any help would be appriciated

Jimmyt · Post by **Jimmyt** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:45 am

Hello my name is Jimmy I am a 26 year old Canadian citizen. I am interested in moving to Helsinki Finland in 6 months and staying for 6 months to a year. Anybody with information on the best route to achive this goal would be appriciated. Info such as getting a job, are there working holidays for Canadians such as there is for Austrailians. Anything could help. Thank you.

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Muddy Zuk · Post by **Muddy Zuk** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 11:55 am

Not sure what you have to do about working visa type things, but i just moved here and threee weeks ago.

RE work i just started hitting the bars and asking after work. after six days i got a job in Molly Malones bar. its been great for me so far i have met some great people and had some cool times! i always think it just depends on what kinda of work you are prepared to do?!? i enrolled with the temping agency here, emailed some bars. in the end i got the job by chatting to someone on another bar that phoned another bar on my behalf. so six days of walking aorund sinki paid off for me!

but other people have other stories not all so quick at finding work. if you havent already its worth getting some experience in a bar even if you only do a couple of nights a week!

start to try and learn some Finnish, i had none when i cam i now have very little but its growing everyday. i feel bad for moving to a place where i dont speak the language, luckily most people speak english here so it hasnt been a to bad a problem!. but limits your options for work!!

in the end if you want to do it, then make it happen! i just up sticks from home came over and made of it what i could!
Resuklt being am loving it and wanna stay longer so far, just so i can see if i can survive a finnish winter!

Hank W. · Post by **Hank W.** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 12:21 pm

Canada is a 3rd world country, Zuk, non-EU. Work permit & immigration process is according to the "long ceremony". And nobody will go through the "long ceremony" for someone who is going to bugger off in a few months. Only thing I can think of is working as an au pair.

interleukin · Post by **interleukin** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 12:41 pm

Maybe if you are a student you could find a way to do part of your studies in Finland? Maybe your local Uni has an exchange deal you can make use of. Of course if you are not a student, it all gets more complicated I guess.

Muddy Zuk · Post by **Muddy Zuk** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:01 pm

Canada is a 3rd world country

WOW THEY MOVING UP THE CHARTS

sinikettu · Post by **sinikettu** » Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:13 pm

A Canadian..Perhaps Jimmy plays Ice Hockey having seen Jokerit's dismal performance last season they might well have a vacant place in their team.
http://www.jokerit.com/

I would not mind the job of coaching this team of theirs

All application for the job to be sent to me written on the back of 50€ note

This season's Jokerit cheer leaders....
http://www.cheerupteam.com/

Jimmyt · Post by **Jimmyt** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 1:35 am

Thanks for some pointers muddy zuk I will continue looking for information that could help. As for hank W. I take offence to your comment, you obviously now nothing of Canada. I didn't come on here to be heckled. As for playing hockey I think I am the only one who doesn't. I will keep in touch.

Hank W. · Post by **Hank W.** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 8:25 am

You offended me first

If you had made half a effort you'd gone to the Directorate of Immigration's or the Finnish Embassy's in Ottawa web pages or even the Centre for International Mobility as they have some internships or even YFU - and read the small goddamn print. But no, you just sit there munching poutine. Go get offended all you like, reality is what counts and not your ego.

What the Scottish person known as Zuk says applies for someone who has a work permit/gets one automatically, like EU citizens. Zuk is still confused he is actually not quite as a foreigner as he expected to be and more probably after getting a job in weeks when people here whine endlessly of the difficulties of getting hired. I shall go and taunt him one of these days - got a shift on Thursday Zuk? I might pop over for some overpriced Guinness at the watery tart.

Muddy Zuk · Post by **Muddy Zuk** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 4:15 pm

after getting a job in weeks

it was actually days i'll have you know!! as for confused yeah always i think its all the pretty women leaving me in a daze, that and the fact they come and talk to me in the bar quite why they have any interest in an unshaven balding Scot still amazes me!!

I shall indeed be working on thursday my good man, 1700 - 0430.

might be good to put a face to the name, depends if your as ugly as some claim! dont want you scaring away the pretty women though!!

Mölkky-Fan · Post by **Mölkky-Fan** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 4:31 pm

We had an au pair from Canada, and the obtaining of the resident's permit was really difficult. She had to take Finnish lessons in Canada so to prove that she was really interested in Finland. We had to get a letter from the Vantaa adult education system to say that we had applied for her Finnish courses here, and that we could not book them at that time of year. We had to ensure that she had full travel and medical insurance, enough money to survive in the first month, write letters of invitation, have completed contract etc etc. Then they asked for her to guarantee she would pay tax! (you could ask why she does not get medical coverage if she pays tax?)
The delays in getting the permit were quite excessive, and I had to make many phone calls to push it along.
Our other au pairs have been EU residents and they were quite simple compared to the move from Canada.
Anyway, good luck in planning your move.

Hank is right though, too many people ask open ended questions without bothering to make their own basic search. The immigration web pages are easy to find and in English, so you must check these out before asking for more info.

Hank W. · Post by **Hank W.** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 4:40 pm

And - there are also blokes as au pairs - Its not that common, but it isn't a girls-only job either.

zam · Post by **zam** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 5:23 pm

there's a programme called Swap Canada for Finns who would like to go to Canada (kinda working holiday arrangement). Maybe you could ask Youth Co-operation Allianssi here in Finland who is their counterpart in Canada, if you would like to come the other way...
http://www.allianssi.fi/

Meeks · Post by **Meeks** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 5:28 pm

It helps being a dual citizen of both said countries.

Hank W. · Post by **Hank W.** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 5:31 pm

Err... I think that is the wrong Allianssi - that http://www.allianssi.fi is a lawyers office... http://www.alli.fi/ is the Allianssi youth organization.

eduran · Post by **eduran** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 11:47 pm

Jimmyt wrote:Hello my name is Jimmy I am a 26 year old Canadian citizen. I am interested in moving to Helsinki Finland in 6 months and staying for 6 months to a year. Anybody with information on the best route to achive this goal would be appriciated. Info such as getting a job, are there working holidays for Canadians such as there is for Austrailians. Anything could help. Thank you.

For such a "short" period, the easiest way is being an exchange student. As it has been pointed out, coming here for working only 6 months is a joke, since virtually nobody will hire you, let alone for that amount of time.
Only thing that might help is some interational program like IAESTE.
Take no offense from this forum. People try to help you 94% of the time. So now, after the standard disclaimer: what? are you crazy? why the hell would you come here, go through all the trouble, the changes if you are just staying for a few minutes?

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