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For those looking to move the Lethbridge or Alberta I thought I would follow up and let you know how our move to Canada from the States went. We moved here almost 2 years ago and here is some very helpful information if you are considering a move to Canada (Please note this is an experience to Alberta, Canada and there may be differences in other regions in Canada and these are just a few things that I thought would have been helpful to know before we moved).
The views: Alberta, is beautiful, that is for sure! If you enjoy mountains, amazing sunsets, prairies, and fields of beautiful canola flowers in the summer time you can beat it here. We have explored Calgary, Banff, Waterton, Milk River, and each of these areas are worth a visit. By far my favorite was Moraine Lake up in the Banff area, just so unreal it makes one speechless.
What it has to offer: Jobs, there are jobs here and they pay pretty well. The problem one may run into is making sure they have a certification that matches what the position requires (i.e. you have to be certified just to be a waitress and serve alcohol to a table). If you are planning to work in the health field you may need to jump through few more hoops to make it happen. On our work permit I am not allowed to work with children, in a health related field, or any Canadian government area. So make sure you have a solid job before you move that will help you apply for your work permit.
Schools: You can’t go wrong the schools are fine no matter where you go here in Lethbridge. There are issues in some, but with any school there are always a few issues and it really depends on the class each year. I have appreciated the education my children have received while we have been here.
Staying on a Work Permit/Permanent resident/Citizenship: So when you first move here you move here on a work permit. Try to get your employer to write a letter stating they will require your employment for 5 years or more. This will help you get a work permit that will last longer. When we came up we made that mistake and had a 1 year work permit and had to pay to renew it but got the second one for 5 additional years. Once our work permit expires Canada may not allow us to renew it, they may say we have to apply for Permanent Residency now that we have been here for 6 years. If this happens it takes 1-2 years for the Permanent Residency to go through. This is very likely what will happen so really we have to start applying for Permanent Residency next year so that we have it in place by time our work permit expires. After you become a Permanent Resident you have to renew your Permanent Residency every (I forget I want to say 5 years). When you apply for Permanent Residency it is expensive and you need to get a lawyer to do it for your or some sort of help. I had friends try to do it on their own and they had binders full of all the documentation they would need from birth certificates to sealed letters from past employers and even though all the information was there it still got rejected so save yourself the headaches and just pay someone to help you. At some point you may start to consider Dual Citizenship as for this I am not educated enough on the subject to help but I do know this; it is expensive, if you are a US citizen it is extremely difficult to get dual citizenship unless you are married to a Canadian, and you have to continue to pay taxes in the US and Canada and if there is a Draft in Either country you are recognized as a citizen of both so you get your name put on both lists. An important note to mention about Credit, you will have a difficult time getting a credit card or loans here until you are at least a permanent resident. They flag you in the system with your SIN number starting with the #9 so they now you are on a work permit. I have heard that if you go to the bank with statements of employment and pay stubs and speak to the Bank Manager after a few months they are more willing to help you start building credit even on a work permit. They just need to be sure you are not going to rack up a ton of debt and then leave Canada without paying.
Taxes/Cost of living: It’s expensive to live here, gas is on average $4.40 a gallon (it’s in liters here so $1.10 a liter) but that’s if you get a Costco membership and save on gas (there are grocery stores that help you save on gas too). They really don’t promote coupons here like they do in the States but you can use them if they are Canadian coupons (no U.S. coupons allowed). The grocery stores in town offer a first Tuesday of the month 15% off your total purchase deal which I use instead of worrying about hunting down coupons. Cheese is ridiculously expensive here (any dairy for that matter) but I get why and it makes sense, see Alberta requires dairy farmers to purchase a lot of their supplies right here in Canada (maybe Alberta, not sure on the whole restriction) and this helps keep purchasing right here instead of going to Mexico to get cheaper corn to feed your animals. So it drives up the cost because Corn here is more expensive. However, it keep jobs in the area and being from the U.S. and the whole Buy American Made I can get why they want to keep it in Canada and appreciate it. The cost of housing, automobiles, and anything else is ridiculous, (if you live in a high cost of living area like Malibu, CA you might find the housing similar). Canada likes to argue that the Mortgage rate is so low and it off sets the cost of the home, but I don’t know with the low Mortgage rates in the U.S. these days I am seeing a lot of fault in the statement.
