In other news, an update on my thoughts of moving to Canada

[mkt 0]

That's right! It's hockey season. Is it football and basketball season too? :DYou forget these things living in the Caribbean... lol. I know baseball season and the UEFA/England/Spain/Argentina football.. err soccer schedules.

Canadian Football is coming to an end mid Nov. It's a subtle bit different from the US game, better in some ways. Lot of us are NFL fans too. In our house, we've been watching NFL since pre-season, we'll be watching on US thanksgiving and right thru to pro-bowl. Pet Peeve: in Canada we don't get to see those high-priced, high powered US commercials for Superbowl!

Hmmm... I'm a Patriots fan, so I could dig that. As for the commercials, I brought my US satellite dish to PR so I could keep my channels... that dish could travel with me to Canada

[mkt 0]

mkt - obviously you know your way around here; you probably also know there are companies here servicing the likes of Disney, and that our high $ at the moment is starting to hurt exports of goods and services. If you come and set up a studio, know there are lots of experts on cross-border business, and lots of strategies for dealing with the exchange etc. You won't find much use for Spanish locally here but that skill will serve you in business. Make sure the hombres at immigracion know you're thinking of eventually investing in a business! When you get the chance, check out Montreal too -- it has a lot to offer, and you wouldn't have much trouble learning the French you need.

I wouldn't consider such a drastic change in my life without doing some research.The only other country that I am thinking of is New Zealand, which I'm basically approved for upon completion of my masters (they have a shortage of digital animators). Big problem with NZ though - distance... DISTANCE... omfg, distance. Not a distance I'd like to move. I'd at least like to share a continent with my siblings, etc;)I am curious about the CDN income taxes... I pay about 37% on my taxable income here in PR, up from 6% in Florida. PR has benefits for foreign income (ie- they don't tax it). I'm specifically most curious about Canadian taxes on foreign income, or ie- how badly will I be scre!ed

[I'm_now_smarter 0]

NZ... you mean 20-something hours in an aluminium tube every time you want to visit family doesn't appeal? Or living in a country with far more sheep than people... and the resultant bad jokes

Canadian taxes, OK, as an American you'll find that a bit depressing (well, from some states, not others). I'm not in business, so can only comment on the marginal rates for Ontario (http://www.2ontario.com/welcome/bctx_606.asp), and http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/individuals/faq/taxrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html ://http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tax/indivi...axrates-e.html for both federal and all provinces & territories. One area of weakness is that the tax system isn't structured to encourage entrepreneurial excellence; it might be OK for small busiensses, but from what I've heard it doesn't support efforts to grow big successful global enterprises.

However, it should be noted that for the higher taxes, you get:

• - comprehensive health care coverage. Ignore the Canadian press lately, which is focusing on wait times etc; it's a political game pushed by conservatives who want to dismantle it and by others who want more money poured in. Yes, you can get some things faster if you go el$ewhere but rarely is it medically warranted. The quality of care is excellent, with access to leading-edge care, if you're in big cities. There are weaknesses, but honestly, that's the case with every system.

- publically funded education. Our elementary, secondary, and tertiary schools are good. OK, there's nothing in the Ivy League/Berkeley/Oxbridge/Hebrew University/ANU tier, but there's lots one (or more) levels down.

- public assistance for the poor, which leads (among other things) to safer cities: lower crime rates due to lower levels of desperation and more opportunity (ie ok schools even in bad areas of town), plus assorted other Canadian traditions (eg hand guns are rare).

- a very efficient tax system: If you use QuickTax to calculate your taxes, then Revenue Canada's e-filing is easy, convenient and non-frustrating way to hand over your money <g>.

- a good electoral system. Voter registration is done well (practically automatic), and the whole process of voting is quick, efficient, well managed, and completely trustworthy. Hanging chads would never happen here That doesn't solve the who to vote for question, but at least means the how is easy!

[ValgardForkbeard 2]

- a good electoral system. Voter registration is done well (practically automatic), and the whole process of voting is quick, efficient, well managed, and completely trustworthy. Hanging chads would never happen here That doesn't solve the who to vote for question, but at least means the how is easy!

And to add to that, the Prime Minister is the leader of the party that gets the most seats; I am not sure that very many people in Canada have a clue about how you pick your president (Primaries, secondaries, mid term elections, picking names out of your a$$ ...) :-)MG

[mkt 0]

I'm not quite sure how we pick our president. I lost hope in 2000

[I'm_now_smarter 0]

<grin> too bad they don't let the rest of the world vote in U.S. elections, give we, too, have to live with the choice... even if our votes were worth only 5% of a citizens' votes the last seven years could have been very different.

