Work in Canada Under 35 ProgrammeProgramme Open
Introduction
Oh Canada - It's the great country that has given the
world Bryan Adams, Degrassi High and Canada Dry. Now is your chance
to live, work and travel the breadth of the second largest land
mass on the planet!
The U35 Work Canada programme as operated by USIT allows participants to obtain a 12 month open employment permit for Canada. You may go for a short break or use the whole year and you can work at almost whatever you want, wherever you want in this huge country, from Newfoundland to British Columbia supporting yourself along your travels!
This is a programme agreed by the Irish and Canadian governments and co-sponsored by USIT and SWAP, Canada's leading provider of work exchange programmes.
As a participant on the programme you must travel to Canada prior to 31 January 2011 and you cannot enter Canada until your documents have been issued by the Canadian High Commission.
The Programme Fee is €419 and includes a face-to-face orientation if you are travelling to one of the gateway cities or a postal orientation in cases where you are not, availing of the orientation in any form allows you to obtain a fast-tracked SIN number! The International Youth Programme Participation Fee is also included as part of the Programme Fee, full details of these fees can be found on our FAQ section.
There are two stages to the process
-
Register online to reserve your place on the programme. (see how to apply secton) Within about 3 business days you will receive an email from canada@usit.ie instructing you to download and complete your application form.
-
Complete the application form and return it to USIT.
Applicants are responsible for submitting all requested documentation (including a valid passport and proof of flights and insurance*) to USIT within 40 calendar days of initial registration for visa processing.
NOTE: Due to the time of year, allocation limits and processing time frames, please note the following deadlines:a) Applicants who apply for the programme or are granted a place from 15th July 2010 must submit completed documents within 30 days of registration.b) Applicants who apply for this programme or are granted a place from 31st August 2010 must submit completed documents within 20 days of registration.c) Applicants who apply for this programme or are granted a place from 1st October 2010 must submit completed documents within 7 days of registration.d) Revision for applicants from 9th March 2010 - if you have not adhered to processing timeframes for document submission, you may still apply for an extension of maximum 10 days and will be required to pay an additional fee of €100. (This is to ensure people do not "hold" places indefinitely only to release them too late for others to avail of the opportunity)USIT & SWAP cannot be held responsible for any additional costs incurred (including the cost of rebooking a flight) due to delays by participants in submitting documentation, changing flight dates, time frames required by the Canadian High Commission in issuing a Work Authorisation Document, or delays due to any changes in their regulations.*if you are submitting an alternative insurance policy, it must have been active for at least 15 days in order to ensure it is a valid policy and that the participant is indeed insured.
Once USIT receives your documents, we will continue the processing them and once they are approved we will forward them to the Canadian High Commission by courier. They will then be in process with the Canadian High Commission for a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks.
Applicants who register for the programme after the 1 August 2010 will be subject to different submission deadlines, please see the FAQs or Terms and Conditions for more details. Failure to submit required documents within the prescribed timeframes will lead to you being cancelled off of the programme with no refund.
Travelling to Canada
We would recommend, to avail of the orientation service, that you enter Canada via one of three gateway cities: Toronto, Vancouver ou, si vous parlez couramment francais, la ville de Montreal. Afterwards you're free to work and travel anywhere in Canada for up to twelve whole months on this multiple entry visa.Please keep in mind that you must enter Canada no later than 31 January 2011 and that the earliest date of arrival will be shortly after your documents have been approved and issued by the Canadian High Commission. When arranging your flights, please keep in mind the average processing time is 8 to 10 weeks and longer if your application requires extra processing.