The Truth Ghanaians Must Know About Canada Visa Lottery

They’ve been a lot of information online with regards to Canada visa lottery. While most of this information is misleading, we’ve put together this article to enlighten Ghanaians more about the so-called “Canada visa lottery”.

The first thing to know is that Canada does not issue visas through a lottery. However, the Government of Canada offers a Permanent Residency Visa application program which virtually, anyone can apply. In this post, I will show you how the Canada PR works for Ghanaians and how to get started.

Canada Visa Lottery: The Truth Ghanaians Must Know

Some of the terminologies you should know when it comes to PR are highlighted below.

Express Entry (EE): The express entry which is also known as EE, is the selection system for Canadian Permanent Immigration. The essence of the EE is to select the BEST skilled workers for immigration to Canada and it is the only formal process for permanent immigration.

The EE is an entirely electronic process and it requires no paperwork other than your passport request.

Provincial Nominee Program (PNP): Also known as the Canadian Provincial Nominee Program, the PNP allows provinces and territories to nominate prospective immigrants who will live and work in a specific province in Canada.  The immigrants selected under the PNP will have the skills, education and work experience that benefits the relevant provinces.

One of the major requirements for nomination by a province is that you must indicate interest in living in that province. For example, you can’t choose to live in other cities or provinces once your permanent migration visa application has been approved. Although there is no penalty for not living in the pre-selected province, it is expected that you stick to live within that province for ethical reasons.

Because of the possibility of nominated candidate living in other provinces, the PNP is typically skewed towards those that with strong relationship ties to the province or those that manage to get a job in the province.

Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS): The CRS is the reason why migrating to Canada is not a walk in the park. Basically, the CRS ranks eligible candidates for immigration to Canada through the Express Entry process. If you want to get a PR visa to Canada, you will be assessed based on a number of criteria and it is translated to points on the CRS. Depending on your profile, you can claim up to 1,200 points with at least 600 points coming from a job offer in Canada or the PNP (as described previously).

Generally, ranking criteria such as age, language ability, relations in Canada, education, work experience, and any potential job offer in Canada can earn you higher points. For instance, if you are young, speak good English based on your IELTS score, have advanced education, good work experience, married to an educated spouse, and most importantly have a job offer in Canada, it will be quite easy for you to be invited to apply.

You can apply to any of these three schemes

1) Federal Skilled Worker Program FSWP,

2) Federal Skilled Trades also known as FST

3) Canadian Experience Class also known as CEC.

Once you have been invited to apply for the PR, some of the most important documents you will need to submit include:

1) Language test results such as IELTS

2) Education assessment and evaluation report

3) Reference letters from all the companies you have worked

4) Bank Statement (Proof of Financial funds) – up to $12,000 CAD for a single applicant.

5) Police Clearance Certificates (see how to get Police Clearance Certificates in Ghana).

6) Birth Certificates (If you have child/children)

7) Marriage Certificate (If you are married)

8) Educational Certificates

9) Medical Report

10) International Passport

We have summarized the steps involved in applying for the Canada Permanent Residence visa:

Step 1: Take an English Test

As earlier mentioned, in order to prove your eligibility for express entry, you will need to provide evidence that you can read, speak, listen and write in the English Language. This is the first step required as details of this result will be required during your eligibility test.

Step 2: Take an Eligibility Test

The eligibility test takes approximately 10 minutes. This test will evaluate your age, nationality, language, work experience, relationship i.e. spouse and financial status. Additionally, you will be provided with a unique code that carries your information. The information you provide will be automatically used to pre-fill your express entry application form.

Between step 2 and 3, depending on your qualifications, you might want to start from your university degree, masters and then any Ph.D. degree. You don’t need to evaluate your junior and senior secondary school grade certificates.

You will not be able to submit an application until you have completed the credential evaluation of your highest qualification because the certificate number is required during your express entry application process.

Step 3: Register for a CIC account

To submit an application to the government, you will need to have a CIC account. This enables you to send in any form of application from student visa to work permit or permanent residence. You can also process any application via your CIC account. You will need to have a CIC account before you can submit an express entry application form.

Step 4: Complete your express entry permanent migration visa application

Use the code provided during your eligibility test and you can create a new form from your account.

Step 5: Register on the job bank and validate your EE Applications

Once you have successfully completed your application and it has been approved, you will be given a job bank validation code which you can use during your job bank registration process.

Between steps 5 and 6, you are expected to get as many documents ready in order to prove all the details of your express entry application form. These include reference letters from current and all previous employers, police certificates, marriage certificates, birth certificates and most importantly your proof of funds which you will take to Canada.

You should get all these items ready because once the ITA is issued; you will only have 2 months to apply for your permanent residence.

Step 6: Submit your official permanent migration visa application form

This step is only required if you have been officially invited to submit an application (ITA). In this case, your CRS score is the primary factor used to send an ITA. You will get an email notification in your email account once an ITA has been issued to you and you’re expected to apply within 60 days.

Step 7: Go for medicals

Once your main application has been successfully submitted, you will be required to have your medicals.

Step 8: Submit your original International Passport Request

Once you are asked to submit your passport, then you’re almost certain that your permanent resident application will be approved and your Canada Temporary resident visa (TRV) will be issued.

So that’s it. Going to Canada on a PR visa is a lot of work but it is certainly not impossible.