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No way. I moved here from there (I'm Canadian now!) and every day I'm gladder I got out.
I'd probably make more money there, but there are things I value more than money and my life is significantly better in Toronto than it ever was in any of the three states I lived in.
What do you value more specifically about Canada?
I'm not sure how to describe it beyond saying life feels a lot less confrontational here in Canada, even living in the largest city in the country.
Obviously there are problems here, but it feels much more like an actual society than a collection of people who happen to live near each other.
It's not even about healthcare or anything specific, those are just symptoms IMO. It's a larger philosophical difference between the countries
Hell no. Alberta is already too conservative/religious for me, I'm not going to go down to some theocratic hellscape to make more money.
Are you rich? If you're at least in the top quintile it's a good deal, since the crappy government services won't effect you as much. Probably make sure there's a way to get back if things get even hairier.
Honestly, I'd just stick with the TN. With how easy a TN is to get, the only real advantage of a Green Card is if you plan on being unemployed in the US (which you don't, because you're in the US for the money like everyone else).
Though FWIW TN should allow you to work in the US anyway, so I'm not sure why they're only offering GC for relocation.
Be very careful about the strong USD, because things are more expensive in the US and they're often of lower quality for the same price. You won't feel richer unless you save a bunch of USD and move back to Canada down the line.
Earning CAD and spending CAD ~= Earning USD and spending USD
Earning USD and spending CAD is ideal
If you have a lot of money , why not? But think to the cost of travel to see your family.
I considered it and did an 8mo internship in Calafornia in 2016. While I would make about 2x what I make here (literally, I made 25CAD/hr in canada and 50CAD/hr in the states doing the same job with the same manager.) I don't think it's worth it for me at least. For one, the medical insurance is kinda insanely expensive, it ate up a huge chunk of the difference in costs while also not being nearly as good and making every trip to the doctors a huge worry and also a cost benefit analysis (and this was with very good, subsidized by my company insurance). I dislocated my shoulder in a biking accident while in Cali, I didn't go to the doctor because I thought it was just a sprain and the doctors would not be able to do anything (while costing me like 200 bucks). When I got back to Canada I got it checked out and they said it was too late to do anything but that it could have benefited from physio when it was fresh.
The healthcare as well as a hundred other factors has knock on effects where poorer folks are very noticeably worse off. Toronto has a lot of homeslessness, but I don't think Ive ever seen a homeless guy using a ruler as a splint on a leg bent the wrong way in Toronto. I don't want to live in a place that does that to people.
Lastly I found public transit to be even more of a joke than it is in Toronto, and as someone that never wants to drive daily that was kinda awful.
While I would probably be marginally more wealthy in the US, I would definitely be less happy, and have a dirtier conscious. I am pretty well off regardless and that was a while ago before the housing crisis in Canada really kicked off so maybe you'll reach a difference conclusion.
The main thing driving me to look south of the border is the cost of housing. The cheaper housing might balance out the bad government services depending on the location.
Cheaper housing is outside main city centers in both cases, you don't win anything if your housing is cheaper but you pay back the difference (and more) in healthcare coverage and scholarship (if you've got kids).
I would get the green card and figure out where I want to live later. Nothing about getting it would preclude you eventually settling back down in Canada. But it opens up living in Hawaii or Florida or Texas or New Orleans - very different cultural and climatic environments to anything we have in Canada.
Yeah that's my thought too. It'll take roughly 2 years to get my green card I'd imagine. 2 years is still 2 years though.
My bro required about 11 years for his green card. This is important:
at the time, you needed to have a visa that allowed you to be working and living in America.
each h1b is 4 years. You get 2.
there was no grift for queue-jumping back then
I'm not sure you can do it on a TN, nor from outside. H1, J1, etc, may be your only hope.
Why donβt you just get paid in USD?
just
This is how we know you're summarizing, and we worry you're skipping over parts you may not know about. ;-) #IT-PTSD
It's not without risk. You'd have to see how much money you'd make, your cost of living including healthcare costs. Weigh them against the benefits including simply a change of scenery or sense of adventure, if it's worth it then go forth!
Might not be worth if you already have kids, for reason some people there only care about kids when inside a womb.
The whole American political and justice system is so messed up. Look carefully at the city and state you are relocating to, they're all different.
I sometimes want to go there but many things happening lately make me hug my city of Toronto a little tighter.
Yeah I'm trying to see how much healthcare will cost me. I should find out more by next week. I agree, their political and societal system differs a lot from ours in Canada.
Iβm trying to see how much healthcare will cost me.
That's the thing. You can't. You never know what health problems you'll develop in the future, and health care costs are not standardized outside of secret health insurance company formulas. It's a complete shit show. Don't come here.
I moved to California a couple years back. I think it is absolutely worth the move. Especially as a software developer, you can make 4x what you do in Canada.
The biggest complaint I have is TN is annoying to renew, but overall it's not a big deal at all. If your work is sponsoring a green card, then that is the cherry on top.
My quality of life is greatly increased. I make way more, and also pay way less for groceries, cars, electronics, internet/cell phone. Los Angeles is literally more affordable for me than most of Ontario lol
I think moving would only be worth it if you're in a professional career that makes more in the US, otherwise your QOL will obviously be worse here.
I think a lot of Canadians have no idea just how cheap certain things are in the US. A lot of our food is imported from there and we pay the exchange. My grocery bill was tiny in Oregon relative to Quebec.
Edit: Another one is shoes. Canada has an import tax that results in some shoes being literally 3x the price after everything is said and done.
Exactly, any "out of season" food is never out of season here in California. Avacados are so cheap here for example. Meat is also way cheaper too, even for organic products, not the bottom of the barrel. $2 street tacos are my lifeblood now.
For me, cell phone service was mind blowing. I am paying $25 a month all in, for 15 gigs and unlimited talk/text.
Taking a toll lane here is actually cheap too, $4-5 max per usage. I went on the 407 once by accident and was billed $20 for one exit lol
But all major freeways have toll while they're the exception in Canada. Avocados are cheap but you can't take a long shower because growing them is emptying all aquifers and droughts last for years... Food in general is cheap but it's subsidized as fuck... You're one car accident away from becoming bankrupt from uncovered medical bills even if the government spends more on healthcare per capita than any country with national healthcare (not even counting the extra people pay in private insurance).
Iβm planning on going to the states next year. Double the salary and better opportunities.