For anyone who might have considered this/decided, including , how do you compare Canada vs Australia ? Given the similarities that both have an easy PR process, reporting growth in tech sector, and are both vast chunks of land with few epicenters of opportunities.
I feel like given the weather and less distance from India, Australia would be a better choice from personal life point of view, and given the proximity to the US, Canada would be a better choice from professional point of view. All of these factors are relative of course.
Would love to read whether people agree or disagree. Apologies if this is not part of the agenda for this forum, or has been discussed earlier. Thanks.
At some point in the past I also had the same question and it was answered after I spoke to a lot of people who have lived in both places. I will express my personal opinion here which is shaped by my impression of Canada as I’ve been there and my friends’ impression of Australia, who’ve been there. Canada is pretty much like the US, with less population, and thus fewer number of jobs in tech (esp. compared to US and Silicon valley, although that’s changing), with better healthcare, and nicer people. According to my Australian friends who’ve been to USA, Australia is less developed than USA & Canada. When I say less developed, I mean they are still one step behind the US and Canada in many things, including technology, growth and development, the kind of cutting edge jobs you can find particularly in USA and Canada. Australia is also much more into mining and related jobs rather than tech jobs. Australia is really expensive, especially if you want to live in a place Sydney. Aus is also planning/or has abolished their 457 work visas in the name of “Aussies first” so that doesn’t bode very well for future immigrants. Although, weather-wise, nothing beats Australia! I guess if you could find a well paying job and a PR you might wanna consider Australian PR, especially if you care about the weather. And especially after what’s happening in the US with possible tightening of H1 rules, more people might end up going there.
I would second what Anshul said. I have a few Ausi. based friends who are not in the process for a Canadian PR. The tech industry is far far behind North America. In terms of travel Canada has a lot more diversity nearby from Vancouver, BC, Montreal, Qubec and all of the US.
A follow-up question on this topic: what will happen if a Canadian PR applies for an Australian PR? Will that negatively affect the Canadian PR’s chances of later becoming a Canadian citizen, given that this person will have met all necessary requirements for becoming a Canadian citizen with application to another country’s PR being the only concern?
Both countries don’t care what kind of immigration you hold for any other country and that doesn’t affect your application in either country. You are free to surrender Canadian PR and accept Australian PR provided you can get it. If you don’t meet residency obligation (2 out of 5 cumulative years) you lose Canadian PR. I’m sure Australia also has similar condition. For Citizenship you need 3 out of 5 and they won’t care if you have a pending application for Australian PR. Once you are Canadian citizenship you can move anywhere without losing it. They count the past 5 years for Canadian citizenship so if you move before that you lose your Canadian PR.
From the little I know about AU citizenship is 4 / 5 years and they often allow you to reactivate PR even after you’ve failed the initial commitment. Canada is pretty stick about their 2 / 5 year requirement unless you were working for a Canadian company overseas or something.