I am a Canadian citizen working in UAE. I sponsored for my mother's PR about 5 years ago. She recently received her Visa after several medicals etc. I plan to come to Canada with my mother for her landing for a couple of weeks and then return back to middleeast. Does any one has an idea how long will it take for the issuance of PR card for her? Is it normally given at the airport or mailed to the home address in Ontario later? OR could you ask the immigration officer to forward the PR card to Canadian consulate in Islamabad or UAE?

What would be the best and fastest method or sequence to register for SIN number, OHIP, bank account etc.

Should I sign up for a private medical insurance for her?

My G2 license has expired. Can I drive / rent a car on the International driving license issued in UAE?

Any advise or experience shared shall be appreciated.

PR card

The PR card generally arrives in a month's time at the address (in Canada) you give at the time of landing.

SIN

Go to any HRDC centre, and apply in person. Check this link to download an application form, and for addresses of the HRDC offices. Some offices can issue a SIN # immediately

http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/asp/gateway.asp?hr=en/cs/sin/010.shtml

Bank

You can open a bank account, AFTER you have applied for a SIN. Take the landing paper, passport and the receipt of SIN application stamped by HRDC, when you go to open the bank account. You might want to request for a statement to be sent by mail,

OHIP

While you mother can apply for OHIP anytime after landing, however the cover starts three months after landing- so the card gets sent to the person just before the three months are about to end.
You would also need proof of address while applying- so when her bank sends her the first statement- she can use that statement from the bank as proof of address.

There is a new office downtown, where there isnt much of a crowd, so if your mom is old, you would be better going there. The address is College Park, 777 Bay St., (market level) at the southeast corner of Bay Street and College Street. The office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Appointments may be booked for this office through the ministry's toll-free number 1-888-376-5197.

The OHIP application can be downloaded from here
http://www.forms.ssb.gov.on.ca/mbs/ssb/forms/ssbforms.nsf/AttachDocsPublish/014-0265-82~11/$File/0265-82_.pdf

Its always a good idea to have medical insurance for the interim three months, before the OHIP cover starts. If you plan on buying medical insurance for her, after landing, then you might want to remember that she needs to apply for medical insurance, within 30 days of landing.

Hope it helps.

Regards

Hi,
Just my 2 cents about the SIN process. I recently landed and went to the Mississauga HRDC to get the SIN for me and my family. We got our SIN within 10 minutes in the form of a letter. The letter also stated that the SIN card will be mailed within 5 business days to the mailing address we had provided. The HRDC official told me that providing instant SIN was a new process and some HRDC offices have been authorized to do that.

soberflier & souvik_k

Thanks a lot for sharing this information and valuable links.

Guys, any chances of any problems for my mother's entry as I shall be returning to Canada almost after 2 years and with a permanent UAE visa stamped in my Canadian passport?

I have manitained canadian postal address and canadian bank accounts / credit cards etc.