Why Canada Needs More Immigrants—Now

BY ALISON RAMSEY

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Studies in both the United States and Canada have shown that job creation increases and the economy improves as the number of immigrants swells. Immigrants are, as a group, better educated than Canadians and since 1967, when the government introduced its point system, the selection process favours those with marketable skills.

Is there a market here for skilled labour? Actually, Canada is seeing signs of worker shortages in several professions – including engineers, doctors and nurses, to name a few. Added to this is the fact that the population in some provinces is shrinking, and employers are having difficulty filling their rosters with skilled help. Paul Darby, director of the Conference Board of Canada, estimates a shortfall of 3 million skilled workers by the year 2020.
Boosting immigration could be a very effective way of helping to ease the shortage, but there are other impediments.
Immigrants often have difficulty working in their fields after they arrive. On average, it takes 10 years for immigrants to get hired in jobs for which they have skills and, even then, they are not necessarily working at the skill level to which they have been trained. In March, Jeffrey Reitz of University of Toronto’s Centre for Industrial Relations, released a study showing that immigrants whose skills are underused cost the Canadian economy $2.4 billion yearly. He also estimated that they are underpaid to the tune of $12.6 billion every year. No type of job is exempt. "We used comparisons across the labour force," says Reitz.
Some organizations are answering the growing demand by helping immigrants become licensed to work in Canada after they arrive. The Ontario Ministry of Education, for example, is spending $12 million over three years to help get more foreign-trained medical professionals – nurses, doctors and pharmacists – into their professions. The money is given to local professionals associations to recruit and retain personnel. Another $3.5 million is being spent by the province to train foreign professionals to ensure they meet Canadian standards.
Yet, at the same time, experts are worried that the flow of immigrants is about to dry up, thanks to legislation coming into effect in June that changes the rules for people hoping to enter the county. Reitz says the proposed guidelines constitute a much more stringent selection criteria. He theorizes that the government hopes to eliminate a backlog of applicants, which numbers about 660,000 people. The Association of Immigration Counsel of Canada has run dozens of scenarios to determine how many of the 660,000 would be eligible under the new guidelines. "We anticipate that only five to eight percent will be allowed in," he says. The problem, adds Reitz, is when the backlog is gone but the need for skilled workers remains.
Growing demand for skilled labour is not limited to Canada. In India and China, for instance, the high-tech industry is developing. Workers from those countries who might have had to emigrate to ply their job skills in the past, now have a better chance of finding work at home. Even after skilled workers arrive, it can be a challenge to keep them here: the United States is also eager to attract the best and the brightest.
According to a survey by Canada’s Federation of Independent Business, one out of 20 jobs remains unfilled because of an inability to find suitably skilled labour. This represents about 250,000 to 300,000 vacant jobs in small- and medium-sized businesses alone. The lack is not just in professions that require higher education. The worst off are employers looking for skilled construction workers, who reported 7.7 percent of jobs went unfilled. They are followed closely by the business services and agriculture sectors. Hospitals and the personal service sector ranked tenth at 3.8 percent.
The need is greatest in Manitoba, Ontario and Alberta.

Wealthy Chinese flock to the West

Image by williamcho via Flickr

By Chris Hogg BBC Shanghai Correspondent

Growing numbers of rich Chinese are applying for permanent residency in Western countries under programmes that allow investors with a high net worth to "buy" citizenship.

The number of Chinese investors granted permanent residency in Canada has doubled in two years.
Ottawa has now halted all applications to its federal immigrant investor programme while it consults on plans to double the funds needed to obtain a visa.
Applicants are still allowed to apply to a scheme run by the province of Quebec, however,
And at seminars run by visa consultancy firms in China, advisers are encouraging people to apply for the scheme before Quebec also doubles its minimum requirements to match the federal government's proposals.
Cash and experience

  The average age is 40 to 45, says visa consultant Vincent Chen

On a rainy Saturday afternoon, in a conference room at a five-star Shanghai hotel, more than 30 potential "investor applicants" arrive to hear how they might be able to exchange their cash for a foreign passport.
Many are in their 30s. There are several young couples. Most are professionals. Few are dressed smartly. They appear to be a pretty average cross-section of Shanghai's moneyed middle class.
They are shown a video that the visa company has made to promote Canada, and the country's visa application service.
"You don't have to worry about integrating," the video's commentary declares. "You don't even need to speak English."
Then the advisers go through the detail.
The Quebec scheme requires applicants to show they have a net worth of C$800,000 (US$776,000; £502,000) and they must invest up to C$400,000.
They also need to show they have had two years' experience in management.
Different requirements That's considerably cheaper, they point out, than the UK, which requires investors to invest £1m ($1.5m) for five years.

