Moving to Canada from the United States

Run these checks before choosing

• Use the Canadian salary, not a converted US salary, in the rent calculation.
• Search the provincial regulator if your title is licensed: nurse, teacher, engineer, electrician, lawyer, accountant and many health roles.
• Price a car-free life and a car-owning life. Insurance can erase a rent saving in a distant suburb.
• If Quebec is the goal, use Quebec's immigration routes and confirm the French requirement for the program and profession.

Include costs that US movers routinely miss

• Temporary accommodation while you inspect rentals in person, plus the lawful deposit and first rent.
• Private medical insurance until provincial coverage starts, and ongoing drug, dental or vision costs not covered by the public plan.
• Vehicle import, inspection, modification, registration and provincial insurance if you bring a US car.
• Credential assessment, language tests, police certificates, biometrics, medical exams and immigration fees.
• A cross-border tax preparer for the departure year, especially with a business, stock compensation, rental property, trust, Roth IRA or large brokerage account.

1. 1

   Identify the program

   Check Federal Skilled Worker, Canadian Experience Class or Federal Skilled Trades eligibility before estimating a score.

2. 2

   Book an approved language test

   Use CELPIP-General or IELTS General Training for English. Citizenship or native fluency never replaces the result.

3. 3

   Order the ECA

   For points from US education, use an IRCCIRCCImmigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada - the federal department that manages immigration, citizenship, and passports.-designated Educational Credential Assessment organisation. An ECAECAEducational Credential Assessment - a report comparing education completed outside Canada with Canadian education standards. is normally valid for five years.

4. 4

   Write evidence-ready work letters

   Each letter should support dates, hours, pay and duties that match the chosen National Occupational Classification, not just the US title.

5. 5

   Check categories and provinces

   The 2026 category list targets French, health and social services, STEM, trades, education, transport and selected Canadian-experience groups. Provincial criteria change independently.

• Confirm the institution is a Designated Learning Institution and the specific program is eligible for a post-graduation work permit.
• For applications filed on or after November 1, 2024, many non-degree programs need an eligible field of study. Bachelor's, master's and doctoral graduates have no field-of-study requirement, but still face language thresholds.
• Public degree-granting master's and doctoral students are exempt from the provincial or territorial attestation letter requirement from January 1, 2026. Most other applicants must check the current rule.
• Outside Quebec, one applicant must show at least CAD 22,895 for living expenses for applications made from September 1, 2025, plus first-year tuition and transport.
• A spouse's open work permit is limited to qualifying programs, including doctoral programs, master's programs of at least 16 months and specified professional degrees.

1. 1

   Freeze the route and NOC

   Download the official criteria and match your duties before paying for supporting documents.

2. 2

   Start slow records

   Order university records, civil certificates and employer letters first. These often depend on third parties.

3. 3

   Take the language test and ECA

   Enter exact results into the official score tool; do not build plans around an estimated level.

4. 4

   Create the profile or permit file

   Use consistent travel, address, education and employment histories across every form.

5. 5

   Order time-sensitive items when instructed

   Follow the program's police, medical and biometrics timing. Do not assume an upfront medical is always required.

6. 6

   Prepare the border folder

   Carry the approval letter, passport, job or school evidence, funds, insurance and goods lists. An online approval may still produce the actual permit at entry.

Make the application easy to approve

• Put city, province and Canadian work authorisation near the top once both are true. Before approval, state the permit route accurately.
• Use a two-page achievement resume without photo, age, marital status or Social Security number.
• Convert scale into Canadian context: USD budgets can stay labelled USD, while team size, growth and outcomes need no conversion.
• Search the provincial regulator before applying to a regulated role. Immigration recognition and professional licensing are separate processes.
• Ask whether the employer has handled the Employer Portal, compliance fee or CUSMA evidence required for an LMIA-exempt offer.

