Archives for July 2001

Q. I want to know how to write résumé’s cover letter for Canadian Employers. I have several years of computer experience with many related International certifications. I also want to know what attractive text should be in one’s resume cover letter, So that employer does not wonder that person wants employment letter for achieving ten extra points only in Canadian immigration process. In reality I not only want ten points but I am true job seeker. I had seen there are 100’s of Canadian job’s for whom I can meet their requirements very easily instead that there are jobs for whom I am extra qualified and experienced. I had researched a lot on this topic (resume Cover Letter for Canadian immigrants) but cannot find any sample cover letters nor help. So please help me how to write cover letter for Canadian employers while you do not have permanent residence and living in one’s own homeland.

Answer: A cover letter should never be a template. It should be an honest and unique attempt to get your message across. The cover letter is meant to be the sales piece for your resume. The thing that you must remember is that there are three main parts to a cover letter.

1. Attention
2. Sell
3. Action

In the first paragraph, get right to the point. What can you offer? What position are you applying for? What can you offer to solve the employer’s problems?

In the second paragraph show how you intend to solve the employer’s problems. What are your credentials? What is your experience? What are you better equiped than all the other candidates? What are you ready to offer?

In the third paragraph decide who owns the next step. Are you going to follow up or are you going to leave it to the employer to get back to you? My recommendation is to let the employer know that you will email him/her again in two weeks to see if there is any interest.

If you follow this method, you should be able to pull out a decent cover letter.

“Harry the HR Expert”
For more of Harry’s postings, see the Careers forum in the Online Community:

http://canadavisa.com/community

Q. I’m currently a french resident, I’m considering applying for permanent resident status under the skilled worker program. My question is about the company => employee => taxes cash flow. To make my question clear, let me expose how this works in Europe:

One negotiates a gross salary. From this amount the company automatically pays a certain amount to different governmental organizations in the employee’s behalf. This is what they call “charge social” and it corresponds to social insurance, basic and extra medical insurance, unemployment funds, etc. This is about 22% of one’s gross income. What rests, is your taxable income, for which one pays fiscal taxes.

My question is, what is the money flow in Canada? Does the employee get the gross amount s/he negotiated, does the company pay certain taxes in the employee’s behalf?

Answer: You have asked as to how source deductions are handled in Canada.

In Canada, employers are required to withhold federal and Provincial income taxes based on your annual salary net of certain estimated credits and tax deductions. To the extent withholdings made by the employer exceed your income tax liability for the year, you may be entitled to a refund when you file your annual income tax return. On the other hand if your tax for the year exceeds the amounts withheld at source, you may owe tax for the year when you file your annual income tax return.

Employers must also withhold other non-tax amounts as follows:

– Canada (or Quebec) Pension Plan

– Employment Insurance Contributions:

Besides the employee contributions, the employer contributes to the Canada Pension Plan, Employment Insurance Contributions and Health Services Fund.

The nature of this facility is to provide a general response to a general question. Under no circumstances should anyone act on this information without obtaining analysis and counsel from a qualified advisor with respect to the specific situation.

Phillip Nadler, CA
Richter Usher & Vineberg
http://www.richter.ca

Bill C-11 was adopted by the House of Commons (3rd reading) and was introduced in the Senate in June 2001. There will be no official movement on the Bill until the resumption of the Senate’s session in September of 2001 .

The following is a summary of the provisions proposed in regards to the Family Class, the Rights and Obligations of a Permanent Resident, and Fees. The summaries of the Skilled Worker and Business classes will be presented in next month’s newsletter.

Family class sponsorship

· Age of dependants:

– the new regulations will raise the age for dependant children from “under 19 “to”under 22”;
– the new regulations will include unmarried children under 22 years of age or over 22 if they are full-time students or mentally or physically disabled and dependant on their parents

· Common law partner:

– the new regulations will define common-law partners to include a person who is cohabiting in a conjugal relationship with another person, having so cohabitated for a period of at least one year;
– the new regulation will include common-law partner of opposite and of same sex

· Age of sponsors:

– the new regulations will lower the age at which a Canadian or permanent resident may sponsor from 19 to 18.

· In Canada landing-class

– The new regulations will create an in-Canada landing class for spouses, common-law partners and their dependant children. The following requirements will apply:
a. An approved undertaking;
b. A genuine marriage or relationship;
c. A legal status in Canada that cannot be obtained through misrepresentation;
d. Possession of a valid passport or travel document;
e. Satisfactory background checks and medical results.

· Length of sponsorship:

– The new regulations will decrease the length of sponsorship undertakings for spouses and common-law partners from 10 to 3 years;
– It will make it possible for a 10 year sponsorship for fiancée to be transferable to a 3 years sponsorship, once the marriage takes place;
– It will provide that sponsorship periods for dependant children remain at 10 years or until the sponsored child reaches age 22 (whichever is longer).

· Medical Inadmissibility:

– The ground of excessive demand medical inadmissibility will no longer apply to a spouse, a common-law partner or a child of a sponsor, as defined by regulations.

· Fees:

– The new regulations will allow sponsors who do not meet sponsorship eligibility requirements to withdraw their sponsored relative’s application for permanent residence and to recover part of the current cost recovery fees paid for the processing of the relative’s application (for example 450$ out of the 500$ fee);

Rights and Obligations of Permanent Residents:

· Physical presence for permanent residents:

– The new regulations will define the situation in which time spent away from Canada can be deemed to be time in Canada for the purpose of retention of permanent residence;
– There will be a physical residency requirement of 2 years out of 5 years to maintain permanent residence;
– A person will no longer have to “abandon” Canada to loose it’s permanent resident status, an absence will be sufficient.

· Status documents:

– The current record of landing will be replaced by a permanent resident card which will contain the permanent resident’s name, photo, signature, date of birth, country of birth, country of citizenship, sex, eye color, height, date of entry in Canada, place of landing and immigrant category;
– The plan is to oblige transportation companies to request this card prior to boarding passengers coming from countries that are not visa exempted, who claim to reside in Canada as a Permanent Resident.

Fees:

The new regulations will also increase the age at which the adult fees apply with respect to the Right of Landing Fee (ROLF) from “19 years and over” to “22 years and over”.