 

There are pros and cons of each of the countries' schemes.
Canada's applications currently take about two-and-a-half years, but the financial requirements are the lowest in the world.
The United States requires applicants to invest up to $1m (£646,000) in a business that creates at least 10 new jobs. Applications take up to one-and-a-half years.
The UK's application process is the quickest. It can be completed in just three months, according to the visa consultants at the seminar, and there is no interview.
But it is also the most costly.
"Usually, the applicants are business owners or senior managers," explains Vincent Chen, senior consultant for the Visa Consulting Group.
"The average age is 40 to 45, but it's getting younger."
Easily achievable Canada has not changed its "immigrant investor" programme requirements since 1991.

  Some just want the passport before they move back to China

"Back then, C$800,000 was a huge amount," Mr Chen says.
"But now, with the increases in property prices in cities like Shanghai, people don't think it's that hard to achieve.
"That's why you've seen the numbers granted permanent residency have doubled."
Other factors are also at work here.
Increasingly, those who come to the seminars have friends who have already emigrated.

Reasons to move
David Lu, 38, a manager in a telecommunications company, has come to the seminar to find out more about how to apply to move to Canada.

End Quote Dr Wang Huiyao Centre for China and Globalisation

At the end of the session he starts filling in the forms eagerly.
He has positive reasons to move. Some of his relatives already live in Canada. And during holidays there he has enjoyed the lower pollution levels there.
Also, he says, the Canadians are "a lot more relaxed" than the Chinese.
There are other reasons though why he wants to leave China.
"People hate you [here] if you have money, and the rich bully the poor," he says.
"Another issue for me is health care," he adds.
"I don't think anyone interested in moving abroad would worry about the costs. We want their better quality medical care."

Brain drain
Fabio Xu, 30, runs a paint company in Shanghai.
He says he wants to move to the US "because of the better medical care there, and better educational opportunities for my child".
"In China, all my money goes on my mortgage, food, clothing and travel," he says, "but in the States there's generally more freedom. I would be able to develop myself more creatively and get more out of life."
Some Chinese academics worry that China is losing its brightest and most able citizens, as well as huge amounts of money.
Last year 1,823 investors were granted citizenship in Canada under the immigrant investor programme.
Even if they had only invested the minimum amount required, that would mean almost US$700m had been taken out of the country.
"China is losing the talent it really needs," says Dr Wang Huiyao, the director general of the Centre for China and Globalisation.
"As China tries to develop its economy and change it from 'made in China' to 'created in China', it needs these people to build the country."
In touch with China Dr Wang believes many people want a foreign passport because it is so hard to travel freely around the world on Chinese documents.
Indeed, one woman at the seminar is anxious to know how quickly she could get her Canadian passport, so she could return home to China.
For her it appears the motivation is not to get a new home abroad, but to obtain a passport that might make life more convenient.
A Western diplomat in Shanghai offers another explanation for the increase in these kinds of visa applications.
The internet, he says, means you can live abroad, but never leave China.
"You can wake up in the morning and browse the People's Daily online over breakfast. You can trade your stocks on the Shanghai exchange with the click of a mouse," he says.
"You can chat all day to relatives for free on Skype, or run your business remotely."
His point is that emigration is no longer necessarily the emotional wrench that it once was for people.
The need to assimilate in their adopted country for practical reasons is not as great as it once was - which in itself could yet pose its own challenges for Western societies.

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Chinese Paving the Road to Freedom With Cash

