CanDo StudioThe first-90-days checklist: your first three months, in order
SIN, health coverage, driver's licence, banking, child benefits, CRA account, school — what to do first, what can wait, and where to go.
0. Who this checklist is for
Pure tourist and family-visit visitors (super visa included): this list is not for you. Three reasons. Visitors have no work authorization, so they cannot get a SIN (Social Insurance Number). Visitor status does not qualify for MSP, and the super visa itself requires you to buy private medical insurance. The benefits below, such as the child benefit, mostly do not apply to visitors either. Visitors who drive during a short stay follow separate rules. See the licence item in section 2.
The list runs "first week → first month → first three months". Why this order? Two countdowns are running in the background. MSP coverage has a wait period: the sooner you apply, the sooner it starts. Your licence gets only a 90-day grace window. So work through the list in order, not by mood.
1. The first week
1. One folder for every document
Put these in one folder: passport, COPR (the PR landing paper) or your work/study permit, vaccination and medical records, your driver’s licence plus a driving record if you can get one, and your school and work credentials. Everything you do in the next three months starts from this folder.
2. Get your SIN (free)
The SIN is a nine-digit number. You need it to work and to receive benefits in Canada. Where to get it: a Service Canada office issues it on the spot. Bring your passport and your permit or COPR. You can also apply online. How it works: a SIN for a PR or a citizen is permanent. A SIN for a work- or study-permit holder starts with 9 and expires on the same day as your immigration document. When you renew the permit, extend the SIN to match. A study permit must say you are allowed to work, or you cannot get a SIN. Plastic cards are no longer issued. You get a paper or digital confirmation letter instead. Keep the number private. Do not photograph it and send it to people.
3. Submit your MSP application (B.C. — don’t wait!)
B.C. requires every resident to enrol in MSP, the public Medical Services Plan. Work- and study-permit holders with a permit of 6 months or more count as residents. The official advice: apply as soon as you arrive. Why the rush? Because coverage has a wait period. It runs from the month you establish residence: the rest of that month, plus two full months. That can be up to about three months. Family members who arrive separately each start their own clock on their own arrival date. Buy private interim medical insurance for the wait. Once enrolled, you get a BC Services Card (B.C.’s physical ID card; it can be combined with your driver’s licence). In month three, that card is what you use to register your CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) account. See section 3.
4. Open a bank account
Canada’s Financial Consumer Agency (FCAC) says it plainly: opening a bank account is your right. You can open one with no job and no money to deposit yet. Most banks offer newcomer packages. Compare the terms yourself. Your credit history starts at zero. The steadiest start: one credit card with a modest limit, paid in full and on time every month.
5. A phone number
Banking, government mail and verification codes all depend on your phone number, so settle it early. The usual route: start with a prepaid card, move to a plan later.
2. The first month
1. Driver’s licence: the 90-day countdown (ICBC)
- For 90 days you may keep driving on your valid existing licence. 90 days is the deadline to switch to a B.C. licence. It counts from the day you move to B.C., not from the day MSP starts;
- If your licence is from a reciprocal-exchange jurisdiction (a country or region on the swap list), you can exchange it with no tests. All others take a knowledge test + road test. Test appointments queue up, so do not wait until day 89. Which group you are in is one lookup on the ICBC site (ICBC is B.C.’s licensing and auto-insurance agency), available in Simplified Chinese;
- You must hand in your existing licence when you switch. B.C. allows only one licence. Proof of 2 or more years of full-privilege driving experience gets you out of graduated licensing (GLP, the new-driver stages). Without that proof, you start inside GLP. Non-English documents may need a translation. It must come from an ICBC-approved translator or a consulate in B.C. The link is in the final section;
- Knowledge tests come in 12 languages. Offices offer phone interpretation in 170;
- Exception one: full-time students at designated institutions do not need to switch while enrolled. The list is the federal Designated Educational Institutions list, and ICBC links straight to it. If your school is not on the list, there is no exemption. Exception two: tourists staying up to 6 months may drive on their own licence. That is a visitor rule, outside this settling-in list.
2. School and child care
Public K-12 school is free for the children of citizens, PRs, and qualifying work- and study-permit holders. Work permit: valid for 1 year or more, with 20 or more hours of work a week. Study permit: valid for 1 year or more, in a degree or diploma program at a public college or university. A child who attends on their own study permit, as an international student, pays international fees. The school district makes the final call on whether a child is "ordinarily resident". Details are in guide No. 4 · School years, section 3. To enrol, register with the school district where you live. Expect to show proof of address and the child’s documents. The district decides the placement. Child-care spots are scarce. If you have children aged 0–5, join the waitlists at your preferred providers in the first month. Get in line first, decide later.
3. Two numbers before you need them
For non-urgent health questions, dial 811 (HealthLink BC, a round-the-clock health line, interpreters available). For emergencies, dial 911. Family doctors are scarce everywhere. Bridge the gap with walk-in clinics (no appointment needed) and urgent care centres. The full map is in guide No. 5 · health care in Canada.
4. Library card and transit card
A library card is free with proof of address. The online courses, newspapers and test-prep databases that come with it are a great deal for newcomers. Transit cards vary by city: Compass in Metro Vancouver, BC Transit in Victoria. Get one and daily travel gets easy.
