long term is a separate debate. Due to Punjabi majority they won’t enjoy isn’t true. Btw I am not Punjabi..
      May 9, 2021