Facts about Canada to know before you leave

There’s a lot of excitement in migrants when they migrate to Canada. Much they know, many they may figure out on the go once they reach the country. But would you want to get sudden surprises when it's time to live a fresh chapter of your life in Canada? We would want to spare you that.

Indeed, Canada is a wonderful country. It’s a country that welcomes you as an immigrant and gives you the opportunities to prosper as you also contribute to Canada’s economy. Here, you arrive to work, study, and settle with eyes on the prize of a better future.

There’s a lot to talk about how Canada is the best country to choose for career growth and even business development. This country gives you options to immigrate even without a job in hand and gives you many routes to work towards permanent residence. This country simply can’t do without immigrants and you will find a great living experience here as one. It will be even better if you knew a few bare practical facts about the country.

Canada immigration indeed brings you to a world of difference that’s exciting and perplexing for beginners. So, let’s delve into the points to learn about life and its ways in Canada; facts that will help you have a clearer understanding of what to expect in the country after you move there.

Prepare for the seasons

Canada has 4 seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter.

Spring is from March to May. The snow starts to melt and the weather gets warmer. There’s a lot of rain that falls during this season. Longer and warmer days and cool nights are typical of this season. In April-May, trees start to bear leaves again after winter. You will need a hat, a warm coat, boots, and mittens in this season. An umbrella will be a useful accessory too.

Summer extends from June to August/September. In the day time, temperatures can reach from 20 to 30 degrees Celsius or even more. July will be a high point in terms of temperature. The season feels warmer due to humidity in many regions. Keep an insect repellent handy in case you are going out. Use sunscreen to prevent sunburn and wear a hat.

Fall happens from September to November.  The days will seem shorter as the hours of sunlight decreases. You will begin to see frosts appearing and leaves turn from green to red, yellow, orange, and brown. They will soon drop off the trees and shutterbugs may like to capture this season very much. Expect the temperature to change from 20^o in September to 5^o in November. You will start to need your coat, boots, mittens, and hat in the morning and a light jacket in the later hours of the day. Oh! And carry an umbrella.

Winter comes in December and stays till February. It could even exceed February. Temperatures fall under the range of –10 to –15 degrees Celsius. The wind makes the season even colder. You will have to dress up well in a coat, boots, and mittens to stay warm. Have a warm hat that covers your ears too. Rubber-soled boots will be most helpful on the slippery snow. You can even turn fashionable this season as you will need to layer your clothing. And guess what! This is the time to have fun as you can go enjoy skiing, skating, sledding, or just make wonderful snowmen.

It’s not all affordable out there!

Buying stuff in Canada could be a costly affair. In provinces like Toronto and Vancouver, the costs will definitely put your spending habits under check. The higher price tags are a reality you could face in everything from shopping to dining to housing.

Be liberal with politeness

If you are naturally and habitually polite, you will find yourself very much at home in Canada. Words like “please”, “thank you”, “may I”, and “excuse me” are accepted heartily and reciprocated. Politeness will help you mix into Canadian society pretty well.

Know that not all health care is free

If you are a permanent resident in Canada, with health care benefits covered by the government, your doctor’s fee could be saved. But prescription medicine will have to be paid. Consulting a dental doctor will be costly. That’s because dental care isn’t covered by public funding. It will be wise to take third-party health insurance so that you won’t have to worry about exorbitant health care charges.

You can’t skip the doctor and go for antibiotics directly as medicines won’t be available without a doctor’s prescription.

The best advice for you keeping in mind the delay in getting your health insurance coverage done, it would be best to move into Canada with at least 6 months of international health insurance.

Canada is multi-cultural for real

In Canada, you will find yourself living, moving, and working among people from cultures from all over the world. This multiculturalism helps you to spare yourself the need to fit into a stereotype and can retain your individuality and own cultural flavor.

You shall tip

If there's one habit you will have to pick up in Canada, it is to tip. Tipping is not only gladly accepted but in fact expected. So, when you go to a restaurant or a similar service provider, expect to spend 15 to 30 percent more in tips.

It’s a tough job to set your foot firm

For an immigrant, Canada is a new country. No matter how proficient and experienced you are in your line of work, it will be a daunting task to gain recognition in the Canadian marketplace. What you can do is to bring as many credentials and transcripts as you can and create and maintain as many contacts in your professional network, even before you reach Canada. The bottom line is that career-building will not be a cakewalk for an immigrant in Canada.

Expect high prices for phone usage

This probably comes blunt onto you but the fact is that Canada has some of the world’s highest prices for wireless services. There are no pre-paid connections available and data costs can be pretty high for many of you transitioning from your homeland. Since “staying connected”, as is said about wireless connections, is expensive, you have to be careful about usage and prefer to connect to public wi-fi as much as possible.

There’s literally equality in Canada

Yeah, that’s right. It doesn’t matter what profession you are into or what your ethnicity/gender is, everybody has the same freedoms, rights, and responsibilities. There’s mutual respect for real and your individuality is never undermined.

Banking in Canada could be surprising

In Canada, there’s a “negative interest” in effect. This means you get charged interest for maintaining cash with banks. This will make it necessary for you to buy a credit card from the bank, which in turn is the only way to establish a credit history in Canada. That will help you to buy a car or a house at a point in the future.

You will rarely find repairs

If in your homeland, repairing damaged or faulty goods is a habitual practice, you will need to change your ways in once you are in Canada. In Canada, you will rarely find repair services, and the ones you will find could charge you as good as a new piece. So, the better practice would be to buy new ones.

Show-off can’t impress Canadians

This is a great virtue of Canadian culture. Extravagance on display is never considered impressive by the people there. Of course, there are wealthy Canadians. But they are modest about their wealthiness.

People don’t mix friendliness with taking liberties

Canadians are quite warm and friendly people. But they never overdo it and take liberties as it is common in countries like India. A little formality is mixed with daily interactions and people don’t discuss personal details openly and avoid unsolicited visits and talks. For some, this could be a culture shock. For others, it’s a better way to maintain healthy relations.

Canada PR immigration is the best thing you could choose to go for. With a cultural and social landscape as rich as Canada’s, it’s no wonder that the country is among the world’s top-ranked nations.

If you found this blog engaging, you may also like…

North Bay, Canada’s labor needs to get a boost with RNIP