The IEC Visa and Moving to Canada
Have you been thinking of moving to Canada on the IEC visa or wondering what it would be like?
I am aware that this is a super long post, but if you are thinking about moving to Canada or getting a working holiday visa, this is the only post you will need to read about the process!
I found it quite difficult trying to figure out the application system and to find information about the different parts of applying for the IEC visa. I found that I had to look on multiple different web pages and it took forever to figure it out. This post should make it clearer and make understanding the application process easier for you.
Whilst being away on my travels there weren’t many places that I thought I could see myself living, but there were a few: Canada and New Zealand being two of them. When we were in Canada we stayed with some friends who had been living in Canada on a working holiday visa and made it sound SOO amazing that I applied there and then.
Types of visas
There are many types of visas that will allow you to visit and stay in a country for different purposes. I will focus more on the International Experience Canada (IEC) visa as that is what I applied for.
Top Tip
You do not need to pay a company to help you or to do your application for you. They charge a ridiculous amount of money and when you know the right places to look and the things you need to do, it doesn’t cost much at all!
What is the IEC visa?
The IEC is a programme designed to allow 18-35 year olds (some countries have a limit of 30 years old) to work in Canada for temporary periods. Usually the visas are valid for between 1-2 years. If you are from the UK is usually lasts 2 years.
Types of IEC visas
There are 3 types of IEC visas:
1. Working holiday visa
This category is for you if:
- You don’t have a job offer yet
- You want to work for more than one employer in Canada
- You want to work in more than one location
- You’d like to earn some money so that you can travel
This is an open work permit which means you can work anywhere in Canada for any employer with a few restrictions (e.g. you can’t work in the sex trade), and for some jobs you’ll have to get a medical exam first. This includes if you plan to work in:
- The health field
- Primary or secondary education,
- Child care or
- Elderly care
2. Young Professional visa
This category is for you if:
- You have a job offer in Canada that contributes to your professional development
- You’ll work for the same employer in the same location during your stay in Canada
Work must be:
- Paid
- Not self-employed
3. International Co-op (internship) visa
This category is for you if:
- You’re a student registered at a post-secondary institution
- You have a job offer for a work placement or internship in Canada
- You need to do this work placement or internship to complete your studies
- You’ll work for the same employer in the same location during your stay in Canada
The pool system
For anyone who is familiar with the process, you’ll know it can be VERY difficult to get a working holiday visa for Canada. It works as a pool system. You submit an application to apply for the visa (free of charge), and your name might get ‘pulled out of a hat’.
Only a certain number of work visas are handed out to each country per year. The UK currently receives 10,000 work visas per year (successful candidates), over several ‘rounds’ of invitations. It is possible to apply several times and not be invited to apply. When/if you are invited to apply, you then fill out the correct paperwork and pay the fee to apply for the IEC alongside any supporting documentation that is requested.
Useful Links:
To find out more about the quota for your country to get an IEC visa visit this site.
To find out the current status of UK IEC applications visit this site
This site explains the numbers and statistics.
How to Apply
-
Complete a questionnaire to find out if you are eligible to apply. It will ask:
- Country of citizenship
- Country of permanent residence (where you live permanently)
- Country of residence (where you live now)
- Student status (if this applies to you)
- Job offer (if this applies to you)
Check your eligibility to apply here by completing the questionnaire.
Top Tip
Remember the answers you give to your questions e.g. Mother’s favourite flower, as this will be one of the things they ask when you are signing in to your account and the questions can change each time!
2. Create your online IEC profile if you are eligible
Use the personal reference code that you are given at the end of the questionnaire when asked during the account set-up. You will not need to do this if you are signed in to your account.
3. Submit your profile
You will be told which pools are available and you can submit your profile to any of these. Make sure you know which category is right for you (see above or check out the cic website).
Invitations to apply for the IEC visa
The current guidance is “You’ll have 10 days to decide if you’ll accept the invitation. The deadline will be in your invitation. From the day you accept the invitation, you’ll have 20 days to apply online for a work permit.”
Within these 20 days I had to go to London and get a biometrics test done (photograph and fingerprints) for it to be included with my application. The fee for the biometrics was covered in the application fee, as was an ETA (electronic travel authorisation linked to your passport) which is also required to enter Canada. The cost of application for the IEC is $150 CAD which is around £90 at the current exchange rate (June 2019). There is an additional fee of $100 for a working holiday visa bringing the total to $250 (£150).
