MAK Canadian Immigration Services
Mississauga Office: 3715 Laird Rd, Unit 4, Mississauga, ON L5L 0A3
Scarborough Office: 80 Corporate Dr, Suite 210, Scarborough, ON M1H 3G5
Scarborough Office: 80 Corporate Dr, Suite 210, Scarborough, ON M1H 3G5
- 3715 Laird Rd, Unit 4, Mississauga, ON L5L 0A3
- 80 Corporate Dr, Suite 210, Scarborough, ON M1H 3G5
How to Settle in Canada: Newcomer Checklist for Your First Weeks
Landing in Canada is the start of a long list of practical tasks: a Social Insurance Number, health coverage, a bank account, a place to live, schools, a driver licence and, for many people, getting foreign qualifications recognised. This checklist sets out what most newcomers deal with in the first weeks, in the order it usually comes up.
Settlement rules are split between the federal government and the provinces and territories. Health coverage, driver licensing and school enrolment are provincial. Immigration status, settlement funding and federal benefits are federal. Ontario examples are marked as Ontario-specific; if you are settling elsewhere, use the equivalent provincial page. Always confirm the current rules on the official pages linked in each section.
Table of Contents
1. Before you arrive: documents, money and pre-arrival services
Carry your immigration documents in your hand luggage, not in checked bags: your passport, your Confirmation of Permanent Residence or work or study permit approval letter, proof of funds, and your list of goods to follow for customs. Keep certified translations of key civil documents such as birth, marriage and education records, because you will be asked for them repeatedly once you are here.
Book temporary accommodation for at least the first two to four weeks rather than signing a lease from abroad. Most landlords will not rent to you without Canadian identification, and you cannot judge a neighbourhood or a commute from photographs.
Approved permanent residents can use free IRCC funded pre-arrival services before they travel. These organisations help with credential assessment, job search preparation and orientation while you are still overseas. Eligibility depends on your status and destination, so check the current criteria on the official page.
2. Your first days: housing, a Social Insurance Number and staying connected
The first week is mostly administrative. You need a Social Insurance Number before you can be paid legally, a Canadian address before most services will register you, and a phone number before anyone will call you back about a job or an apartment.
Apply for your Social Insurance Number through Service Canada. Applications can be made online, by mail or in person at a Service Canada Centre, and the SIN itself is free. Never pay a third party for one and never give your SIN to a landlord, a recruiter or anyone who is not an employer, a bank or a government body that legally requires it.
The five items below are the tasks most newcomers complete in their first two weeks. Each one is explained in more detail further down this page.
Housing
Book short term accommodation first, then view rentals in person. Expect to show identification, proof of income and references, and to pay first and last month rent.
Social Insurance Number
Apply through Service Canada online, by mail or in person. It is free, and you need it before an employer can pay you legally.
Phone and internet
Get a Canadian mobile number early. Employers, landlords, schools and clinics all call rather than email, and an overseas number slows everything down.
Bank account
Federally regulated banks must open a personal account for you with acceptable identification, even without a job or a deposit. Ask about newcomer packages and a secured credit card.
Provincial health card
Register with your own province health plan as soon as you have proof of address. Rules and start dates are provincial and are not backdated to before you apply.
3. Provincial health coverage: check your own province
Public health insurance is run by each province and territory, not by the federal government. Coverage start dates, residency tests and the documents you must show all differ, and they change. Register in person as soon as you have proof of address, because nothing is backdated to before you apply.
Ontario-specific: OHIP is administered by the Ontario Ministry of Health, and Ontario states on its official OHIP page that there is no longer a waiting period for OHIP coverage. That is an Ontario rule. Do not assume it applies in British Columbia, Quebec or anywhere else. Some provinces do apply a waiting period, so confirm on your own province page and consider private interim coverage for any gap.
4. Banking and basic financial setup
You have a legal right to open a personal bank account at a federally regulated bank in Canada even if you have no job, no credit history and no money to deposit that day, provided you show acceptable identification. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada sets out which documents banks must accept and the limited grounds on which a bank may refuse.
Ask specifically about newcomer account packages, monthly fee waivers, and a secured credit card to begin building a Canadian credit history. Your credit record from your home country does not transfer. Keep proof of every fee agreement in writing; verbal promises from a branch representative are not enforceable.
5. Driver licensing and provincial exchange rules
Driver licensing is provincial. Most provinces let you drive on a valid foreign licence for a limited period after arrival, often 60 to 90 days, after which you need a provincial licence. An International Driving Permit translates your licence but does not extend that period.
