Introduce yourself!

Mentos,

What are your questions about the TN visa and social work? I was employed as a social worker for 5 years on a TN. If you are planning to do it, make sure you get registered as a social worker or social work technician with your state.

I had to switch over my insurance and license when I started working FT in the states as my CDN insurance company would not cover me anymore, however, others have had a different expereince and were able to keep their Canadian stuff.

Good luck.

Hello all! I'm Michele!

After 10 years in the US, I am back in Canada. And to qualify, I am ordinarily a positive, upbeat person. Moving back has been the most expensive, frustrating and disappointing experience.

After 10 TN visas (and many ulcers), I was told that I must either find another visa or leave. If you are interested in the TN visa, please email me I won't bore you with the details here.

So I after much thought, I returned to Canada.

Having lost touch with my network of business associates, I had to start fresh. So I sent out about 1,000 resumes and got 2 lukewarm responses that were dead ends.

Oddly, American companies begged me to stay offering me more money while the American government couldn't get me out of the country fast enough. Now that I have returned to the country of my birth - I find the reverse. The Canadian government has its arms open to welcome me home, but Canadian companies have left me out in the cold.

We, returning expats, are now considered "New Canadians" with limited, or no, Canadian work experience. I am seeing books available on the issue. "No Canadian Experience, eh?" written by Daisy M. Wright sums it up appropriately. It seems that new Canadians may be hard-working, experienced, skilled and educated but we are frightening foreigners in the workplace. And I thought I left xenophobia in the South by God U.S.A.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but. get out your old address books and start chatting up your old Canadian co-workers because in the business world, we are invisible.

I thought when I got home, I would stop feeling like an alien. My Canadian friends don't understand and my American friends think I am crazy.

The bright spot is that I married my wife here legally! Yay Canada for same sex marriage. Which was the reason, I chose to return. I can sponsor her as my legal spouse.

Now to break into the Canadian business market. send good energy!

Is there a returning ex-pats support group because it sure would have been nice to know others who understand and know what to bring on re-entry? Mine was like the shuttle landing. fiery, confusing and expensive!

Thanks for having a group like this!

Take care all,
Michele

Hi All:

I am from Vancouver, Canada, and will be moving to Australia in a couple of months. Very excited about it.

My husband and I (29, and 27) have decided that now is the time to travel and get some good international work experience.

I worked in the US on a TN for a year. Once I returned a few months ago, I found employers very interested in my experience. In fact, I was able to command a higher position and salary because of it. I hope the international exposure I will get in Australia will strengthen that. It is all about getting broad experience and looking at things differently. I strongly believe that people who travel and have worked in different countries have a lot more to offer than someone who has stayed at the same place their whole live. Kudos for people who like adventure.

I hope things look up for the young lady who recently moved back from the US.
We are having to spend a ton of money right now importing our car into Canada from the US. So much red tape.

After Australia, our plans are to come back to Canada, but who know, that may change.

Best of luck to everyone.
RVC

hi I'm new to this forum. I joined this forum in hope to meet some new friends. I'm sure I'll find this forum useful and will hopefully be able to contribute with some experiences in the future.

hallo everyone. didnt realize this was here until now. originally from ottawa, i spent the last 7 years working in detroit, and hated every second of it. i am now in fulda germany, about 1 hr from frankfurt/2.5 hrs from cologne (koeln) on a much desired job transfer. things have been rocky for a couple of months, but now things are starting to stabilize. so.anyone from u of ottawa here?
graham

G'Day Everyone!
Actually, it's G'Day, Mates!
I'm in the state of Victoria, Australia, and this is my first post on this CanuckAbroad Forum.

I'm from New Brunswick by birth, but have lived in Nova Scotia - NS Agricultural College to get diploma in Plant Science 1996 Grad - and Ontario, where I lived first in Bancroft and then Peterborough.

Still have a daughter in N.B., and all my friends and family are there, too. Do I miss them? Do I miss Canada? Oh, yah, I do. This time I've been in Australia since January 2006, having received my temporary spouse visa (good for 2 years), which took me 2 years of research, running around and form filling to get! Had to move from here to Canada to do that, and leave my husband behind.

The time before this, I came to Australia in 2000, and stayed four years without a visa. Would not recommend that to anyone, mind you, but at the time, being newly married to the (Aussie) man of my dreams, I simply could not be separated from him. Then we both decided that getting approved for a proper visa by the Australian Immigration Department was the right thing to do, after all. We'd met online through my writings, communicated by email and phone for three months until he came to be with me when I was in Ontario, and then we spent 6 months together. After a month long Route 66 road trip to California and Vancouver, we took the plane to Brisbane in December. We were married 2 months later in Queensland and travelled for four years in a Caravan all along the east coast of Australia.

Going back to Canada was a great thing, though, as I got to spend 2 whole years with my daughter (now 34), and I learned that no, snow is not really something to be homesick about! I overloaded on Tim's until I couldn't drink it anymore, so now I don't miss it. I love Lavazza instead. and there is a Starbucks nearby if I'm really desperate. Luckily for me, my DH also loves it. I don't miss the cold, freezing temperatures of Winter - at all! The mild Winters here are like a cool summer's day to me, being a Maritimer! Just don a jumper by day and snuggle under a doona by night. There, cold solved!

But still, I do miss hearing the Canadian accent, and especially the French one! Connecting with like-minded souls is really what it's all about, isn't it?

Anybody love to paint, draw, write, and/or scrapbook? Why don't you email me and we can chat, encourage each other?
Cheers to all
Stella

Hello everyone,
I am Rob and i live in Salisbury,Wiltshire,Uk.
I am one of your lost Canadians,my Canadian father served with the british 6th Airborne in WW2.He met and married my mum (English)whilst serving here and returned to Canada post WW2,they had 8 children(all canadians), then they retuned to England and then i was born.
I have been trying for some years to get dual citizenship and have had several refusals apparently i did`nt qualify!
I have a new application in and (fingers crossed) there looks like there is to be a slight change in the citizenship law and i think i am in with a shout!
Wooo Hooo! (i hate being a forigner in my own family)
Any tips on dual nationality would be gratefully recieved
I LOVE CANADA my dad was from Cape Breton
Thanks
Rob

Hello, my name is Daniel and I live in Montréal.

I have lived in Norway between 2002 and 2004 and am planning to move back (for good) in 2009. I'm looking for hints and advice about making the big move, paticularly when it comes to finances/buying a house.

See you on the forum!

Hi everyone,
I'm Dominic and I'm from Jonquiere, Quebec. I left Canada about 7 years ago and I lived in Austin Texas, Ulsan South Korea, Bangkok Thailand and more to count only them. I'm moving to Singapore in 2 weeks !

Hope to find some traveler friend here.

See ya !
Dom

My wife and I moved to the US four years ago. Boy do I have a lot of nightmares and advice to share. Most of them are probably posted already by someone though. If I see something missing I'll post it.