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Hey New Locals,
"I have the PR card, the job, the apartment. Why do I still feel like a visitor here?"
When you move to Canada, you're hit with new weather, new rules, new slang, and new everything. At first, there is a rush. Then one day you are on the bus with your groceries, your brain is tired from English or French all day, and you think, "Ok, but when does this place feel like my life, not a long trip."
Good news. You are not the only one asking that. And we have some real data, plus some concrete moves you can make this week.
This edition is about that slow shift from "I just arrived" to “this is home” and how to speed it up without burning out.
Let’s get into it.
How long does it really take to feel settled in Canada
A LinkedIn poll from RCIC Egidija Benotiene asked one simple question:
"How long does it take to really settle in Canada?"
Out of 286 people:
53% said about 5 years
28% said 10 years
19% said 2 years
one person said 2 months, which is wild and we want their secret
So if you are in year 1, 2, or 3 and still feel wobbly, that is not failure. That is normal.
From the comments and from our own team at New Local, three things change that timeline the most:
friends and community
money and basic financial safety
career progress and job stability
You do not control everything here. But you do have some levers you can pull. Let’s keep it practical.
Find out how to do that here
If you want regular help with this, you can also plug into our New Local community. We share immigration updates, life in Canada tips, and job leads by email. You can join here:
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No noise. No jargon. Just business insight that drives results.
🏢 COME-2-CANADA
A big win for grad students
If you are considering a master's or PhD in Canada, this update is relevant to you.
From January 1, 2026:
masters and PhD programs at public universities will be exempt from the federal study permit caps
PhD applications will get 14 day processing times
What this tells us:
Canada wants to attract research talent
The government sees grad students as part of the long-term innovation plan
Serious students in research fields now have a more predictable path
Want to know what to do next? Full details and context here:
—
Canada’s 2-stage immigration game
Explained in plain language
Canada’s new immigration levels plan leans hard on this idea:
let a lot of people in on temporary status
pick the ones who get to stay permanently
So students, workers, visitors sit in stage one. If you match what Canada wants later, you move to stage two and get PR.
If you want a deeper breakdown of how the levels plan works and why temporary folks are at the center of it, read this next:
👉 Why Canada’s Immigration Levels Plan Favours Temporary Visa Holders
CAREERS
Mentorship: the cheat code Black students are using in Edmonton
You can be qualified and still never see the good jobs. Why. Because the jobs move inside networks you are not in yet.
That is the gap the Mentorship and Resilience Project is trying to close for Black students in Edmonton.
Run by Prof Cecilia Bukutu and Viola Manokore, the program helps you:
plug into real networks, not just one time events
learn how to move in networking rooms without shrinking
see which companies are actually hiring, not just posting
It does not promise magic. It gives you a map and people who walk it with you.
👉 Check out the Mentorship and Resilience Project (MRP)
Health check: how newcomers can find a family doctor
One simple thing makes a big difference when you settle in Canada: having a family doctor.
Your family doctor is your main contact for non-emergency care. Many referrals and tests go through them. For newcomers, getting one can feel like a mystery. Or like a lottery.
Here is the simple version.
Use your province or territory registry
Most regions now have a central program that matches people to family doctors or nurse practitioners:
Alberta: Find a Doctor
British Columbia: Health Connect Registry and Pathways Medical Care
Manitoba: Family Doctor Finder
New Brunswick: NB Health Link
Newfoundland and Labrador: Patient Connect NL
Nova Scotia: Need a Family Practice Registry
Ontario: Health Care Connect
Prince Edward Island: PEI Patient Registry
Quebec: Quebec Family Doctor Finder
Saskatchewan: Saskatchewan Health Authority or search local services
Northwest Territories: NWT Health and Social Services Authority
Nunavut: Nunavut Department of Health
While you wait, you can still use walk-in clinics or urgent care, but getting into a roster with one doctor will help you feel more stable. It also helps you keep track of vaccines, test results, and chronic conditions
LIFESTYLE
What it means to be Canadian now
You can have PR, a job, a health card, and still not know if you feel "Canadian."
Canada's identity is a mix of Indigenous history, immigration, and evolving values. The question "what does it mean to be Canadian" has different answers depending on who you ask.
This piece from Canadian Returnee digs into:
how immigration shapes identity
how Indigenous history sits at the core of the country
how people hold more than one identity at once
👉You can read all about it here
✉️ BEFORE YOU GO
If you only remember three things from this newsletter, let it be this:
most newcomers take years, not months, to feel settled in Canada
community, basic financial security, and career progress are the engines that move you from "new" to "home"
you can choose one small action this week in each area
Settlement is not a straight line. Some days you will feel proud. Other days you will miss home so much it hurts. That tension is normal.
You do not have to do it alone. We are here with stories, tools, and a community that actually gets it.
Till next time,
Dami from New Local.
You can always reach us at [email protected].
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