How much does it cost to migrate to Canada

It is understandable that you may be concerned about the costs related to migration and whether you will have to spend half of your entire life savings in this process. Fortunately, it’s not expensive. For most applicants, it will be ballparked at $2000 per person or less, inclusive of everything. We have shared below a breakdown of the costs that will help you understand the expenses even better.

All figures are in Canadian Dollars (CAD) per person. To convert these amounts in your local currency, you may use xe.com.

IELTS test – The costs vary a little from country to country, but the average is around $300. We applied through IDP IELTS.
ECA – We went through World Education Services (WES) and their fee for evaluation for the purpose of immigration is $220. If you live outside of Canada and you want the hard copy results delivered to your address, then you will have to shell out additional $25 to $85 depending on the type of courier service you choose. However, this expense is totally optional and the free electronic copy is good enough since you only need to submit it electronically.
Medical exam – This will vary from country to country but you can assume a range of $100 to $400 per person.
Police check – This will also vary depending on your country but it should be easy on the pocket.
Immigration fee – This fee is charged by IRCC for processing your application and granting you PR. It costs $1,325 for the primary applicant and the same amount is charged for the spouse. In addition, $225 is charged per dependent child.
Miscellaneous – You may have to spend some money elsewhere too, for example paying your University for acquiring sealed transcripts or getting photos taken for the application. You may also spend a few thousand dollars on an immigration consultant although that expense is totally optional.

The good news is that you will need to pay many of these amounts only when it is almost certain that you are going to get your PR. The fee for IELTS and ECA will have to be paid irrespective of whether you get PR or not. However, the rest of the charges are incurred only when you receive your Invitation to Apply. From that stage, it is highly unlikely that your application will be rejected as long as you have not misrepresented anything in your application.

In the grand scheme of things, $2000 is chump change when it is about starting a new life in a new country. Consider it as an investment towards a better life and future.

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