Image via Wikipedia

By DIDI KIRSTEN TATLOW

Published: August 5, 2010

BEIJING — “They’re all millionaires. They’ve made it,” said Mikael Charette of the thousands of wealthy Chinese — his clients — who apply to emigrate to Canada every year on that country’s investment immigration program.
As part of his job, Mr. Charette, a lawyer from Montreal, scrutinizes clients’ financial records. Back in 2005, when he began working at Harvey Law Group in Beijing, he was struck by how often a family’s wealth began with the transfer of the assets of state-owned enterprises to private ownership in the 1990s. Over the course of about eight years, he estimates, those factories became fully profitable.
“Now, I look back over a decade of records, and I see that the factory is running itself. The money of the family is in the second generation, and the children are often already overseas-educated, and they, too, own real estate here,” he said.
But regardless of how wealthy they become, China’s new rich simply don’t feel secure.
“I’ve had rich businessmen say to me, ‘You can be a tiger, but there is always a hunter somewhere,”’ he said.
So they come to Mr. Charette, who specializes in investment immigration to his home province of Quebec. Or they go to other lawyers dealing in immigration to major destinations like the United States, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand and Hong Kong.
Unsolicited text messages from immigration firms have become a standard feature of life for Beijing’s upper-middle classes.
“Zero-risk emigration to America: Invest in an Idaho gold mine. For the first time in Beijing the governor himself will explain how, officially,” ran one, supplying a time and date for the meeting. “Emigrate to Australia for $200,000, 95 percent success rate, free education, generous welfare,” ran another.
In just over three decades, China has gone from being one of the poorest countries in the world to its third-biggest economy. Per capita gross domestic product in 1975 was $410. In 2009, it was $6,567, according to the World Bank.
The Hurun Rich List, based in Shanghai, says there are now 875,000 known dollar millionaires in China, an increase of 6.1 percent from a year ago.
Yet even as China grows richer, the number of its rich choosing to emigrate is rising. Many want to maintain two homes, merging their money-making abilities in China with what they perceive as the greater security and ease of international travel offered by a foreign passport or permanent residency.
Last year, for the first time, Chinese citizens became the largest group of immigrants to Australia, displacing the traditional sources of Britain and New Zealand. From July to December 2009, 13,371 Chinese became “permanent additions” (gaining or entitled to permanent residency) to Australia, overtaking Britain’s 13,037 and New Zealand’s 7,342.
While most immigrants are admitted on the basis of sought-after skills or to reunite families, investment immigration, in which applicants make a minimum financial investment or create jobs in their destination, is also booming. So much so that Canada, excluding Quebec, temporarily halted its program in June in order to double the amount that would-be immigrants must invest to qualify. Whereas before applicants required a net worth of 800,000 Canadian dollars, or about $790,000, and a 400,000-dollar investment, in the future they will need 1.6 million dollars and an investment of 800,000 dollars.
“All these changes are because we are overloaded,” Mr. Charette said. “This is a huge, sophisticated market.”
The result for Mr. Charette has been gratifying — a surge in applications to Quebec. He estimates that the window of opportunity will last until October, when Quebec, too, will adjust its policies. In February, 233 people from around Asia applied to the program, he said. In June, the month the national program closed, the number was 519. Chinese constitute up to 85 percent of applicants.
On June 26, the same day the rest of Canada temporarily closed doors, Mr. Charette addressed about 40 would-be investment immigrants in Beijing. The middle-aged men and women listened intently, most taking notes.
The looming higher rates “shouldn’t be a problem for my friends,” murmured Ms. Hou, who did not want to be identified by her full name and said she was with the People’s Liberation Army, representing rich property developers from the city of Xinxiang, in the central province of Henan.
Would she also emigrate, if she could? “Yes,” she said immediately.
Why? After all, China’s living standard is rising as the rest of the world watches the apparent success of the so-called “Beijing Model” — authoritarian politics plus fast economic growth.
Her answers mirrored those given by other would-be emigrants: Better education for the children; a pollution-free environment; better medical care; a safer food supply; bigger and cheaper housing. Added up, they are what psychologists and sociologists dub Q.O.L., or quality of life issues, factors not measured by G.D.P.
“Education is very important,” offered another woman at the seminar. “It’s different over there, and it produces different values.”
Did the current economic crisis in the West put her off?
“Not really,” she said. “They talk about it in the papers here, but I don’t know if they’re telling the truth. I trust my friends, and my friends say things aren’t that bad.”
Joy Xi emigrated to Canada nearly a decade ago. When I asked why people leave, despite rising prosperity in China, her answer was swift: “Sanlu,” the company notorious for producing melamine-laced milk powder that killed six babies and sickened hundreds of thousands more in 2008. Few believe the problem is over.
Also, said Ms. Xi, China is growing richer, but it’s also growing more unequal, and that makes the rich feel unsafe.
Summing up how many Chinese think, she cited a widespread saying: “Life in China is too risky. Consider carefully where you want to be reborn in your next life.”

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Information for foreign-trained dentists/dental surgeons

Image by Wolfiewolf via Flickr

Information on requirements to practise

The practice of dentistry is regulated in Canada. In order to practise the profession or use the title of dentist or dental surgeon, you must be licensed as a member with one of the provincial/territorial regulatory bodies. These bodies set the standards for entry into the profession of dentistry and for issuing licences to those who meet the established standards of qualifications and practice. Once you know where you will settle and work, you should contact the appropriate regulatory body for information on licensing procedures (see list below).

All provincial and territorial regulatory bodies recognize the certificate of the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB). For more information on the NDEB exam and certificate, you may contact:

National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB)

100 Bronson Ave, Suite 203

Ottawa ON   K1R 6G8   Canada

Phone : (613) 236-5912

Fax : (613) 236-8386

Email : director@ndeb.ca

http://www.ndeb.ca/ 

In order to write the NDEB exam, an individual must be a graduate of an accredited program in either Canada or the United States of America (USA). Currently reciprocal agreements do not exist with other countries. Graduates of dental programs outside of North America must take a two-year qualifying program.

