Bitcoin Forum

How do you get a Visa? Or dual citizenship?

I'd like to move to British Columbia, and with BTC law making it safe for coiners, I'd like to go there and live while I work on building some wealth through coins :)

There's information on the government website (http://www.gc.ca/) about immigration and stuff.

I tried about ten years ago, but they, like most countries, operate a strict closed-door policy. You have to meet strict criteria (special skills, or dump $400k into the country, etc.) to qualify for residency. I don't have a problem with their rules, but some of their ministers ought to shut up about Canada being open to immigrants. It is not. But some places, like the US, Australia and New Zealand, among others, have even stricter controls if anything.

Living abroad legally can be a bureaucratic challenge*. The challenges facing migrants today are quite different from those of 100+ years ago. Living in a country illegally has its own issues too.

A foreigner (with clean record and stuff) can "buy" their way into the US with about a million bucks (or have they raised the price?) but the bureaucratic processes behind obtaining the green card are usually nightmarish, even if you actually qualify, apparently. This is based on hearsay and book research, though, not personal experience!

* bilateral agreements minimising or eliminating immigration controls wholly within predefined areas, e.g. between EU/EFTA or Australia/NZ, for example, are a special case, which I am discounting here.

ETA (important): if you're serious about settling in another country, you will need permanent resident status and not a guest/student/work visa. This is really important and is the crux of a lot of migrants' troubles, since governments make permanent residency extremely hard to get (partly because it's not that easy for them to revoke it once they give it to you). The exception to this rule would be a kind of "bridging" visa which, while not being a resident permit, carries a guarantee or promise of full permanent residency after a given time (assuming no breaches of visa T&C). Some countries' spousal visas, or the New Zealand "work to residency" program, would fall into that category, but again, strict criteria usually apply even to get these visas. It's tough out there. :(

Thanks for the help guys :)

if you're under 31 and from the commonwealth countries, youth mobility visa is the way to go

So, like try to go to College there?

Back in the bush era when everybody was talking about it I found out how hard it is. Like anything in this world its all about one thing, money. I rember $350,000 was the number but that was 10 years ago so $400,000 sounds about right there. You don't need to spend this money on the process to get in. They just want to make sure you are bringing something to the table and not moving there broke. You can invest that money in a busniess or a house but I guarantee they won't count bitcoins  :D

The other way in is to have a degree in a very technical feild. High skills in a very high demand department will get you citizenship in a heartbeat if your young.

Or marry in. This is actually a method of choice for the lazy and poor  ;)

I have heard that people can come in if they are "A Great Benefit to the Country". Like, research projects and entertainers.

1. What if I started a project with Bitcoiners in Canada, do you think that would work?
2. I am part of the medicinal MJ field in Colorado, which is pretty big in BC Canada. So maybe I could try to work it into next years 4/20. I wouldn't mind going to Canada :)

nope, it's just a work-anywhere, free to do whatever kind of visa. it's for 2 years, costs like $200. easy to get, you just need a clean record and you're on your way. that's how i came to the uk.

Nice :)

by the way, you won't regret it. i lived in vancouver for a few years. it's one of the best cities in the world and that's no joke. it's beautiful, the people are nice, sushi is amazing, it's clean and has a good tech industry. damn, why did i ever leave?!

I've always wanted to go. I've only been once, and it was Calgary, when I was like 10.

calgary is full of rednecks. and nickleback

lol. :)

I hope you have no record of Driving Under Influence. It is considered on-par with a murder here and your entry will be denied. Happened to a friend of mine who tried to get a work permit.

Nope.

The reference to "youth mobility visa" for (some) Commonwealth nationals is presumably the working holidaymaker scheme. Three points of note:

- Not all Commonwealth nationals are eligible, I don't think. Jamaicans and Kenyans, for example, probably cannot obtain WHVs (AFAIK).
- The US are not a Commonwealth country. There may be some countries offering similar schemes available to US passport holders, however.
- WHVs are normally valid only for one year or sometimes two and offer no bridge whatsoever toward permanent residency, which is the status you need to settle in the country.

The WHV is a simplified guest-worker scheme suitable for those who wish to spend a short time in that country, travelling and doing incidental part-time work, mainly, and it is not for would-be immigrants.

I never felt the people in Vancouver were particularly nice, but the city itself is. And the weather's not that bad really.

Still, if you want to settle in Canada you will require permanent resident status, unless of course you're a Canadian.

If you are country shopping for freedom I have done quite a bit of research.

My final conclusion was Costa Rica though the Bahamas is more free. But the Bahamas are more expensive.

Though there is one kick ass country in asia where the political process involves politicians rising in public office based upon the amount of parties they throw. There is certain criteria to each party including a roasted pig among other things.

Those don't seem like coin friendly environments though. It needs to get more widespread before you can just go to the Bahamas for coin freedom I think.

Ahh, I was thinking you were talking about bitcoin laws. Yes, I doubt the adoption rate is very high though it would be a good thing to use in Costa Rica since they have an inflationary currency and many locals do not even use that currency.

I am talking about laws, but  don't want to be stuck somewhere that I can't use the coins I'm getting, lol.

costa rica is indeed a good choice (alot of gambling companies host their servers there, so it's quite open in that sense). but would avoid san jose. it's pretty much a shit hole. just score a place in santa theresa or mal pais with consistent internet connection and you're all set.