Despite the numerous and diverse migration options offered by Canada and each of its provinces, the majority of Dominicans arrived in the North American country with a study visa, or a work permit, or ended up changing to one of these programs if they applied. The latter was the case of Mariela Morales, a 42-year-old Dominican with a Business Administration degree who decided to leave everything and move to Canada in 2014 to start a business. But when they arrived, she, her husband, and their young son realized it would be an uphill journey.
At the time, they decided to change the investor visa program so that Mariela could pursue a postgraduate degree while her husband received a work permit that lasted roughly the same amount of time. “Initially, we came with an investor visa, but when we arrived, the adviser who assigned us told us that we didn’t have to go through this process if we wanted to save money starting a business, that we should do it through studies, so I changed the program to the student visa,” Morales explains.
They were legally allowed to stay in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, for a year and a half with both permits. They decided to stay because it provided them with “a lot of openness and facilities” at the time, mainly because housing and food costs were lower. They were granted permanent residence in this province after meeting the requirements, and they later applied for Canadian citizenship after meeting the federal requirements.