For further general information on dental occupations in Canada, you may contact the Canadian Dental Association, "the national voice of dentistry" in Canada: 

Canadian Dental Association (CDA)

1815 Alta Vista Drive

Ottawa ON   K1G 3Y6   Canada

Phone : (613) 523-1770

Fax : (613) 523-7736

Email : reception@cda-adc.ca

http://www.cda-adc.ca/ 

At the same address, but operating at arm's length from the CDA, the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC) defines acceptable national standards for educational institutions in the field, and cooperates with provincial/territorial regulatory bodies, the NDEB, and other organizations to develop the accreditation process. For more information on the CDAC and accreditation in Canada, contact the Commission:

Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC)

1815 Alta Vista Drive

Ottawa ON   K1G 3Y6   Canada

Phone : (613) 523-7114

Phone (alternate): 1-866-521-2322

Email : cdac@cda-adc.ca

http://www.cda-adc.ca/cdacweb/ 

Those who wish to work in a dental specialty should also consult the dental regulatory body in the jurisdiction where they want to practise (see list below), because many jurisdictions require licensure for specialties through the Royal College of Dentists of Canada (RCDC). The RCDC offers specialist examinations in: dental public health, dental sciences, endodontics, oral and maxillofacial surgery, oral medicine and oral pathology, oral and maxillofacial radiology, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics, and prosthodontics. Successful completion of one of these specialty examinations may lead to a Fellowship in the College and the designation FRCD(C).

To write the National Dental Speciality Examination administered by the Royal College of Dentists of Canada (RCDC), one may be required to be a graduate of an accredited program. Contact the RCDC for more information:

 

Royal College of Dentists of Canada (RCDC)

180 Dundas Street West, Suite 2003

Toronto ON   M5G 1Z8   Canada

Phone : (416) 512-6571

Fax : (416) 512-6468

Email : office@rcdc.ca

http://www.rcdc.ca/ 

Information on assessment of qualifications

Foreign-trained dentists, regardless of education, licensure, or experience, must obtain a Canadian licence to practise dentistry in Canada. Those who wish to obtain further information about qualifying programs and the Eligibility Examination for enrolling in them should contact the Association of Canadian Faculties of Dentistry (ACFD):

Association of Canadian Faculties of Dentistry (ACFD)

100 Bronson Avenue, Suite 204

Ottawa ON   K1R 6G8   Canada

Phone : (613) 237-6505

Fax : (613) 236-8386

Email : director@acfd.ca

http://www.acfd.ca/ 

If you plan to work in Quebec, you should contact l'Ordre des dentistes du Québec, and in Alberta, you should contact the Alberta Dental Association and College. Please note that the review of your credentials determines only your eligibility to write a certification exam; it does not guarantee recognition of your credentials for the purpose of employment or licensure in Canada.

You may also consult our Fact Sheet No. 2, "Assessment and recognition of credentials for the purpose of employment in Canada," for further general information.

Other relevant information

University of Toronto, faculty of Dentistry.

International Dentist Advanced Placement Program for Foreign-Trained Dentists

The International Dentist Advanced Placement Program (IDAPP ) is a special university program held over five months. After successful completion of this program students are fully integrated into the third year of our four year Doctor of Dental Surgery Program (DDS), leading to the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery. The program is intended for graduates of non-accredited dental programs, i.e. educational programs that have not been recognized by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC) or the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation. Its purpose is to prepare students to take the examinations of the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB), the same examinations which graduates of accredited dental programs must take to obtain certification. Upon successful completion of the International Dentist Advanced Placement Program and the NDEB examinations, the candidate will be eligible for licensure/registration as a Dentist in all provinces in Canada .
 

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Canada's growing popularity with foreign investors has "staying power": CIBC World Markets Inc.

Image via Wikipedia

Strategic advantages over many advanced economies increasingly well recognized

TORONTO, July 14 /CNW/ - Canada's outperformance versus many advanced economies is creating "staying power" for the country's growing popularity with foreign investors, notes a new report from CIBC World Markets Inc.
"Canada is increasingly on the lips and minds of international investors," says Warren Lovely, government strategist with CIBC's Macro Strategy group, fresh back from meetings with investors across the U.S. and Asia. "Those we've talked to are getting religion on Canada's potential outperformance versus a growing list of advanced economies. Indeed, it's hard to recall a time when the country possessed such relative, if not absolute, strength."
In CIBC's latest Global Positioning Strategy report, Mr. Lovely identifies a growing list of "strategic advantages" that are boosting interest in Canada and its weighting in global investment portfolios.
Central to Canada's strong story is its fiscal advantage, says Mr. Lovely. He points first to Canada's much smaller need for fiscal adjustments to stabilize debt ratios. "Canada's provinces are not feeling the same heat as some U.S. states, are less prone to severe program cuts or increased revenue measures, and are therefore putting their regional economies at less risk."
In addition, the revenue picture for Canada's federal and provincial governments is also "brightening materially" with $15 billion in extra revenue projected for the year.
Mr. Lovely says the fiscal improvement will serve to reduce borrowing requirements and protect federal and provincial credit ratings. It also means less bond issuance from Ottawa which will "leave plenty of room in the long end for provincial and corporate issuers."

