Considerations When Relocating to Canada
Author: Ardis McArthur
A continually expanding economy, lots of recreational space, some
of the cleanest cities in the world, and low crime rates make
Canada one of the best places in the world to live. Here are some
things to consider if you are moving Canada for business or
personal reasons.
Citizenship
Those planning to stay in Canada for the long term should
immediately begin seeking out guidance on achieving citizenship.
Canada has many benefits to offer its citizens, but government
programs such as Universal Health Care are only available to
permanent residents. Becoming a Canadian citizen requires an
application, and certain official documents, and you may have to
pass a test.
Don't Believe the Weather Rumours
It is likely that if you have never spent a lot of time in
Canada, you have heard stories about the country being the land
of ice and snow, with freezing conditions in the winter and bleak
summers. While most of the country does get cold in the winter
(although coastal areas such as British Columbia's Lower Mainland
rarely get below 0 C and see little snow) the summers in many
areas can be quite hot. This ranges from the dry and scorching
heat of the B.C. interior (where temperatures climb to the
mid-40s for several weeks in July or August) to the more humid
heat of locations along the St. Lawrence River (Montreal,
Toronto, Ottawa).
Get Used to Distance
Eighty percent of Canada's population is located in the strip of
land that runs from Quebec City to Windsor at the American
border. The three biggest cities in the nation are located at
opposite ends of the country: Montreal and Toronto in the east
are within an easy day's drive of each other, while Vancouver
lies far to the west on the Pacific Ocean. Most other cities are
well under 1 million people, and the farther north you go, the
more empty space you can expect to find between population
centres.
Social programs and Big Taxes
If you ask a Canadian what the country's most important
institutions are, nine out of ten will point to Universal Health
Care and the Public Education System. These systems guarantee
that all Canadian citizens have access to good health care and
every child can attend school up until grade 12 without having to
pay for it. Both systems are within the jurisdiction of the
provinces, as the Catholic background of Quebec was a major
contributor to the development of both its hospitals and its
schools; therefore, it is necessary to purchase health insurance
even when traveling out of the province you reside in.
Hand in hand with comprehensive social programs come high taxes
in order to fund these programs. Canada has taxes on almost
everything that you could imagine, from various federal and
provincial gasoline taxes to taxes on alcohol, cigarettes, hotel
rooms, and cross border goods. In addition, the federal
government applies a 6% tax to all goods and services, and every
province but Alberta has some form of provincial sales tax.
Income taxes for Canadians are also quite high, with a greater
share deducted the more you earn.
Like any country, Canada has points in its favour and against.
As most Canadian citizens will point out, the price of taxes is
fairly minor when measured up against the many benefits Canadians
enjoy, not the least of which is being one of the cleanest and
safest countries in the world.
About the author: For more information on this article or on GTA condo
residences, visit Toronto-Relocation.com.
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