The People: No matter where you go in life you will find one city or town is different then the next when it comes to the people. What I can tell you about specifically Lethbridge is this: Don’t tell them you are from the U.S. and don’t reference things back to America. A lot of individuals I have encountered here roll their eyes if you even think to start a sentence with “Back in Ohio, or Back in New York, or Back in California”. It’s a feeling of, you are in Canada now focus on where you are at and not where you came from. It’s unfortunate, but I think it’s this mentality of Canada just being sick of hearing all about the U.S. all the time. I will say I have heard and witnessed personally a lot of mean and negative comments about the U.S.A. (i.e. went to a sporting event with my children that had a U.S. team and a Canadian team playing. When the U.S. anthem started to play my children and I heard a couple next to us say “F*@#ing Americans, I hate this F*@#ing song…” and they were well educated nice looking people and my kids (aside from learning a swear word) asked me why they hated us so much when we excited to sign “Oh Canada” with them. So just be careful when you talk about the U.S.A. and embrace your new life in Canada. I will also add there is a lot of diversity here when it comes to Religion, sexual preference, and nationality, but there is also a lot of judgment from all sides. Please note, I have made some wonderful friends here that are the exact opposite of what I just said (they love the States and are so nice) so this is not a generalization of all the people here it is just some experiences we have encountered and learned from. When we moved from the North to the South in the states back in the 90s we encountered a lot of negative Yankee statements too, so this stuff can happen anywhere you just need to seek out the educated and kinder folk and you will be just fine. Also, note this is Alberta, I have been to the Eastern portions of Canada and it is not like this at all from my experience.
Getting across the border: It is ridiculously impossible to figure out what you need to get across the border. I researched the heck out of this (calling places, forums, the internet) and nothing provided me with all the information I needed (i.e. I didn’t know until 2 weeks before the big move that you had to own your car out right with the lease in hand to export it into Canada because lenders won’t allow you to export the vehicle you still owe them money for). So the best advice I can give about the border is to call the border office directly (the border office of where you plan to cross that is) and ask your questions they will be more helpful, but beware the experience is different for everyone.
Health Care: Oh Health care, I love this topic. Let’s see, we went from paying over $1800 a month for a family of 4 to private health care in the states to paying almost nothing here. Is it worth it, sometimes it’s nice to leave knowing you won’t have to worry about your deductible, but most of the time I think I’d rather pay. See you move here and immediately you can apply for a Alberta Health Card and you have it right away, and it’s great, you have a health problem you go to a clinic and you pay nothing, awesome right, wrong. I am sorry Canada but the system is broken. This is why:
1. You need to find a family doctor when you move here so you start to look and soon find there are not enough doctors in the area and all the good ones are taken. The only doctors that are accepting patients are the ones with a bad reputation that everyone has left. We have been here almost two years and still can’t find a decent doctor.
2. Your child has the flu and is vomiting everywhere, has a fever of 103 and might die. Unless you call 911 and get an ambulance to take you in to the hospital you will wait for over an hour with your child dyeing in your arms before they will see you because there are a 30 other people waiting to see a doctor too. There are rare occasions where you have a little wait to see a doctor in a medical clinic or hospital. Not yes it’s the same if you went to an ER in the states you have to wait, but if you have a pediatrician they typically have doctors on call to help you especially on Saturdays. Here if your doctor decides to take vacation they close the office for a week and you are out of luck and have to go to the medical clinic, and it’s almost impossible to find an office open on Saturday. If you have to have an x-ray it can take 3-6 months to get into Radiology. The problem is there is not enough supply to meet the demand.
3. Dental is not covered on your Alberta health card and you will need to pick up extra insurance to cover Dental and other things like prescriptions and ambulance rides.
4. I have yet to walk into a clean health facility. It’s like being in a third world country. My husband had surgery and as he lay in the bed looking up at the ceiling there were flies all over the inside of the light fixtures. The grime in the corners at the medical clinics, the pealing wall paper on the walls at the doctor’s office, hair clumps on the floor and just so much more it is so gross. I am not kidding it is just not clean, nice and new like the practices privatized health allows. I am fine with Obama care and I fell all people should have the ability to get health coverage, but I also feel you should not feel like you are in a third world country when you are being treated.
So in summary, it’s awesome, most of its Free, but you get what you pay for.
Thoughts after living here for almost two years: I can’t wait to move back to the U.S. I miss home. I am forever thankful to Canada for giving us such a wonderful opportunity to work here and help us support our family. It just isn't a good fit for us. We have more appreciation and love now for being Americans and want to return to our home. So as soon as we land the job we will leave, but I would come back. I am more educated now and know what to expect so if we had to, I would come back I just prefer to live in America.
