{"id":628815,"date":"2026-04-26T00:48:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-26T00:48:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/628815\/"},"modified":"2026-04-26T00:48:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-26T00:48:08","slug":"b-c-premier-eby-mlas-immigration-expert-at-nanaimo-infusion-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/628815\/","title":{"rendered":"B.C. Premier Eby, MLAs, immigration expert at Nanaimo Infusion event"},"content":{"rendered":"

People from the United States, and abroad, should do their research before deciding to move to Canada, says an immigration expert at the Nanaimo Infusion<\/a> event.<\/p>\n

The second-annual event included Canadians and Americans gathering at Maffeo Sutton Park, on Vancouver Island in Nanaimo, for dignitary speeches and a group selfie.<\/p>\n

There were also information tables for potential transplants, including one with Lora Cai, owner and principal regulated immigration consultant of MacLanders Immigration Consulting.<\/p>\n

There are many things to consider for people when planning to move to Canada, she said, and there are many misconceptions. Firstly, some don\u2019t expect that it will take time to get the proper documentation, even if they are on an \u201cexpedited process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also, some assume if a situation applies to their friends, it will also apply to them, but every situation is different \u2013 so they should be prepared and make sure everything\u2019s documented.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf they come in through a work permit, they want to make sure that they have \u2026 their licence, they have past work experiences that they can demonstrate they have their job offer, they have their education,\u201d Cai said. \u201cIf they come in with a family, that\u2019s way more stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n

People with criminal records should also be knowledgeable about the process and again, it is case by case.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt depends on what kind of crime that was and how long ago that they have completed their sentence,\u201d she said. \u201cDepending on what kind of crime, they might be deemed rehabilitated already, or maybe they are criminally inadmissible. It really depends on what that is and how long has it passed.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Cai, people should use trusted websites including the Government of Canada website at https:\/\/www.canada.ca\/en.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing that I want people to know is, immigration is very complicated, so they can do a lot of study and research themselves, and I encourage that, but never guess on answers or make assumptions. If they have questions, they should seek professional help,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

There are also considerations for parents that move to Nanaimo and want to enrol their children in the area\u2019s public schools, according to Larry Mattin, Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools\u2019 district principal of international student education.<\/p>\n

\u201cFamilies will come and they\u2019ll live here, and they\u2019ll apply for a work permit, and while they\u2019re in that process, they need to apply through our department for their children to attend school,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s some fees associated with that, depending on how long they come for. Anything six months and less, they can come with something called an ETA, Electronic Travel Authorization. If they come more than six months, they actually have to get a study permit.\u201d<\/p>\n

With a shortage of health care workers, Americans have moved north to work.<\/p>\n

Carlie Powell, Island Health recruitment services director, said positions are available up and down the Island and close to 150 new workers from the U.S. have joined the health authority since last year\u2019s Infusion event.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re always in need of health care workers, social workers, physiotherapists, [occupational therapists], nurses, all of it \u2013 of course, need physicians on Vancouver Island as well,\u201d said Powell.<\/p>\n

Brenda Beukelman travelled to Nanaimo from Minnesota and is undecided about whether to move \u2013 the process has been a learning experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re learning that there\u2019s more pathways to get here than we realized \u2026 They\u2019re gonna be building a brand new cancer centre, and that\u2019s the area that I work in,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

B.C. Premier David Eby was in attendance and told the crowd health care worker spots are in demand in the province.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t tell anyone in the United States, unless you\u2019re recruiting them up, because we don\u2019t want this to stop, but almost 3,000 American health care workers have applied to work here in British Columbia in the last 10 months,\u201d said Eby. \u201cI understand not everyone\u2019s able to move up here, but we are thrilled to have you here, and I cannot wait for relations to be normal with our countries again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tod Maffin, one of the Nanaimo Infusion co-organizers, said this year\u2019s event, with an estimated 900 people, was better than the year before, when an estimated 350 people were in attendance. While last year was more of a protest against U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s tariffs, the mood is different in 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly, that vibe is still there, but it feels much more about pride of British Columbia, pride of Vancouver Island, pride of Canada \u2026 Canada has spent the last year reacting to a big shock, we\u2019ve been making our own way and cutting deals with other countries and cutting the U.S. out of the loop and I think that\u2019s sort of what it feels like the vibe here as well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

One thing that struck Beukelman was the stereotypical friendly Canadian attitude.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a bus driver stop and let us cross because we were carrying a pizza,\u201d she said. \u201cThat just doesn\u2019t happen in the States.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"People from the United States, and abroad, should do their research before deciding to move to Canada, says…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":628816,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194299],"tags":[49,48,87674],"class_list":["post-628815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-surrey","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-surrey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=628815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/628815\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/628816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=628815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=628815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=628815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}