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“ … what keeps the earth turning are the thousands of immigrants walking to new destinations every day, pushing the planet around and around with their millions of footsteps.”

— Anonymous

I still remember my first day in Canada like it was yesterday. It was a chilly day in April of 1998. My family and I were moving from Dubai so we didn’t have warm jackets, but my brother who had migrated two years earlier had the car heater on so we didn’t feel cold. My first view of the North Vancouver mountains made me fall in love with the place I was to live.

It took a lot of research and planning before I finally settled. In this book I want to share the basics of what I learned with you.

For starters, the organization handling all the applications and issues regarding immigration and citizenship is called Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). This federal department determines immigration policy in Canada, works to ensure all applicants (i.e., temporary workers, international students, and permanent residents) get competent and fair decisions, and also strives to make immigrants first steps toward integration easier. It also offers assistance and protection to refugees and other persons in need.

On the CIC website you can download all the application forms you need to apply for coming either temporarily or permanently to Canada as well as information on how to complete and submit them and payment of the applicable fees.

You can also contact the closest visa office to your city for information on applying for immigration. Visa officers work in Canadian embassies, high commissions, and consulates around the world to process applications for immigration, refugee resettlement, temporary resident visas, study, and temporary work permits. See the CIC website for visa office locations (www.cic.gc.ca/).

Tip: Be sure that you follow the specific instructions for the visa office serving your country.

Completing an application form is one thing; getting it approved is entirely different. The number of applicants far exceeds the number of people approved for immigration. Applying to immigrate can be riddled with an endless stream of complicated forms and confusing requirements. Together with Vancouver, British Columbia-based immigration lawyer Catherine Sas, QC, we have streamlined all the information on the immigration process to Canada.

Note that immigration policies are always changing! It’s important to keep on top of new policies and rules, so Catherine and I will keep you informed with regular updates and new editions to this book found at www.canadacountdown.ca.

When you arrive, I’ll keep guiding your journey with my bestselling guide to your first year in Canada, Arrival Survival Canada (www.arrivalsurvival.com). You may also want to read 365 Tips for Newcomers: Your First Year in Canada, published by Self-Counsel Press.