Options once you have received an invitation for an IEC Visa
You may decline your invitation to apply if you wish to do so. If you do not accept the invitation to apply within the 10 days, your profile will be deleted and you will have to submit a brand new profile. If you do not get an invitation to apply, your profile will remain in the pool until it is closed. If it closes, your profile is deleted. When the pool opens again, you will need to submit a new profile (starting from the very beginning).
I missed my deadline by an hour (so annoying because I hadn’t seen it!), then my profile was deleted. I emailed straight away to ask if my invitation could be reinstated because I hadn’t seen it but they said my profile had already been deleted. I had to create another profile. I entered the pool on 4 separate occasions before I was invited to apply for an IEC! I know some people who have received an invitation on their first try, and some who have been trying for 5 years. The website states that each candidate in the pool has an equal chance of receiving an invitation. Just hope luck is on your side!
Top tip
Check your emails regularly and try to flag any incoming emails from the cic as important in your inbox. Make sure you regularly check your junk email inbox and log in to your online profile to look for any updates (at least once per week!).
How to Apply for the IEC visa
- Make sure you know the date of our deadline. You MUST complete your application before this.
- Complete the online form
- Complete and submit your biometrics
In most cases you now need to give your biometrics to apply for an IEC visa. This website tells you where you can go to give biometrics. In the UK you have to go to London and can book an appointment or find out more information at the vfs global website.
Get all of your documents together.
-
Proof of finances
You must get official letters from banks where you’re keeping money. The letters must:
- Be printed on the financial institution’s letterhead
- Include their contact information (address, telephone number and email address)
- Include your name
- List outstanding debts e.g. credit card debts and loans
- Include for each current bank and investment account, the
- Account numbers
- Date each account was opened
- Current balance of each account
- Average balance over the past 6 months
-
Medical exams if required
Must be by a doctor that has been approved by IRCC. Find out more about the requirements for medical exams here. Upload into the“Proof of medical exam” section if applicable.
-
Obtain and upload Police certificates
In most cases, you’ll need to get police certificates for countries or territories where you’ve spent 6 or more months in a row since the age of 18. More information about UK police checks and applications can be made here
If you’re not in the UK or need to get a police certificates for another country, you can find out where to get one here.
-
Upload your CV
-
Upload a clear, readable copy of your passport
-
Upload a digital photo of yourself
-
Complete and upload the family information form Family Information (IMM 5707)(PDF, 640.83 KB).
I had a nightmare trying to download this. Even though I had the latest version of the PDF viewer and followed the troubleshooting steps, I kept getting the following error message:
After reading many forums I was advised to try a windows PC, but this still didn’t work.
Top Tip
You need to right click on the link on your profile and “save as”. Then go to the PDF document reader and open the file. It should work. It took me a painful 2 days and 6 different computers (plus several friends and family members trying too) to figure it out. I managed to do it on my Apple Macbook in the end but also got it to work on my sister’s Windows laptop.
-
Pay your fees
-
Submit your complete application
After you apply
A decision is then made about whether you are successful or not within around 8 weeks. If you are successful you will be sent a Port of Entry Letter (POE) and your biometrics letter which is valid for 10 years. You will be able to Activate your visa within a year from the date of issue, however if you do not activate it you will lose your chance to get another one and your place will be re-allocated to someone else. This is a one-time only visa.
How to activate your IEC visa
There will be instructions about what you need to do next and what documents you need to take with you. You will need to print and have the following with you:
- Port of entry letter
- Biometrics letter
- Proof of finances
- Copy of your police certificate
- Passport
Top Tip
You need to activate your IEC on the first entry into Canada i.e. if you are flying to Toronto and staying for a few days, then catching a domestic flight to Vancouver, you will need to go to the customs officers in Toronto to activate the IEC Visa. When you catch a domestic flight you do not go through customs when you get off of the plane. You can only activate the visa at a port of entry into Canada. You cannot activate it in any cities or other establishments. If you did not want to activate it right away, you would have to leave the country and then return again in order to activate your IEC Visa.