Immigrating to Canada signifies the beginning of a new chapter in your life. Like every new thing, starting over in Canada can be fun yet overwhelming.

Here are the toughest challenges facing new immigrants in Canada, with tips on how to overcome them.

1. Employment

An oil field engineer working at Tim Hortons, a PHD degree holder working in a call centre or previous top bank manager serving as an office clerk? Examples like these can be seen all over Canada as newcomers try to crack into the challenging job market. In Canada, getting a job in your right field often takes a while. But with perseverance and focus you will get to your desired position, and you will join many others as a success story. Customize your resume, keep applying, keep improving and maintain a positive attitude. Besides that, this guide contains other helpful information to apply for jobs in Canada

2. The Weather

The Canadian seasons can be hard to adjust to. A lot of immigrants tend to enjoy summer and spring due to how accessible and bright everything looks. Winter is often the most brutal season to navigate in Canada. Regardless of the season you enjoy the most, get the right clothes for each season. This will help you feel better irrespective of the weather.

3. Communication Barrier

Communication is vital in everyday activities. In moving to a new country, communication can often become a problem.
Canada’s official languages are English and French. While English is a shared world language, the Canadian accent can make grasping words hard. To learn English, many newcomers attend Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC) programs. This is also an avenue to meet people and make new friends.

If you are from an English-speaking country, you may need to evaluate your language knowledge to earn your Canadian Language Benchmark(CLB). A free tip is to practice as much as possible with English-speaking friends and read several books. Remember to not be hard on yourself while making mistakes.

4. Cultural Shock

Living in a place with a new culture can cause a kind of stress known as culture shock. This may include everything from social traditions to more severe concerns like gender views, religious variety, ethnicity, and sexuality, all of which can be radically different in a new country. It is essential to accept that your values will differ from others, and you have no control over them in such a situation. Accepting other values does not imply that you must adopt them as your own, but it does suggest that you must learn to appreciate them in others.

5. Financial Management

With or without a job, managing your finances in a new country can be an arduous task. The conversion rates, the standard of living, the new currency, and the bills can seem overwhelming and leave you cashless for a long time. You can ease this problem by setting a monthly budget, savings, and financial goals that you must follow strictly. This will help give a sense of direction and discipline.

6. Means of transportation

In your home country, you might have been able to move around driving your car or “jumping buses.” Canada’s means of public transportation are streetcars, trains, and bus systems. This might essentially be different from what you are used to. You may not be able to use the driver’s license from your home country, so you would have to get qualified, which means extra costs. The solution to this challenge is learning to ask questions from locals and master the public transit timetables. You can also find someone around from support groups who can help make adjusting easier.

7. Friends and family

It’s normal to be homesick and miss your friends and family. However, you can deal with missing them by making new friends. You can make friends with other immigrants in your ethnic community or by reaching out to friendly faces in your neighborhood.

8. Housing options

Finding a comfortable and affordable housing option is something a lot of immigrants complain about. A big part of solving this problem is to do your research in advance, which the internet makes more accessible than in the past. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has part of its site dedicated to immigrants with information about the process and getting affordable housing.

9. Discrimination

The majority of Canadians are open-minded and courteous of different communities. While this is often true, there are occasions when it is not. Some immigrants face discrimination from Canadians born here or who have been here for an extended period and from other newcomers. Discrimination is an unpleasant experience and can be made based on race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation.
Dealing with this can be challenging. It is essential to know that there are laws to protect you from discrimination in Canada. You have the option of filing a formal complaint with the Human Rights Commission, your boss, or joining support groups and services to seek moral and emotional support.

10. Raising children
Children and teenagers react to environmental changes differently. Some of them might become withdrawn and isolated.

At the same time, others might blend in too quickly and pick up so much information and culture from the environment.
It’s critical to strike a balance between instilling in your children respect for your cultural standards and values while also enabling them to integrate.