[ValgardForkbeard 2]

I was at a Science Fiction convention in Calgary a couple of years ago, and one of the american guests had a t-shirt with "He's not MY president" printed on it.At least up here we just have politicians that we don't like; its hard to find one evil enough to actually hate.MG

[mkt 0]

I have the stop sign t-shirt with "BUSH" instead of "Stop"

[I'm_now_smarter 0]

My aunt (New Yorker, & dual Can/US citizen) uses a keychain with a clock counting down the seconds to Jan 20 2009. Her friends have similar stuff. Driving north last summer on I87, in the Adirondacks area, saw it as a bumper sticker too. (for those who aren't news/politics junkies: US Presidents can only have 2 terms, next election is Nov/2008, new President takes office in January 2009. Unlike certain Cdn PMs who lingered, and hung on, and stuck around, until Canadians forgot they could elect someone else so kept voting them in!)btw Rob.... when the Red Sox won the championship, it was announced on my fave radio station's morning news updates, including a discussion by the morning team on the series. (it's a music, not news or sports station, too). So yup, people watch and there's others who appreciate the team. Personally, I don't like baseball (it's better than cricket, but I don't see that as saying much!), but plenty of others this side of the border love it.

[mkt 0]

I'm not much of a jock, I like sports in general. To play, I'll try any sport out, but as a spectator, I prefer Soccer and Hockey. I actually don't care much for baseball except for the Red Sox- they're a religion to us massholes To play, I like playing baseball, soccer, hockey, volleyball, etc

[SMRTENUF 1]

At the risk of creating an argument, I will make these statements.In Canada, the recognized value of a Canadian MBA is considerably higher than an American MBA. Within the non-american academic circle you will find that in general a Canadian Masters degree is considered to be of higher value than an American Masters Degree within the same discipline.Wow, I bet this causes some discussion!

[I'm_now_smarter 0]

Smrtenuf-- actually, I won't disagree, but I will explain what I meant when I said big-name schools from the US would be fine. I think a Harvard or Kellogg or equivalent mega-brand MBA would probably have higher value than a Canadian one, but that's because EVERYONE knows about those schools. Same with other Masters... a degree from Harvard, Yale, Princeton, UCLA, Berkeley, MIT would mean something to everyone. Probably Columbia and Stanford as well. But would the average Canadian know about Chicago or Brown or Johns Hopkins or the many other gems out there? Anywhere else, even if it's absolutely stellar, would just be a piece of paper to 99% of Canadian managers because they'd never have heard of it, nor would they bother to research it to learn if it's any good. But, the same applies to pretty much any foreign school. Pretty much everyone knows Oxford or Cambridge, but how many people could name other top schools in the UK? Germany? Australia? Israel? Despite the fact that all those countries have many absolutely outstanding institutions, most of us would look at a job application and just shrug, wonder "is that any good?" and look for the familiar (ie Canadian) schooled candidates. And, in turn, employers in those countries do the same thing with our diplomas... That's not to say you won't get hired with foreign credentials. Some hiring types do know other schools, perhaps because it's famous in one's sector (e.g. Johns Hopkins in public health, Sheridan College for animation, London School of Economics for, well, economics). And, often, if the employer just wants credentials, it won't matter if the school is big name or not. I have several friends who've studied in the UK or US and had no trouble convincing employers to look at them, even when they did radical shifts in disciplines (from geology to development assistance, from medieval history to computer programming, from law to elementary teaching).

[mkt 0]

Yeah... I went to three no-name schools :-/Valencia College for my Associates (i decline to state that one on my resume, so i'll strike it from here on out)University of Central Florida for my BachelorsAtlantic College for my Mastersand I'm quite happy with the education I've gotten thus far, and I'm quite hopeful in what I'll continue to receive. There's only two US institutions I'm considering for Masters #2... and that's pushing it, since it would presently take a complete change in US colonial, foreign, and domestic policies for me to consider staying on US soil much longer. The only US institutions I'm considering are NYU and Stanford... but I'm considering as safety schools (especially with the costs involved with going to school in either place!), as in if I can't go to Canada under any immigrant class, like if I get this letter in the mail."Mr. MKT,No Canada for you!Love,Canada Immigration"

[Treehugger 0]

Remember too that you can't just come into Canada to study without a few things:1. A letter of acceptance from your chosen school on official letterhead2. Proof of funds - you can only work as a student if you are enrolled full time and only on the campus, so you have to show you can support yourself and any family members for a period of one year. A bank statement will suffice.3. If you're studying in Quebec, you have to get provincial acceptance as well - a Certificate Acceptance du Quebec (CAQ)If you come to the border without these things and tell a Border Services Officer you are coming to study, you will get turned away.Just a friendly reminder from CBSA.......however if you come to Halifax I'll try to make it easier for you......

[mkt 0]

Remember too that you can't just come into Canada to study without a few things:1. A letter of acceptance from your chosen school on official letterhead

I don't see a problem with that one

2. Proof of funds - you can only work as a student if you are enrolled full time and only on the campus, so you have to show you can support yourself and any family members for a period of one year. A bank statement will suffice.

Neither that one, however, say my folks will be supporting me , what would I need then? As for the bank statement, I'm guessing from a US bank, or would a non-US statement (British Virgin Islands, Spain) be acceptable? My inheritance came from various sources due to the various nationalities involved with my grandparents, and I'm still in the process of trying to consolidate it under the US banking system in either Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands with as little tax penalty as possible.

