Tips to students who are travelling to Canada

1. Reach airport at least 4 hours before the flight time so you can spend some time with your family at the airport before going for check in.

2. You have to checkin 3 hours before the flight departure.

3. Check the checkin counter number before getting into the airport. Checkin counters would be displayed on the big screen with respective to your flight number

Note: Keep your passport and tickets handy

4. Once you complete the checkin, they will tag all of your bags and you will be left with only cabin baggage. Make sure that you collect boarding pass/passes from them if you have connecting flight and now head up to the immigration.

5. At immigration they will ask you general questions such as purpose of visit, college and when will you come back.

Alway say that you will come back soon after your studies, let that be in India or in Canada.

6. After immigration, queue up for security check where you have to put everything including wallet, phone and Jacket.

PS: Girls, if you are embarrassed to remove belt in public, don't wear belt because they may ask you to remove belt during security check.

7. After security check, look out for the gate number mentioned on your boarding pass and walk towards your gate and relax until boarding starts but ensure that you are boarding on time. Boarding time would be mentioned on your boarding pass.

8. And you leave India

9. When leaving the flight at layover airport make sure you are taking all of your luggage and then there would be security check again.

10. Once you complete the security check, take out the next flight boarding pass and walk towards the gate number mentioned on boarding pass.

11. At the gate again there would be few qeneral questions like in India. They may ask few documents like Visa approval letter and college offer letter.

12. And then look around to see if you find students travelling to Toronto so you will have company but ensure that you are at the gate by the boarding time. (Boarding time would be on the boarding pass)

13. As you know the boring starts as you take off to Toronto but sleep well, eat and relax.

14. Once you land in Toronto these are the things you would do.

✓ Declaration : You have to declare the things you are carrying, they made it so easy that everything is online now. You have to go to kiosk and follow the on screen instructions, read everything but you may have to select no for everything. There is this question "are you carrying meat nuts and seeds, select no for that though you are carrying non veg pickle. And one more typical question is duration of stay in Canada, just enter the course duration days. You get a receipt after you complete it, collect it and follow the arrivals sign board.

✓ And there woukd be queue for security check again where they check just the customs declaration slip.

✓ Then line up for immigration, keep all of your documents handy. They would ask following questions.

1. College name and address
2. Course name and duration of course
3. Have you arranged accommodation ?
4. Visa aporoval letter(Correspondence letter), college offer letter, fee receipt, GIC and IElTS
5. Address of the place where you are going to stay.

They've asked me 3 documents i.e; approval letter, college offer letter and fee receipt

They are uber cool and friendly don't take tension at all.

✓ If your course has co-op, you have to take co-op work permit otherwise just the study permit which they would print and give it to you.

✓ After the immigration, you see service canada desk, go to them and take sin number

✓ Once you exit from service canada you see the baggage counters, go to them and check the counter for your baggage. Collect the baggage, walk towards exit and give the customs slip at exit.

✓ There you go, you are out now. Call up the person who are there to pick you up and tell them the piller number.

✓ You may enjoy the cold like me for first 5 minutes as you wait for cab but believe me you will start freezing after 5 minutes so try to wear a jacket which covers your ears and head.

In Canada:

Scotiabank : Google for the nearest Scotiabank, visit them and tell them that you are an International student and you have GIC account with them. They will fix an appointment to open the account.

✓ Reach the bank on time as per the appointment given and the person will explain you everything. They are very friendly.

✓ You have to open two accounts, savings account and checking account.

✓ Difference is, if you withdraw the money from savings account there would be a charge. If you have some amount which you don't want to use then you have to put into savings account but when you want to withdraw, transfer money from savings to checking account through net banking and then withdraw.

✓ They will offer credit card also, if you are looking to maintain credit score, then apply for credit card also which will be delivered to you in 7 days.

✓ Your debit card and account will be activated in 15 minutes as you sit there with the bank person. You can activate net banking if you have Canadian number otherwise you can activate that once you get number from Canada.

✓ If you have money in forex card/cash which you would like to put in Scotiabank account, please do it from ATM. If you have any questions, take help from them. Don't be shy, they are there to help you and they do help.

✓ When you withdraw cash from ATM from forex card, the charge would be displayed on the screen.

✓ In order to deposit the cash, take envelope, put the cash which would like to deposit into the envelope, seal the envelope. (The envelope cover is sticky)

✓ Insert your card and follow the on screen instructions, put the envelope which has money and take the slip. Your money is deposited.

If you want yo use money from forex card, then you can stay back from withdrawing and depositing money. There is no charge when you swipe forex card.

I wish you safe journey to Canada and all the best !!