Well folks... WE DID IT! We made it to the finish line!
I landed as a Canadian Permanent Resident on October 8th!
I landed at a land-border crossing between New York and Quebec.
The actual landing process was super simple. My husband met my parents and I about 30 minutes from the border and followed us to the crossing. My parents and I crossed first, with a U-haul trailer full of my personal belongings. We told the CBSA officer that I was landing as a Permanent Resident and that my parents were there to help me with the move and would be leaving the following day. We also let her know that my husband was in the car behind us and would like to come in with me for the landing process. The officer looked at our passports and asked for the U-Haul paperwork along with the registration for our vehicle. She then gave us our documents and passports back and told us to park and go inside for finalization.
As soon as we parked, it started to rain. I waited for my husband to park his car and we walked inside (my parents stayed in the car). Once inside, we were greeted by the CBSA officer who would be processing my Permanent Residency landing paperwork. I had all of my documents organized so that they would be easy to find when the officer asked for them. He asked for the COPR, CSQ from Quebec, my list of goods accompanying me, my Criminal Rehabilitation letter, and my passport. Once he had everything, he asked my husband and I to have a seat while he processed the paperwork. Within about 15-20 minutes he came back and asked us to come back to the counter. He asked for my address in Canada, whether or not I had committed any crimes, and if I was importing any valuables or $10,000 cash on me. Then he had me sign and initial the CORP. Since I had given a 16 page detailed list of my accompanying items, he said they didn't need to look in my Uhaul. After that, he explained to me that I needed to remain in Canada for "x" amount of days to maintain my status as a Permanent Resident and welcomed me to Canada. The entire process took about 30 minutes.
When I arrived at my new home, I was greeted by a "welcome party" full of friends to help with the move and celebrate my landing! It was such a great surprise and I am so thankful to have such wonderful people here to help make this big change in my life tremendously easier!
I've been in Canada for a month now and things are going really well! Within the first week of being in Canada, I applied for my health insurance card and for my social insurance number; both of these processes were also very easy and took 30 minutes or less to complete. I received the social insurance number on the spot and will receive the health insurance card in 3 months. As for the permanent resident card, I should be receiving it 1-3 months from the date of landing (56 days according to CIC). I'm hoping to receive it before I go back to the U.S. for Christmas :) I have opened a bank account and I also got a library card which I am super excited about! After the beginning of the new year, I am hoping to start French lessons at the University! After that I have hopes of applying for the Odyssey program in which I would work as a teachers aid in an English school!
I want to thank everyone for reading my blog and following my journey for the past year. It's been a long journey and we can finally bring this chapter to a close. I'm looking forward to all of the possibilities and adventures that are ahead in the next one!
