Job Discussion Forums

[naturegirl321]

Thanks for the link. Lima doesn't take long at all between 12 and 15 months.

[koshechka]

thanks for such interesting contributions. i have a few things to say. first of all, i wasn't saying that mexico is a terrible country to live in but it is not ideal in my perception. it is corrupt, monthly we would have problems with the water supply (in puebla, a big city mind you, maybe the third biggest if i am not mistaken), i would see drunk people sleeping on the street every sunday/monday, the public transportation system was crap (i don't believe in driving) well, i can go on but this is not the reason for my post.
by the way, chile is very nice in some respects, the only thing i really dislike about santiago is the pollution. my question is to canadashirley blue, or anyone else who might know something about this, if i get pregnant in the 3 months that i am waiting for the bc plan to kick in, could they consider it a pre-condition and not cover me when i am finally eligible? the new plan is this, husband gets a master's in ubc, i go there as his spouse, we have a baby, then apply to be permanent residents. the degree takes 3 years, plenty of time to decide if we like it or not, and to find jobs. how does this sound to all of you, a good plan? finally, some place else, i read that the transportation leaves more to be desired, for those of you who have been to vancouver, is this really so and why? aah, and does it really rain all the time?
thanks,
koshechka

[naturegirl321]

[Vanica]

By BC plan, she means the provincial health care of British Columbia. I think the problem is the 3 month temporary health insurance policy you should have to pay for -- it will cover NOTHING having to do with pregnancy, even though you are paying for it. Short-term coverage will not cover pregnancy, either as a preexisting condition or if you become pregnant while on it. They specifically outlined that when I purchased insurance for our first three months in Quebec, saying that pregnancy is so expensive the costs would far surpass whatever you are paying them.

However, I think that your pregnancy will be covered by the province even during the first three months, although maybe not in BC. Quebec gives a lot of money and benefits to encourage childbirth.

[naturegirl321]

koshechka,
since you're applying from Santiago, it'll take between 19 and 32 months. You might as well get started now. Or come to Peru where it takes between 11 and 15 months.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/index.asp

[Vanica]

For me, all the timelines were much shorter than what Canada announces. Everything came through more quickly than expected.

[naturegirl321]

[Vanica]

This website posts many people's timelines:

http://www.settlement.org/discuss/default.asp?CAT_ID=9

And you can ask your questions there, too. People there helped me a lot. It might be a government website so careful what you say

[chan_konabe]

[koshechka]

so, they don't accept patients until the 12th week? strange. yes, vanica, i saw that the private insurance doesn't cover pregnancy. but, how much attention will i actually need anyway? maybe i'll wait all the same. and naturegirl, we are no longer planning to come in as skilled workers. rather, we would enter on my husband's student visa and try to change that status from inside. how difficult would this be? also, can someone share with me some thoughts on the state of public transportation in vancouver, i don't drive and don't really plan to learn. would i be able to walk and/or use the bus to get to most places? how about the costs, what would an electricity, water etc. bills look like?
thank you all so much,
koshechka

[naturegirl321]

sounds like a good idea. Studying seems like a good way to go. Not an option for us becuase of the high costs of degrees there and the fact that my husband would have to take a year or so of English language.
BUt good luck to you. When are you planning on going?

[chan_konabe]

[koshechka]

thanks chan_konabe, your comments are having a very positive effect on our plans the bit about public transportation was very encouraging since i cannot live in a place where i would need a car to get to a supermarket or a library. and congratulations on your baby in the making.
i have some general questions, if you don't mind. first, how does the msp work exactly? i saw somewhere else that the wait time might be very long and that if you don't already have a general doctor, it is very difficult to get an appointment to see one, is this true? it's not possible to call based on some list and make an appointment? the same for a gynecologist. also, how bad is the problem of homelessness? is it like in any large city (i grew up in ny for example) or is it more like in san francisco where the homeless people seem to dominate at times? finally, how are the winters in vancouver? i saw that it wasn't too cold but that it rains a lot, does this seem depressing or is it like a little drizzle?
well, thanks so much to you and anyone else who has been to vancouver and actually has an idea of what things are like there (and if you haven't been there but are contributing, thanks to you as well)
koshechka

[chan_konabe]

For MSP, you'll pay a monthly or yearly fee. If your family income falls below a certain level, you can apply for Premium Assistance. This will reduce your payments to an affordable level. Apply for MSP as soon as you enter BC. When I sponsored my wife for PR a few years ago, she applied the day of her arrival and it took 6 weeks for her to receive her BC CareCard with her provincial health number. If you're sick and would like to see a doctor, just go to a medical clinic and wait in line. Depending on the time of day, a doctor could see you anywhere from 5 to 45 min. However, those long wait times that you've read about have more to do with specialist doctors, such as cardiologists. You'll have to make appointments to see those and that could be short or long depending on your situation. I don't know about gynecologists however.

Homelessness is a visible problem in Vancouver and a lot of people from other countries are surprised to see it here. I grew up here so I'm used to it. There is a lot of panhandling, but most aren't aggressive with it. Property crime such as theft and car break-ins are growing problem.

[MELEE]