Hi,

I'd like to find out how can an individual from other countries get a student visa if she plans to take the caregiver course at TLC Edmonton. Will she need an acceptance letter from you? If she is granted a student visa, will it be only for the duration of the training course - six months?

Also, can she apply for a work permit (while in Canada) even before the caregiver course is completed, assuming that she had already a pre-arranged employer?

Thank you.

Joel

This question was sent directly to me. I decided to post it here in case other are wondering about the same thing. I encourage everyone to post their questions on this webpage. It helps me (and maybe others) Below if the answer I sent Joel.Thanks everyone...Shirley

Dear Joel
If an individual wants to apply for a student permit, that person needs a Letter of Acceptance to the school they want to attend. If they want to attend TLC Edmonton, they need a Letter of Acceptance from me. Because it is legal to study for up to six months on a Visitor's Visa, it is not necessary to apply for a student permit but it really depends very much on the country the person is from which course of action is the best choice.
If a student visa is issued, it is usually issued for least eight months (that statement is based on on the experience of other students in my program...not on any rule that I know. Those students who have applied for and received student visas usually were given about eight months.)
Once a person has an employer, the employer can apply for a labour market opinion from HRSDC even though the prospective employee is still in the training program. However, the work permit has to be applied for from outside the country and that can't be done until the training has been completed because, until the training has been completed, the employee does not qualify. However, it is possible in some case to leave Canada and apply for and receive a work permit as soon as the day after the training has been completed.
For me to give you more helpful advice and suggestions I would need to know where you live but please don't hesitate to ask.
Best Wishes
Shirley

i am from nigeria and want to ask if visa can be granted to someone from this country on this training course?After the course do i have to go outside canada to get work permit even though i came in with student visa?

Dear Joel
This is a topic I have been meaning to address on this forum for some time. When I started this training program I did not think it would be a problem to get student visas to study caregiving in Canada. After all, it is a much better preparation for working in a Canadian home than any training you could get abroad and Canada does still need live-in caregivers. This is a government recognized and certified training school so I did not anticipate any significant difficulties. However, I have found to my dismay that most of the Canadian Consulates in developing countries are very reluctant to issue student visas for this program. They cite as their reason for refusal that the student in question has not convinced them that they fully intend to return home at the end of the study visa. I do not know why they seem to think that a student would pay $5100 in tuition so that they qualify for a legal work permit and then work or stay illegally in the country but that seems to be their concern. Therefore, I no longer encourage potential students from countries like Nigeria, the Philippines, China, India, Pakistan, etc. to even apply for a student visa because I feel they would just be wasting their money.
It is legal to take this training program on a tourist visa so if you are able to get a tourist visa then it is possible to do this but to really work effectively within the system you also need to get a tourist visa to the USA from your own country because the first work permit under the live-in caregiver program must be applied for from outside of Canada. You can return to your own country to apply but that could jeopardize your chances of finding an employer because they usually need a caregiver immediately and the visa processing times in consulates in many countries make employers very reluctant to get involved. If my students either have a tourist visa to visit the USA; fall under the visa waiver program; or have a student visa or work permit for Canada; then they can go to a Canadian Consulate in the USA where work permit applications are handled efficiently, quickly, and it is relatively easy as long as everything has been done correctly.
So I think that answers both your questions. From Nigeria you do not have much chance of getting a visa and yes, you must go outside the country to apply for a work permit.