Help me find a way to move to Toronto from the US

eh, *you* will be.

I'm an American looking into moving to Canada via the skilled worker route, and have found the http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=56 really helpful. Keep in mind that some of the information that applies to Brits is different for Americans going to Canada (for example, the application process takes longer for EU citizens than it does for Americans.)

If you want to have a look at what types of jobs are available in non-profits in Toronto, http://charityvillage.com/applicant/jobs.asp is the place to look.

You haven't even been? You should go for a week or two, and make a point of trying living-there stuff like finding semi-affordable places to live and doing commuting runs, and doing other non-tourist stuff. I've spent winters in both suburban Chicago Take Chicago. Turn most of the black and nearly all of the latino people into Chinese and Indian. Get rid of the Metra and most of the TTA subway lines. Funnel all of the traffic onto 90. Use different money and call cases two-fours. Give everyone health care. Increase the rents. You've got Toronto.

There was a period when I wanted to pursue a move to Canada and found http://www.howtomovetocanada.net/ helpful. Unfortunately, there aren't enough Canadian jobs in my field, so I'm stuck in the ol' US.

I immigrated from the US to Toronto last year, although I married a Canadian, so my process was different than yours will be, but here's some advice regardless: -There's going to be a lot of paperwork and forms and processes and it's going to come in stages. It will be overwhelming but you kind of have to keep chugging with it. I used an immigration lawyer to coordinate and assist with my paperwork and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. It was about $2000, so you might choose not to go that route (especially if you're trying to plump your savings up to meet the financial requirements) but I'd go with one again in an instant. -It's going to be expensive. In addition to the fees you're paying for your visa/processing, you'll also have to pay for sets of fingerprints, background checks with the FBI and your local authorities, a medical exam, a chest x-ray, and a whole lot of priority/registered/I can't believe it cost $23 to send that freaking envelope mail. -Don't worry about the three months after you become residents and before you get healthcare. I was here for more than a year without healthcare and had no problem getting yearly well-woman exams and birth control and even scheduling minor procedures. (And, if I'd been uninsured in the US, my birth control would have run $30 a month, but in Canada, uninsured, not yet a permanent resident, it cost $7 a month.) -I just went and filled out the Canadian skilled worker immigrant self-assessment test to see if I'd be eligible as a skilled worker in Canada. I noted my language proficiencies, my trade, the fact I completed some of my undergraduate education in Canada and the fact that I was married to a Canadian citizen with a PhD who had family in Canada aaand I scored a 66. A 67 is passing. Ha. Ha. In summary, it's not going to be easy, but I wish you lots of luck. I love Toronto and I'm really happy we've settled here. (And, despite discovering this morning that I am unemployable in the eyes of Canadian skilled worker immigrant self-assessment test I got the job of my dreams after I moved to Canada and I absolutely love what I do.)

Actually, you can get multiple jobs, only you need to cross the border again to get it added -- I worked two jobs simultaneously under a TN visa in the US and no one cared. You cannot just change jobs, you need to go through the same process again for a new job. Generally you need to cross the border with *your physical, actual diploma* at least the first time around or they get a bit antsy. Also a letter that details how you'll be paid, and describes your job as one of the appropriate jobs. Information on this is all around, and it's pretty much zero extra effort for your employer. I haven't seen links for the list of TN professons, so here's one: http://www.amcits.com/nafta_professions.asp The list of professionals is the same for Canadians going to the US and Americans coming to Canada.

I appreciate the hometown pride at work here. I'm used to some pretty lousy weather (I've spent winters in both suburban Chicago, where we got two feet of snow one night and school wasn't even delayed, and went to school at Penn State, which is known for simply getting a whole lot of weather), and Toronto's within driving distance of both my girlfriend's and my hometowns. Besides that, the stuff about Toronto that sounded appealing (extensive public transportation, big business center centre, ethnic diversity that's pretty evenly strewn about like in New York, as opposed to a rather clear line delineating "THIS SIDE HAS WHITE PEOPLE, THAT SIDE HAS BLACK PEOPLE" like in Philadelphia…) seemed unlikely to have been influenced by homesickness. Also the presence of duckpin and candlepin bowling. Of course we'd try to visit it before moving there! Thanks for all the help so far, everybody! I'm surprised to have this much information already, when I posted this around midnight and now it's not even 9:30 the following morning. : )

I'm an American working under a NAFTA permit near Toronto, and I can attest that if you possibly can go the NAFTA route to do it - dead simple from your end, and reasonably easy from your employer's. However: 1. The permit is only good for a year. Renewals are pretty easy - I just got mine renewed - but there's a nonzero possibility that something bad could happen. 2. There are restrictions on what you can do under NAFTA - no second job, and even volunteer work is a question. 3. You start from zero here for things like credit. You two are young, so it probably doesn't matter for you. 4. Bringing a car over is moderately annoying - make sure you get the proper paperwork at the border. 5. Don't be fooled by the prospect of a higher wage - just about everything is more expensive. Plus you have a provincial and a federal sales tax to deal with, which makes big ticket items more so. 6. You have to wait three months before you get that sweet, sweet socialized healthcare. Memail me if you have further questions - happy to help.