Ontario-specific: the Ontario Ministry of Transportation operates a licence exchange programme with a defined list of countries and jurisdictions whose licences can be exchanged directly, without road testing, when you meet the conditions. If your country is not on the current list you enter the graduated licensing stream instead. Bring an official letter of driving experience from your home authority, translated if necessary, because it can shorten the process.
6. Children and school enrolment
Every child in Canada has access to free public education up to the end of secondary school, and enrolment is handled by the local school board, not by the province directly. Children are generally placed by age rather than by the grade they completed abroad.
Take your child immigration documents, proof of address, immunisation records and previous school reports to the school board reception or newcomer reception centre. Many boards run an assessment to place English or French language learners in the right support stream. Immunisation reporting requirements are provincial, so ask the board what your province requires and by when.
7. Foreign credential recognition and regulated professions
A foreign degree does not automatically let you practise a regulated profession in Canada. Roughly one in five occupations is regulated, and each regulator sets its own examinations, supervised practice and language requirements. Nursing, engineering, teaching, law, accounting, pharmacy and the medical professions are all regulated provincially.
Start with the federal Foreign Credential Recognition information, then go directly to the regulator in the province where you intend to work, because that regulator makes the decision. Begin the paperwork early: assessments and bridging programmes commonly take many months, and some regulators want documents sent directly from your issuing institution.
8. Employment and job-search support
Canadian employers read resumes in a particular format and rely heavily on references they can call. Rewrite your resume to Canadian conventions, keep it to two pages, and remove photographs, date of birth, marital status and national identity numbers.
Federally funded employment services for newcomers include resume clinics, interview practice, mentoring and employer connections, and provinces run their own employment centres that are open more broadly. If your target job is regulated, work through section 7 in parallel rather than waiting, since licensing is usually the longer path.
9. Free newcomer and settlement services, and who qualifies
IRCC funds settlement organisations across Canada that provide free needs assessments, language training, employment help and community connections. These services are not open to everyone. Eligibility depends on your immigration status, and permanent residents and protected persons are the core eligible groups, while most temporary residents are not eligible or qualify only under specific narrower rules.
IRCC has also introduced time limits on how long a permanent resident can keep using these services after landing, and those limits tighten on set dates. Because the eligibility and time-limit rules are being changed, check the current newcomer services eligibility page and use the official service finder to locate an organisation near you rather than relying on any third party summary, including this one.
10. Your first tax year, benefits and credits
Canada taxes residents on worldwide income, and residency for tax purposes is decided by your residential ties, not by your immigration status alone. You will normally file your first return for the calendar year in which you arrived, even if you earned nothing in Canada that year.
Filing matters beyond tax itself, because several benefit and credit programmes are calculated from your filed return. The Canada Revenue Agency newcomers page explains how to register, which benefits and credits newcomers may apply for, and what documentation is required. Amounts and thresholds change annually, so take the figures from the CRA page for the year you are filing. This is general information, not tax advice.
11. Fraud prevention and official resources
Newcomers are a standard target for fraud. Government of Canada officials will not phone you demanding immediate payment, will not ask for payment in gift cards or cryptocurrency, and will not threaten you with deportation over the telephone. No one can sell you a job offer, a nomination, a visa or faster processing.
Read the IRCC guidance on protecting yourself from fraud. Only two categories of person may charge you for immigration representation in Canada: lawyers in good standing with a provincial law society or the Chambre des notaires du Quebec, and consultants licensed by the College of Immigration and Citizenship Consultants. You can and should verify any representative in the public register before paying anything.
Core official starting points: the IRCC Settling in Canada hub, Service Canada for your SIN, your provincial health ministry, your provincial transport ministry, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency.
12. How MAK Canadian Immigration Services differs from government funded settlement services
Settlement agencies are funded by government to help you live in Canada after you have status. They are free to eligible clients, and for settlement questions they are usually the right first call. We are not one of them, we are not government funded, and we do not duplicate what they do.
MAK Canadian Immigration Services is a licensed immigration consulting firm. Our work is the immigration file itself: assessing which pathway you actually qualify for, planning documents and timing, preparing applications, and responding to procedural fairness letters and refusals. If you are still deciding which route fits your situation, start with our guide to Canadian immigration pathways, or book a consultation to review your own case.
We do not guarantee eligibility, invitations, approvals or processing times, and no representative can. This page is general information only and is not legal advice. Immigration, health, licensing and tax rules change without notice, so confirm current requirements on the official government pages linked above before you act. Prepared by MAK Canadian Immigration Services, RCIC Usman Khalil, licence R709592.