3. The first three months
1. Apply for the CGEB (formerly the GST/HST credit): no need to wait for a tax return
The Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (CGEB, formerly the GST/HST credit) is a tax-free payment for modest-income households. Officially, you can apply once you are a tax resident (someone with a home and settled life in Canada who files taxes as a resident) and qualify. You do not need to wait for your first tax return. One application per household. No children: submit Web Form RC151 online. Children under 19: mail the paper RC151 with proof of birth. If you also qualify for the child benefit, file RC66 once and it covers both.
2. Canada Child Benefit: PRs and temporary residents have different rules
The CCB is a monthly payment for families with children, based on family income. PRs: apply once you are a tax resident (forms RC66 + RC66SCH). Temporary residents (work or study permits): you must have lived in Canada for the previous 18 months, and hold a valid permit in the 19th month. The permit must not say "does not confer status". That 18-month rule is the official wording. In plain terms: nothing arrives in the first year and a half. Do not let hearsay tell you otherwise. One exception: if your spouse or common-law partner is a citizen, PR or protected person, the 18-month rule does not apply. You apply on their status.
3. Register your CRA account (B.C. residents have a shortcut)
The CRA account is the online portal for taxes, benefits and address changes. Standard registration asks for amounts from a tax return assessed within the last two years. A newcomer does not have one yet. But B.C. residents can register through the BC Services Card login. Per the CRA, you need only a SIN, no tax history. So the order is: MSP in week one → BC Services Card → CRA account. For the identity check, you can choose real-time document verification. It finishes on the spot, with no waiting for a mailed code.
4. Settlement services: free, so use them
B.C.’s BC Newcomer Services Program (BC NSP) is open to temporary workers and international students too. It gives free help with job search, English, and workplace rights. Refugee claimants have a separate program called Safe Haven. Federally funded settlement services focus on PRs and protected persons. Start at WelcomeBC’s "Find newcomer services".
5. Renting in B.C.: three self-defence rules
- A security deposit is capped at half of one month’s rent. A pet damage deposit, if any, is capped at another half month. If the landlord took more, you can give written notice and deduct the extra from next month’s rent;
- Do a written condition inspection with the landlord at move-in and keep a copy. It is your strongest evidence when you ask for the deposit back;
- Disputes go to the Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB). Not the police, and not silent acceptance.
6. A preview of your first tax season
In the first spring after you become a tax resident (February–April of the following year), file your first tax return. It is worth doing even with zero income, because most benefits are calculated from it. That is when Tax Helper’s quiz and free tools come in handy.
4. One table, by status
Same task, different rules by status. Here is the quick reference. The visitor column shows the general case:
| PR (new) | Work permit | Study permit | Visitor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SIN | ✓ permanent | ✓ starts with 9, expires with permit | △ permit must authorize work | ✗ |
| MSP (B.C. health) | ✓ after wait period | ✓ permit ≥6 months | ✓ permit ≥6 months | ✗ buy private insurance |
| CGEB (formerly GST/HST credit) | ✓ once settled (tax resident) | ✓ once a tax resident | ✓ once a tax resident | ✗ generally not available |
| Child benefit (CCB) | ✓ once settled (tax resident) | △ 18 months lived + valid permit in the 19th (unless spouse is a citizen or PR) | △ same 18-month rule (unless spouse is a citizen or PR) | ✗ |
| Licence (B.C.) | switch within 90 days | switch within 90 days | exempt if full-time at a designated institution | own licence ≤6 months |
△ = conditions apply. Official pages prevail. Links are in the final section.
5. Common myths ↔ facts
Fact: visitors get no SIN and no MSP. To work, study or settle, you need the matching permit first. Only then does this checklist apply.
Fact: the CGEB (formerly the GST/HST credit) is officially open as soon as you are a tax resident. No first return needed. The wait is the CCB’s 18-month rule for temporary residents. Two different things.
Fact: the 9 only marks you as a temporary resident. Same rights. It expires with your permit, so extend it when you renew. After PR, swap it for a permanent SIN.
Fact: the opposite. You may drive on your valid licence for 90 days. Those 90 days are the deadline to switch. Full-time students are exempt while enrolled.
Fact: there is a wait period: the rest of the arrival month, plus 2 full months. That is exactly why the official advice is to apply on arrival and carry private insurance meanwhile.
Bonus · Picking your seat for the long flight over
Your first flight to Canada can easily run past ten hours. A good seat is half the battle. Below is a generic layout for a typical jet. Every aircraft is different, so check your flight’s actual seat map on the airline’s site after booking, then decide.
- Front cabin (business / preferred economy): quiet, and first off the plane. Preferred economy usually costs extra. Worth it if you have long legs.
- Exit rows: the most legroom. The deal is you must be able to help with the door and follow crew instructions in English. Bags stay stowed for take-off and landing, and some seatbacks don’t recline.
- Over the wing: the smoothest ride. Pick this if you get motion sick. Engine noise is higher, and the view is mostly wing.
- Mid-rear: quieter, with better views. Rows right by the lavatories get foot traffic and flushing.
- Last rows: off the plane last, and some seats don’t recline. But this is the emptiest zone. With luck, you get a whole row to lie across.
- Window, aisle or middle: window = views and undisturbed sleep. Aisle = freedom to move and stretch. Avoid the middle when you can.
- Flying with a baby: bulkhead rows take bassinet requests. Phone the airline soon after ticketing. First come, first served.
- When to pick: paid seat selection opens at ticketing. To pick for free, jump in the moment online check-in opens, usually 24–48 hours before departure. The earlier, the more choice.
Personal experience only. Your airline’s rules and the actual aircraft prevail.
6. The sites to bookmark
All of these are official or authoritative sites. Each one was checked on 2026-08-27 and was reachable.