Other distinguishing advantages for Canada noted in the report include the following:

 Years of fiscal outperformance and surpluses in Canada have created
        budgetary room to slash corporate taxes. This result combined with
        important tax reforms have given Canada a growing advantage over
        competing tax jurisdictions.

   Canada has emerged as a growth leader in the developed world, with
        the IMF the latest forecaster to see the country leading the G7 in
        terms of average real GDP growth during 2010-11. While Canada's
        growth rate is only modestly above that of the U.S., its indicators
        of domestic economic health, such as employment, are substantially
        brighter.

   Canada has a well-capitalized banking sector with a less dramatic
        adjustment to regulation in store.

   Canadian exporters have limited direct exposure to slow-growing
        Europe and at the same time have had success in increasing exports to
        the faster-growing BRIC region.

   Healthy international and interprovincial migration, particularly in
        western Canada has created less onerous demographic pressures which
        in turn support a faster potential economic growth rate.

But Mr. Lovely also sees some challenges to Canada's continuing outperformance. He notes that three quarters of Canada's exports go south of the border, meaning a "U.S. slowdown will leave its mark on Canada."
"Canadian and U.S. real GDP growth has never been more tightly correlated than during the past five years. So the end of an American inventory rebuilding process will sap demand for Canadian wares," adds Mr. Lovely.
Other risks to Canada's economic prospects include the impact of a continuing strong Canadian dollar on manufacturing, an overheated housing market and highly indebted household sector.
"Notwithstanding these challenges, Canadian governments are courting international investors from a position of strength, hardly beholden to foreign capital, but happy to take full advantage of a healthy appetite for Canadian fixed income product," says Mr. Lovely. "The message is getting through, and there's every reason to believe that today's strong foreign investor interest in Canada will have staying power."
The complete CIBC World Markets report is available at: http://research.cibcwm.com/economic_public/download/gps_jul10.pdf

CIBC World Markets Inc. is the corporate and investment banking arm of CIBC. To deliver on our mandate as a premier client-focused and Canadian-based wholesale bank, we provide a wide range of credit, capital markets, investment banking, merchant banking and research products and services to government, institutional, corporate and retail clients in Canada and in key markets around the world.

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How Canada can cash in on the U.S. economic malaise.

Image via Wikipedia

By Harvey Enchin and Fazil Mihlar, Vancouver Sun

"Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open."
-Alexander Graham Bell
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Canada has the opportunity of a lifetime waiting to be seized.
Non-financial institutions in the United States have almost $2 trillion US in cash on their balance sheets but have no desire to invest there. Luring some of that money to Canada will help further modernize our economy, create jobs, generate more tax revenue and raise our standard of living.
This window of opportunity won't be open for long, so Ottawa and the provinces should launch a major marketing effort now to turn American apprehension into economic gain for Canada.
What does Canada have to sell to those holding the $2-trillion US purse strings? A comparative advertising strategy would focus the minds of American investors on the advantages Canada offers, including some of the following:
- Lower corporate income tax rates. The U.S. statutory federal corporate income tax rate is 35 per cent, a number that is more likely to go up than down given the country's debt burden. Canada's is 18 per cent, down from 19 per cent in 2009. Scheduled tax cuts will bring Canada's rate to 16.5 per cent in 2011 and to 15 per cent in 2012, giving Canada the lowest statutory tax rate in the G7.
- Competitive personal income tax rates. It may comes as surprise for Americans to learn that Canada's federal personal income tax rates are lower than those in the U.S. The U.S. rate on income between $34,000 US and $82,400, US for example is 25 per cent. In Canada the rate on income between $40,970 and $81,941 is 22 per cent. On income from $171,850 US to $373,650 US the U.S. rate is 33 per cent. Canada's rate reaches a maximum of 29 per cent for all income over $127,021.
Of course, most of Canada's provinces and territories impose personal income tax as well, but so too do many U.S. states and some municipalities. It is true that Canada obtains slightly more personal tax revenue per capita than the U.S. does -$5,800 US vs. $4,700 US -but this difference is easily offset by the cost of health care that Americans incur privately and Canadians cover through taxation. It's worth noting that the U.S. has inheritance taxes and Canada does not.
- Lower capital gains tax rates. Canadians pay tax on 50 per cent of their capital gains at their marginal rate. On a gain of $1,000, for instance, only $500 would be subject to tax. At a combined federal-provincial rate of, say, 35 per cent, the tax payable would be $175. Americans pay tax on the net total of capital gains. More importantly, the reduced rates introduced in 2003 by then president George W. Bush, initially due to expire in 2008 and extended until 2011, will finally sunset, raising the discounted rate of 15 per cent to 28 per cent. So, on that same $1,000 capital gain, an American investor would pay $280.
- Canada can maintain low tax rates: Because Canada is in better fiscal shape than the U.S., Ottawa can keep taxes low while Washington will have little choice but to raise them. The U.S. national debt is $13.6 trillion US, or $42,942 US per capita. Canada's is $534.7 billion, or $15,715 per capita.

