It is no longer news that based on the current situation in Nigeria over 80% of the country’s population are seeking their ways out of the country, either for safety of for better business environment. Canada is one of the major immigration targets of Nigerian citizens interested in leaving the country once the opportunity to do so comes. Are you one of them? If “YES”, then you are at the right place as this article is purposely prepared to guide on how to get Canadian Visa in Nigeria and immigrate to Canada.
According to record, about 12,600 Nigerians became permanent residents in Canada in the year 2019. This makes Nigeria the fourth leading country source of immigrants migrating to Canada in that year. Having a permanent resident in Canada comes with different benefits. One of them is that you can live and work anywhere within the country and also benefit from the free health care and other social services provided in the country. In addition, there are also other amazing benefits you can get from permanent residence such as improved lifestyle, more amenities and job opportunities within the country.
How to immigrate to Canada
Canada has a lot of immigration programs already in place to help immigrants. We understand that you might be wondering why they created so many programs. Well, the truth is that all the immigration programs have different requirements and demands. Some of them were setup to be point based while the rest are employment based. We advise you carefully go through them as listed below and decide the best fit for your personality.
1. Get your Canadian Visa through Express Entry System (EES)
Express Entry System (EES) is an online immigration application system in Canada that allows people to submit a profile and be qualified as skilled immigrants. The system organizes and processes applications for Nigerians who wish to immigrate to Canada from Nigeria and acquire Canadian permanent residence later in future. As a professional or skilled Nigerian, you are expected to make the list of the highest ranking to be invited to apply for permanent residence.
This system is the most preferred and used immigration routes by immigrants. It enables you as a foreign skilled worker from Nigeria to become a Canadian permanent resident through three federal immigration pathways which include:
- Federal skilled worker program
- Federal skilled trades program
- Canadian experience class.
Requirements for Express Entry System
For you to be qualified for the Express Entry System, you must among other things:
- have at least one year of working experience in your skilled occupation
- be proficient in either English or French language
- have a valid post-secondary education that must be equivalent to that of Canada.
Please note that there are lots of candidates applying for the Express Entry Program. Therefore, those candidates with stronger profiles will be selected first over candidates that meet with the least requirements.
How to immigrate to Canada from Nigeria via the Express Entry System
Upon meeting the Express Entry requirements, you will be required to create an online profile with your personal information listed below:
- Passport documents
- Language test results
- Education credential assessment report
- Certificate of qualification in a trade occupation issued by a Canadian province
- Proof of work experience
- Provincial Nomination.
Note that 60 days grace period are given to candidates to complete their online profiles. If more than one candidate has the same lowest score, the cut-off mark will be based on the date and time they submitted their Express Entry profiles.
After sorting the most preferred candidates, all the candidates will be placed in a pool known as the express entry pool. The pool is where the candidates will be issued a comprehensive ranking system score which will then determine their ranking in the express entry program. Upon completing this step, if you score high and meet with the cut off mark, you will be offered an invitation to apply for Canadian permanent residency.
2. Canadian Visa in Nigeria through Provincial Nomination Program
The Provincial Nomination Program consists of a set of different Canadian immigration programs operated by the Government of Canada in partnership with individual provinces, each of which having its own requirements and streams.
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Who can apply via the Provincial Nomination Program?
The Provincial Nomination Program is for workers who:
- have the skills, education and work experience to contribute to the economy of a specific province or territory,
- want to become permanent residents of Canada, and
- want to live in the concerned province.
It is necessary to know that each province has its own immigration programs with target on certain groups and their requirements. In a program stream, provinces and territories may target, for example:
- skilled workers
- semi-skilled workers
- students
- business people.
3. Postgraduate Work Permit
For you to get your Canadian Visa in Nigeria via Postgraduate Work Permit, you must have graduated from a designated learning institution within or outside Canada. Through the help of the Postgraduate Work Permit, you can secure a work visa which is actually the open work visa to work for any employer in Canada depending on the length of your study program in the country.
Although, the visa gotten through the Postgraduate Work Permit does not guarantee for direct application for permanent residence but it will however give you an advantage when seeking for Canadian permanent residence. This is because studying in Canada will certainly favor you when applying for your Canadian visa for permanent residence.
You can also get your Canadian Visa and immigrate to Canada from Nigeria by applying for caregiver jobs or other jobs for foreigners in Canada.