• Check the province's eligibility and waiting-period rule for your exact immigration status before cancelling US insurance.
• Buy bridge coverage for the uncovered period. Standard US plans and Medicare usually provide limited or no routine coverage in Canada.
• Bring prescriptions by generic name, a medication summary, immunisation records, imaging and specialist notes.
• Register as soon as eligible. A health card pays for insured care; it does not guarantee an immediate family doctor.
• Budget for outpatient prescriptions, routine dental, vision, ambulance charges and paramedical care unless an employer or provincial program covers them.

1. 1

   Use temporary housing first

   Book enough time to inspect the unit, commute and neighbourhood. Do not wire a deposit for a listing you cannot verify.

2. 2

   Build a renter pack

   Include passport, status document, Canadian job offer, recent bank balance, US landlord reference and contactable employer.

3. 3

   Read provincial rules

   Deposits, rent increases, notice, standard leases and application questions differ by province.

4. 4

   Verify the person and property

   Confirm ownership or management authority, tour live, use a written lease and pay through a traceable method.

5. 5

   Record move-in condition

   Photograph every room, meter and defect before unpacking, then send the record in writing.

Household goods

• Prepare BSF186 for goods accompanying you and BSF186A continuation sheets where needed.
• List goods to follow at first settlement even if they will arrive months later. Group ordinary household items and identify high-value items with serial numbers and values.
• Declare firearms, alcohol, tobacco, food, plants, animals and commercial goods separately under their specific rules.
• Keep passports, immigration approvals, inventory and ownership records with you, not inside the moving truck.

Before importing a US vehicle

1. 1

   Check admissibility

   Use the Registrar of Imported Vehicles and Transport Canada rules for the exact make, model and production date.

2. 2

   Clear title and finance

   Get written lender or lessor permission and satisfy US export requirements before the border date.

3. 3

   Resolve recalls

   Obtain the required recall-clearance evidence and budget for modifications.

4. 4

   Declare and inspect

   Pay applicable import charges, complete federal inspection within the deadline and then meet provincial inspection, registration and insurance rules.

5. 5

   Compare against selling

   A vehicle that is easy to own in the US can be expensive or impossible to register in Canada. Run both totals before shipping.

• Read the destination province's deadline. British Columbia, for example, generally requires new residents to switch within 90 days.
• Bring the physical licence plus an official driving abstract if the card does not prove enough years of experience.
• Request a claims-experience letter from each US insurer before cancelling. Provincial insurers and private carriers set their own acceptance rules.
• Check whether the province retains or invalidates the US licence at exchange, then plan any remaining US driving needs.
• Do not assume the vehicle exchange and driver exchange happen at the same office or under the same evidence rules.

• Open a newcomer bank package with passport and immigration documents, then add one no-fee or low-fee Canadian credit product.
• Keep at least one US account and card only if the institution accepts a Canadian address and you can maintain secure two-factor authentication.
• Compare bank foreign-exchange spreads with regulated transfer services for large moves. Test a small transfer before tuition or closing funds.
• Set every Canadian card to pay the statement balance. Payment history and utilisation build the new score; income and a US score do not appear automatically.
• Under the Canada-US social security agreement, periods in both systems may help establish benefit eligibility. Each country pays the benefit earned under its rules.
• Check Social Security, Medicare, CPPCPPCanada Pension Plan - a contributory public pension funded through payroll contributions. and provincial health separately. Eligibility for a cash pension does not create Canadian or US medical coverage.

• A spouse or partner does not automatically receive the same work rights as the principal applicant. Check the permit or PRPRPermanent resident - someone allowed to live in Canada permanently without being a Canadian citizen. category for each person.
• Bring children's birth records, custody or consent documents, school reports, immunisation history and special-education plans.
• Contact the local school board after you have an address. Public-school placement follows provincial and board rules, not the US grade label alone.
• Use IRCCIRCCImmigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada - the federal department that manages immigration, citizenship, and passports.'s service finder for eligible free settlement help outside Quebec. Libraries and municipal newcomer offices can help when federal eligibility does not apply.
• Update US voter registration, state residency, mail, insurance and emergency contacts based on the ties you actually keep.