The ratio of debt to gross domestic product stands at about 93 per cent in the U.S., and the U.S. Treasury Department sees it rising to 102 per cent when debt is expected to reach $19.2 trillion US in 2015. Canada debt-to-GDP ratio is 33 per cent.
Government spending as a percentage of GDP has declined in Canada since hitting a peak of 53 per cent in 1992 and recently slipped below 40 per cent. In the U.S., it has turned sharply higher, rising to 42.7 per cent in 2009 from 39 per cent in 2008. It is expected to reach 45 per cent next year.
The White House has forecast the U.S. deficit for 2010 to be $1.6 trillion US or 10.6. per cent of gross domestic product, the highest level since the Second World War. Canada's deficit is seen at $49.2 billion, or 3.7 per cent of GDP. Canada should be able to manage its debt and still lower taxes. The U.S. clearly cannot.
- Canada's universal health care system is good for business. In Canada, health care is paid for mainly by employees through their income taxes. In the U.S., most companies pay for health benefits for their full-time employees. In 2002, automotive companies confirmed that Canada's health care system saved labour costs.
About 70 per cent of all health-related spending is financed by the Canadian government, while the U.S. government covers about 46 per cent. Yet the U.S. government spends more on health care than the Canadian government does -- 14.6 per cent of GDP in the U.S. compared with 10 per cent in Canada. And that translates into higher health care spending per capita -- $6,714 US in the U.S. vs. $3,678 US in Canada.
A number of studies have concluded health outcomes are better in Canada, particularly on life expectancy and infant mortality measures, but these findings are controversial.
Canada can offer the stability of a universal health care system that has been in place for many years while the U.S. faces the uncertainty of new health care legislation passed this spring that will not be fully implemented until 2014 and carries a price tag estimated at $940 billion US.
- Canada's banking system is sound. The credit crisis and recession that ravaged U.S. financial institutions caused barely a ripple at Canada's banks. A cautious business culture and tough regulation steered them away from the toxic derivatives and lax lending practices that brought down major Wall St. investment firms and countless small banks across the U.S. Moody's scores Canadian banks at the top of its ranking of the world's banks and Global Finance magazine lists them among the safest banks of the 500 it reviews. The World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report ranked Canada's banking system No. 1 in the world, ahead of Switzerland's and Hong Kong's.
The number of bank failures in Canadian history can be counted on one hand, while many thousands have collapsed in the U.S. Bank regulation in the U.S. is highly fragmented with as many as half a dozen federal and 50 state regulatory authorities involved, depending on a bank's charter. In Canada, the regulatory responsibility rests with the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions.

- Regulation is similarly stable and streamlined in other sectors of the Canadian economy, resulting in less uncertainty, better planning and a lower cost of capital.
- Canada is a safe country. The homicide rate in the U.S. is three times higher than Canada's, the rate of aggravated assault is double and the incidence of robberies is 65 per cent higher. Seventy per cent of murders in the U.S. are committed with firearms, compared with 30 per cent in Canada.
Canada has first-class infrastructure. Road, rail and air, power grids, pipelines, fibre optic and wireless networks are all the equal of any in the world. Put it all together and, in the final analysis, the unit cost of doing business is lower in Canada than the U.S.
Some studies attribute Canada's low -- and falling -- crime rate to social cohesion; a multifactor measure that gauges trust in people, confidence in institutions, respect for diversity, and a sense of belonging, along with more common indicators of poverty, income distribution, employment, health, mobility, literacy, education and housing.
- Canada has an educated workforce. In fact, it boasts the highest proportion of postsecondary graduates (46 per cent) in the 25-to-64 age group among member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the G-7.
- Arguably, Canada is more welcoming to immigrants than the U.S. and newcomers to Canada have higher levels of education attainment than native Canadians. By comparison, the quality of the U.S. workforce may suffer, given the desperate budget problems many states face. If these fiscal challenges result in cutbacks and layoffs, school performance may suffer.
- Canada has abundant resources. The availability of affordable energy, rich mineral deposits, fresh water, arable land and thousands of kilometres of forests offers benefits to any company, whether a producer or consumer of commodities.
- Canada has first-class infrastructure. Road, rail and air, power grids, pipelines, fibreoptic and wireless networks are all the equal of any in the world.
Put it all together and, in the final analysis, the unit cost of doing business is lower in Canada than the U.S.
The 2010 KPMG study of 95 cities across 10 countries concluded that Canada was the best place to invest, with a five-percent cost advantage over the U.S. Out of the 35 major cities with populations of more than two million, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto ranked in the top 10 in terms of cost of doing business.
We could provide further inducements by setting up processes that put out the red carpet for businesses -- not wrap them in red tape -- by having one number to call or an e-mail address that would deal with any problems firms encounter at the federal, provincial or local levels of governments.

