I intend to share my shipping experience with aspiring immigrants. Mostly i will highlight the glitches in my shipment plan and i hope this helps them to plan better on some of the issues which have not been discussed in detail on CD.

Canada is expensive country when you have just arrived, I would recommend bring all that you can possibly afford.

I contacted one of the shipping companies to send my stuff to Toronto and i was informed that it will take roughly 35 days to reach toronto. It sounded fine and i booked the shipment and I planned my shipment such that i should get my goods within 15 days after my arrival in canada. I packed my furniture,books, clothes and electronics(110 v) in my shipment. I paid my freight at source so that i dont have issues at destination. My shipment was 16 packs.

I was required to provide a permanent address in canada and a phone number.

Problems faced

1. Never believe the Expected time of arrival. Nobody is sure!! be it canada, dubai or anywhere. They are always hopeful not sure.. My shipment was at least 20 days late. I had packed all our kitchenware and formal clothes in my shipment assuming i will receive my shipment on time. I had to buy kitchenware after i took appartment and formal suit when i was called for an interview.

2. Make sure that you have clear understanding of payment involved in the shipping process. I paid full amount at source so that i dont have to pay in dollars after i reach canada. I was confirmed by the shipping agency that this is all that i need to pay but unfortunately i had to pay on the spot around $270 as handling charges. I checked my papers and ofcourse it mentioned pre-paid freight only. So this was a charge which i wasn't aware about. Due to circumstances I had to pay $450 for transportation of shipment to my house ( I was aware about this but money charged for this was unexpected). One can arrange cheaper transportation but for that you will need time. After the arrival of shipment 5 days are given to clear goods any additional day will incur $25 daily.

3. Bill of lading, you might have heard about it. You may have 2 bill of lading numbers. One of the Bill of lading will be given at the source by the shipping agency to you and other might be given to the source agency by the destination agency. You should confirm this with your agent . Without the Bill of lading number issued by the destination agency you will not be able to track your shipment here in canada.

4. Furniture can be very bulky so one should get only stuff which can be disassembled. Furniture is quite expensive if you go for new but second hand can be a good substitute. A brand new sofa will cost you minimum $500. A decent cupboard will cost you again around $600 plus. Second hand sofa will cost you anything from $200 onwards.

5. For electrical goods make sure you have adapters for sockets used here appart from the 110 voltage. I had really hard time finding those and they happen to be very expensive.

6. Tranporation packing should be of some hardwood otherwise you can expect breakage. I will have memories of this shipment till i have my stuff with me.

7. Please verify the address you are giving on the shipping papers yourself. Dont rely on relatives. People move here a lot and addresses change frequently. The address which i gave confidently was wrong as my relatives had moved from that place. I suggest one should call up personally and make sure that you have at least one correct permanent address in canada.

8. Add everything you can think of in your Goods to Follow list. There is no penality for not bringing stuff listed in it. Its very difficult to modify the list.

9. You may not require to bring fridge, gas stove and washing machines as these things are provided in appartments. ( I am not sure about the basements). I will have to carry my gas stove for some time now...

I hope this helps people plan their shipments better.

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Manjeet Singh

Manjeet,

But from where did you ship these items. Dubai or Mumbai or Delhi??

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What goes around comes around...
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A CANADIAN INDIAN

i came to canada only with my books and clothes.

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I am not Bossy! I just have better ideas!!

I got my shipment from Dubai

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Manjeet Singh

Hi Manjeet,

Did you move your stuff in a container?How much was the cost involved in moving your goods.What all should one take from Dubai so that you dont end up buying costly stuff there.

Where can we get these 110 Adaptors in Dubai.Any ideas.

As a sidenote, could you post your experinces on the job hunt?It would be helpfull to the rest.

Best regards
Northwind

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Those who want to make their dreams come true dont sleep

Thanks a lot Manjeet 4 all this valuaable advise which shall aid future Imigrants . I am sure we didnt have any info on shipping experinces till now .
As of now I sum that mattresses are a singular cost varying possession and shd b bare minimum brought .Also 1 shd avoid bringing electronis items sans 110 v .
I opine that it makes more sense 2 dispose 1s possessions b4 moving 2 save transportation storagecost and be more mobile initially .Sofas and all are almost @ the same rate as in the ME and so much 4 the Electronics also .
Cud u share the cost of transporting a container / half-container .I am in process 2 find that myself .

Manasvi

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Orginally posted by northwind



Where can we get these 110 Adaptors in Dubai.Any ideas.


Best regards
Northwind

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Deal With Reality or Reality Will Deal With You