Health Care: Oh Health care, I love this topic. Let’s see, we went from paying over $1800 a month for a family of 4 to private health care in the states to paying almost nothing here. Is it worth it, sometimes it’s nice to leave knowing you won’t have to worry about your deductible, but most of the time I think I’d rather pay. See you move here and immediately you can apply for a Alberta Health Card and you have it right away, and it’s great, you have a health problem you go to a clinic and you pay nothing, awesome right, wrong. I am sorry Canada but the system is broken. This is why:
1. You need to find a family doctor when you move here so you start to look and soon find there are not enough doctors in the area and all the good ones are taken. The only doctors that are accepting patients are the ones with a bad reputation that everyone has left. We have been here almost two years and still can’t find a decent doctor.
2. Your child has the flu and is vomiting everywhere, has a fever of 103 and might die. Unless you call 911 and get an ambulance to take you in to the hospital you will wait for over an hour with your child dyeing in your arms before they will see you because there are a 30 other people waiting to see a doctor too. There are rare occasions where you have a little wait to see a doctor in a medical clinic or hospital. Not yes it’s the same if you went to an ER in the states you have to wait, but if you have a pediatrician they typically have doctors on call to help you especially on Saturdays. Here if your doctor decides to take vacation they close the office for a week and you are out of luck and have to go to the medical clinic, and it’s almost impossible to find an office open on Saturday. If you have to have an x-ray it can take 3-6 months to get into Radiology. The problem is there is not enough supply to meet the demand.
3. Dental is not covered on your Alberta health card and you will need to pick up extra insurance to cover Dental and other things like prescriptions and ambulance rides.
4. I have yet to walk into a clean health facility. It’s like being in a third world country. My husband had surgery and as he lay in the bed looking up at the ceiling there were flies all over the inside of the light fixtures. The grime in the corners at the medical clinics, the pealing wall paper on the walls at the doctor’s office, hair clumps on the floor and just so much more it is so gross. I am not kidding it is just not clean, nice and new like the practices privatized health allows. I am fine with Obama care and I fell all people should have the ability to get health coverage, but I also feel you should not feel like you are in a third world country when you are being treated.
So in summary, it’s awesome, most of its Free, but you get what you pay for.
I can't address Alberta, because I've never lived there. I've lived the majority of my life in B.C. and also in Ontario for 3 years.
I've had a family doctor in BC since I was little, but I thought my move to Ontario was going to be permanent so I needed a doctor. I had one within a month of moving there by signing up to Health Care Connect. My doctor was AMAZING, absolutely fantastic. Easy to get appointments, no problem what so ever. Alberta has a similar service:
Obviously I can't guarantee it'll work as well or you'll be as happy but the doctor I was assigned to was wonderful. My family doctor in B.C. is great as well, she always has another doctor cover her practice when she's going to be out of town.
Alberta towns can be weird with things being open on the weekend. I've never had a problem finding a medical clinic open on a Saturday anywhere else. Usually it's a couple hours wait because people go for stupid reasons, but all in all, I've been satisfied.
My mother has worked in hospitals all my life, I've gone to visit her at her work many times. I've also been in different hospitals in BC, Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario and I'd say you should complain to the Ministry of Health if you found the conditions to be that of a third-world country. I have never, in my life, seen anything life you describe. And I lived in a teeny tiny little town, nay village, in B.C. (it's where I was born) and the hospital was always in immaculate condition.
I had an x-ray in September because I broke my foot. I went to the clinic, saw a doctor (in a clean, immaculate office) within 45 minutes, and went for an x-ray immediately after. The whole process took 4 hrs of my day. I didn't go to the hospital for an x-ray, I found a private clinic to do it. But I've had many x-rays at the hospital (I swallowed a quarter when I was a kid) and never ever had to wait anywhere near the amount of time you describe to get in. I worked at a medical clinic in Ontario and had to book people for ultrasounds and x-rays and usually got them in within the same week.
But like I said, I can't speak for Alberta, I've never lived there, just been to the clinic there one time with strep throat while visiting and have visited my aunt who works at Foothills Hospital in Calgary while she was working.
And you're right, a lot of Canadians don't like the "back in NY..." stuff. Some don't care, of course. But if I moved to a small-ish American city and constantly made references back to Canada, I'm sure they'd get tired of it too.
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