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/health/Canada+cash+economic+malaise/3340011/story.html#ixzz0vDShCeV9

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Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management - NOC 1122

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Professionals who provide business services to management are on the list of 29 eligible occupations under the Federal Skilled Worker program.

To find out if you qualify for a Canadian immigration (permanent resident) visa please fill out our free eligibility assessment.

This group includes those who provide services to management such as analyzing the operations, managerial methods or functions of an organization in order to propose, plan and implement improvements, or analyzing advertising needs and developing appropriate advertising plans. They are employed by management consulting firms, advertising agencies and throughout the public and private sectors or are self-employed.

(Description from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada's National Occupation Classification, used by Canadian immigration officers, to assess an applicant's work experience.)

Management consultants perform some or all of the following duties:

• Analyze and provide advice on the managerial methods and organization of a public or private sector establishment
• Conduct research to determine efficiency and effectiveness of managerial policies and programs
• Conduct assessments and propose improvements to methods, systems and procedures in areas such as operations, human resources, records management and communications
• Conduct quality audits and develop quality management and quality assurance standards for ISO (International Organization for Standardization) registration
• Plan the reorganization of the operations of an establishment
• May supervise contracted researchers or clerical staff.

Advertising and promotion consultants perform some or all of the following duties:

• Assess characteristics of products or services to be promoted and advise on the advertising needs of an establishment
• Advise clients on advertising or sales promotion strategies
• Develop and implement advertising campaigns appropriate for print or electronic media.

Why your employment prospects in Canada are excellent:

• This group includes those who provide services to management such as analyzing the operations, managerial methods or functions of an organization in order to propose, plan and implement improvements, or analyzing advertising needs and developing appropriate advertising plans.
• They are employed by management consulting firms, advertising agencies and throughout the public and private sectors or are self-employed.
• The growing trend toward globalization and the evolving technical revolution have forced many companies to hire professionals in these fields in order to stay competitive with changing business practices.
• This occupation is only regulated in Alberta.

Some areas of Canada where your occupation is in demand:

While there is a shortage of Professionals in Occupations in Business Services to Management across Canada, the following cities and provinces listed below have a particularly high demand for this occupation.

British Columbia

• Employment prospects are considered to be good throughout the province.
• While projected new jobs between 2010 and 2015 is predicted at 1,790 and job vacancies due to retirements during the same period is estimated at 2,470.

Manitoba

• Employment prospects are expected to be good in the 2010-2014 period.
• Most employment opportunities will arise as a result of turnover (especially retirements later in the forecast period), and the mobility between companies.
• Jobs in this occupational group are available across the Province, although approximately 77% are located in Winnipeg.

New Brunswick
Fredericton, Woodstock, Grand Falls, Edmundston, New Brunswick:

• Employment prospects are good in these local areas.
• A large government presence, and a number of national, regional, and local firms create considerable consulting opportunities.
• Subcontracting services, such as advertising, is becoming increasingly popular and will be creating more opportunities for advertising account executives and promotion specialists.
• The majority of job opportunities in this occupation will be a result of attrition.
• For consultants, those individuals who have experience or knowledge of new management theories and practices, and those skilled in computerized management tools may have an advantage over others seeking employment in this field.
• For advertising account executives and promotion specialists, job opportunities will be greater for those skilled in utilizing the types of media outlets used to reach a diverse customer base.
• This occupation is classified as "significant" because there is a large percentage of professional occupations in business services to management working within the area and it is a strategically important occupation to the local labour market.

Moncton, Shediac, Sackville, Richibucto, New Brunswick:

• Employment prospects are good in these local areas.
• A large government presence, and a number of national, regional, and local firms create considerable consulting opportunities.
• Subcontracting services, such as advertising, is becoming increasingly popular and will be creating more opportunities for advertising account executives and promotion specialists.
• The majority of job opportunities in this occupation will be a result of attrition.
• Potential employment include: AL-PACK ENTERPRISES LTD, Apropos Marketing Communications Inc., Economical Mutual Insurance Co., Foresight Marketing & Design LTD., Hawk Communications Inc. and Grand & Toy.

