A PRACTICAL STARTING CHECKLIST
Your First 30 Days
Focus first on safety, documents, health, housing and local connections.
What this means
The first month should focus on safety, reliable contact information, essential documents, health access, housing and a local support network. Not every newcomer is eligible for the same program, so use this checklist as an order of work rather than a promise of eligibility.
Step-by-step
- Secure safe temporary or permanent housing
- Set up a reliable telephone number, email address and mailing address
- Follow the official process for a Social Insurance Number when eligible
- Check provincial health coverage and interim health options
- Open an appropriate bank account after comparing identification requirements and fees
- Register children for school where applicable
- Connect with settlement, language and employment services
- Learn the nearest transit, library, pharmacy, grocery and urgent-care options
What to prepare privately
Keep sensitive records secure. This website does not need passports, SINs, banking credentials, immigration portal passwords or complete case files for an initial inquiry.
- Identity and status documents kept private
- Proof of address when available
- School and vaccination records where requested
- A list of medications and health needs
- A simple first-month budget
Next steps
- Know emergency and 211 contacts
- Follow official steps for SIN and health coverage
- Arrange banking and communication services
- Connect with settlement, language and employment help
Before you continue
Can I rely on this guide?
Use it to understand the process, organize questions and choose the next step. It does not make a government decision or replace advice for an individual case.
What changes most often?
Eligibility rules, forms, fees, processing information, program availability, service hours and contact details can change. The review dates below show when our sources were checked.
When should I get help?
Use a verified settlement or community service for navigation. Seek an authorized professional when legal interpretation, strategy, a refusal, a hearing or an important deadline is involved.
Continue on DurhamImmigration.com
Your next step should stay on this site. Official-source links are kept separately below for final verification only.
Official sources checked
The guide above is written to answer the practical question on DurhamImmigration.com. These links are supporting evidence and the final place to confirm details that can change. Last reviewed: August 30, 2026.