3. If you're studying in Quebec, you have to get provincial acceptance as well - a Certificate Acceptance du Quebec (CAQ)

Je ne parle pas français

Just a friendly reminder from CBSA.......however if you come to Halifax I'll try to make it easier for you......

actually, NSCAD is on my list If I end up in Nova Scotia, we'll have to go out for a beer.

[Treehugger 0]

Neither that one, however, say my folks will be supporting me , what would I need then? As for the bank statement, I'm guessing from a US bank, or would a non-US statement (British Virgin Islands, Spain) be acceptable? My inheritance came from various sources due to the various nationalities involved with my grandparents, and I'm still in the process of trying to consolidate it under the US banking system in either Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands with as little tax penalty as possible.

Any documents that prove you will have enough money to be in Canada and not working. Without those documents you could be found inadmissible due to financial reasons. It helps to show ALL sources of (legal) income.

[mkt 0]

Oh, all of it is legal. My grandparents held multiple residences and had assets worldwide. They were EU (Spain and France) nationals, so most of the assets are either in Spain or EU overseas territories.

[Albertaaw 6]

Hello mkt, in 1977, my husband and I moved from the Washington, DC, area where I had been working at the World Bank and he had a one year sabbatical replacement at University of Maryland; we lived in Maryland. Both of us are US citizens born in Idaho and Michigan. My grandmother for whom I was named was born in Goderich, Ont. in 1881, but lived from the early 1900s in Detroit. We went to St. John's, Newfoundland, in 1977, where my husband was hired as an assistant professor in the Geography Department of Memorial University of Newfoundland. The following January, I started work in the University Libraries. We stayed until retirement in 2005 when we moved to Ontario just north of London in a small community surrounded by farms. This is very reminiscent of the area in which I grew up in Michigan. Our 28 years in Newfoundland were wonderful though it is very remote from the rest of Canada and the USA where all our relatives were living. We came to Canada as Landed Immigrants allowing us both to work. In 1993, we became Canadian citizens as we wanted to vote locally, but have always maintained our ties with the USA and have voted in nearly every presidential election. Perhaps it was the university environment, but we had many opportunities for travel through our work and were given excellent growth opportunities, as well as decent salaries eventually. The area was very scenic, interesting, and historic. The climate left a lot to be desired. Our move was prompted by wanting to be closer to relatives in the USA. With pensions in Canadian dollars and our health care support, we decided not to move back to the US. With the current values of the dollar, we find our Canadian dollars go much further, while having our US social security is also helpful. However, we like it here! While it was easier to immigrate at that time, it was still a challenge.From your description of interests and abilities, you might want to consider Halifax seriously. Not only does it have NSCAD, but also it has other good universities, plus an active music, tv and movie industry. One of my daughter's friends works there in the movie area. It is not such a long drive from there to other places, and the climate, while variable, is rather moderate.Best wishes on your decision process. Alberta

[dancote 0]

Surprisingly, I made it to 70 in the skilled worker category despite not having a job and being too old.Fortunately, my mother was born in Canada and I still have many relatives living there so, potentially, I could be sponsored for citizenship.Good to know I have a back-up plan.

[yolanda 0]

Ahhhh, canada border services and immigration. What would we ever do without them? Party? Celebrate? LOLMy husband has finally been approved for his landed immigrant status. Just $500 more for the card and he can just plain be here, so long as he's a good boy. We've sunk over 6 grand into this, not counting travel costs and incidentals. That's just fees to immigration and paying for a lawyer to translate it all for us. Good thing we did too because he had a few american misdemeanors to his name which in Canada are considered felonies, so he was a felon even though they'd been cleared, dismissed, and closed back home! He had to apply for a pardon even before he could stay more than 3 weeks. I question whether this would have been possible without the connections our lawyer had built with local agencies. I was his "sponsor" but in fact had nothing of that kind of income. Without the lawyer's advice in image makeover style paperwork, we'd be faced with divorce or moving to the states.Because of the cost, the difficulty of earning money fast enough, and all the many bits of paper and the many many many repeated passport pics we kept having to submit, it took two years to get here even with things expedited. We even had an employer do the nonsense required to import him as an employee.So if you're serious about moving here you either save up lots and lots and lots of money (ten grand would do it, both for any unforseen fees and living expenses) and then research your best approach, or marry a canadian woman with enough income to support you for 6 to 18 mos while you run paper work. Or if not a wife, then someone charitable enough to be willing to face the possibility of supporting you completely up to half a decade or so. I forget exactly how long I'm "responsible" for my husband but if he becomes unable to support himself, even if we divorced, I'd be expected to pay all his bills and needs, doctor, dentist, clothes, you name it, for the entire term specified in that paper work over in the next room. (unless he went back to US)Be a good boy and don't get any cops mad at you either. Especially don't drink and drive. It'll kill ya!