Saint John, Sussex, St. Stephen, New Brunswick:

• Employment prospects are good in these local areas.
• Potential employers include: Credico Marketing, Entreprise Saint John, Irving Oil Ltd., NB Milk Marketing, and Charlotte County Development Corporation Inc.

Ontario

• Employment prospects over the next 5 years are considered to be good.
• Consulting and freelance work are areas of growth within this occupation.

Ottawa Region, Ontario:

• Employment opportunities are good for this occupation and will continue to rise.
• Factors contributing to these excellent conditions include changing management concepts and increased productivity as a response to international competition. Corporate structure and work organization methods have also changed, with a corresponding growth in sub-contracting.
• In addition, an aging workforce, anticipated skill shortages and competition for workers have lead to a strong demand by companies for workers in this occupation group.
• According to the most recent census, about one third of people in this occupation in eastern Ontario were over 55 years of age. As a result, a large number of people will be retiring over the next 5 years leaving a significant amount of jobs needed to be filled.
• Potential employers include: Adirondack Information Management, Aramark Canada, Athena Consulting, Dare Human Resources Corporation, Alco Systems Inc., Horizons Renaissance Inc., and Infield Marketing Group 

 Source: canadavisa.com

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Evaluating Canada's Economy

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C

 
anada is America’s largest trading partner. The reasons Canada has come out of the 2008-2009 recession virtually unscathed is murky to most Canadians and all Americans. Some of it was dumb luck and/or the holding back on innovations.

Space limitation allows for a thumbnail sketch only of the differences in style of business in Canada vis-a-vis the United States.

Banking Industry

Canada’s five major banks, with thousands of branches, pleaded with the government to be allowed to merge, evolve into 2 or 3 multibillion dollar banks able to underwrite big deals, big enough to match Wall Street’s behemoths. The government said, "No, you’re likely to close unproductive branches in rural areas." The banks tried to con the finance minister, claimed they would keep all branches open. The federals wouldn’t budge. The banks got lucky.

Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto Dominion, and CIBC went into the U.S. market anyway. CIBC got badly burned in the Enron fiasco where it settled with the SEC for $1 billion dollars. RBC and TD have had better luck, with TD expanding with commercial branches in the northeast and southern United States.

The Housing Market

There doesn't seem to have been a single foreclosure in Canada. Prices are still rising in some locations, dipping in others. In the United States, folks don’t care to build up equity since mortgage interest is tax deductable. Furthermore, availability of a 30-year mortgage allows one to get by with minuscule amounts of principle being paid. When home prices rose, the tendency was to apply for a second mortgage treating one’s home like an ATM machine. In Canada, to buy a home, a substantial down payment is required, and credit worthiness is a prerequisite. One is offered a fixed rate (amortized over 20 years) mortgage for up to five years only. Interest is not deductable. The mortgage is insured for a small fee by the Canadian Housing Authority and is held by the issuing bank to maturity. All in all, it was an old fashioned way of doing business.

Living Standard

A little known fact is that, in Canada, a good three-quarters of the population is middle class. While per capita income is lower than the United States, the social safety net, including the National Health Plan, offsets the difference. The fabricated stories of mistreatment, waiting periods, death panels, and more, are just that: malicious rumours spread by those interested in maintaining the U.S. status quo. What puzzles many visitors to Canada is an absence of slums.

Climate

A good many Americans from above the Mason Dixon line retire, and establish permanent residence in the sunbelt. Naturally, Medicare services in such locales are strained, increasing costs. Canadians who wish to avail themselves of the Health Plan stay at home. There is no sunbelt to retire to, and no trailer parks. The benefit of this lower mobility is more stable home prices and adequate medical staffing.

Immigration and Government

Major cities in Canada, (about six), are a polyglot of nationalities. There are no racially segregated areas in Canadian cities, just segregation by housing costs. There is little friction, perhaps because, with the exception of some parts of the Maritimes, Canada is a country of immigrants. Canada does not have a land border with an underdeveloped country. Illegal immigrants that get in, usually by air, can apply for asylum. While they wait for an immigration panel to adjudicate their case, they are free to find work and obtain some subsidy, if needed. A costly affair, but it does provide for peaceful society.

In the recent era, governments of all political stripes, to stave off defeat in a vote of confidence, which brings on an election, managed Canada's affairs from the center. The current right-wing, minority government is no different. Partisanship is mostly rhetoric. A law passed by the House of Commons (component of Canadian government of elected officials) gets an easy pass from the unelected Senate. There is little drama, and few surprises.

By: Manny Drukier
Source: The Epoch Times

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