Some Quebec respondents reported being drawn to the idea of migrating by an advertising campaign conducted by a Canadian recruitment agency. However, it was not exclusively focused on health care professionals. According to these respondents, agencies such as Accès Canada do not promise to find respondents work, but only to facilitate migration to a country (Canada) which seeks their services.

O.K. la première, je ne sais pas c'était vraiment volontaire. J'ai vu à la télé. On faisait la publicité que le Québec et le Canada demandaient des immigrants pour venir travailler. Je me suis dit mais pourquoi ne pas venir là parce que au pays on est, on ne peut pas dire qu'on n'est pas bien, on est bien mais je voulais avoir une autre, je ne sais pas comment dire, venir voir d'autres affaires, ... et puis quand je lis un peu on me dit que les sages-femmes sont bien ici et puis il y a beaucoup d'autres affaires, ici on a plus de matériel pour pouvoir travailler

[O.K. first, I don't know if it was really intentional, I saw some advertising on television that Quebec and Canada were looking for immigrants to come and work. I thought, "Why not me?" Things in our country were not bad, but I wanted something else, I don't know exactly what it was, but I wanted to come and see something different, ... and when I read up on it a little, I found out that midwives are treated well here and lots of other things. Here, we have more material to work with.] [Québec ITM #3, no longer pursuing integration].

These kinds of agencies – which exist in many provinces – are often operated by immigration lawyers and paralegals that assist hopeful immigrants to collect and complete all necessary documentation for immigration and then follow the progress of their file. For a fee, they can assist prospective immigrants with obtaining a work visa. After that, immigrants are left to their own devices and expected to make and pay for all travel, lodging and employment arrangements themselves. There are, however, several difficulties associated with this pathway into Canada.

Those who came to Quebec through a recruitment agency, such as Accès Canada, reported a lengthy immigration processes. In fact, most respondents using the services of these types of agencies report a four to six year wait before being eligible for migration.

Il y a eu Accès Canada et qui a dit que vraiment le Canada avait besoin de personnel qualifié.... Donc c'est eux qui se sont occupés ... qui se sont occupés d'immigration, pour là-bas aussi c'est vraiment dispendieux et vraiment c'est long. C'est long. Moi ça m'a pris pratiquement cinq ans

[Access Canada said that Canada really needed qualified employees... So they took care... they looked after the immigration. Back there, immigration is very expensive and very long. It's long -- it took me almost five years.] [Québec IEN #5, in progress].

The cost associated with using the services of this type of recruitment agency can be very high, because, unlike agencies seeking immigrants to fill specific positions, travel and visa expenses are incurred by the immigrant and not the hiring institution. On many occasions, these agencies also receive a fee for their application processing services.

Interviewer : Donc c'est un processus qui est quand même assez dispendieux, j'ai l'impression vous arrivez ici, vous avez dépensé tous vos sous pour venir?
Respondent : Tous, tous, tous nos sous, ça nous prend presque 6, 7, 8, ça dépend des gens mais ça passe 8 000 euros, 8 à 9 000 euros.

[Interviewer: So the process is fairly expensive. I get a sense that by the time you arrive, you've spent every penny to just to get here?
Respondent: Every single penny, it takes almost 6, 7 8, it depends on the person, but it's over 8,000 Euros, 8 to 9,000 Euros.] [Québec ITM #2, no longer pursuing integration].

Some of our participants also felt that the information provided by these agencies regarding potential employment is vague and often overstated. Some respondents report having had high hopes for employment opportunities which were subsequently dampened upon their arrival.

Oui mais d'abord avant notre départ et puis quand on avait entamé la procédure mais on a vu que vraiment il y avait un besoin très, très, très important des agents de santé au niveau du Canada et moi ce que je me disais c'est que pour moi quand j'allais arriver au Canada ici bon déjà j'allais commencer à travailler. Mais c'est lorsque je suis arrivé ici que je me suis rendu compte d'une autre réalité. Que d'abord ce n'était pas aussi immédiat de quitter un autre pays et de venir commencer à travailler ici.

[Yes, but before we left and after we started the process, we were led to believe that Canada was in desperate need of health workers, and I thought that was why I was coming to Canada -- in my mind, I thought that once I arrived in Canada, I would start working. But when I got here, I realized it was a different story, that it wouldn't necessarily be automatic, to leave one country and to start working here.] [Québec IEN #4, in progress].

Immigrants' experiences with agencies that recruit workers to Canada without pointing them toward specific job opportunities have, to some extent, been perceived as misleading. This is, in large part, because the agencies do not make clear and detailed information available to immigrants in the health care field about access to work in Canada.