Andy Semotiuk – Pace Law Firm: The bad news out of Greece has led to stories of Greeks seeking immigration to Canada or the United States. For those Greeks wondering what immigration options may be open to them, I offer the following advice.

There are strong Greek communities in both the United States and Canada who can help their compatriots in this, their time of need. The way these families can help is to sponsor Greek family members, or to find employers who would be prepared to hire Greeks from Greece to come and work for them here.

Further, if there are Greeks who have significant assets, they may want to consider one of the investor routes to immigrate to North America. The US EB-5 program may be of interest to those Greeks who can afford to take the investor route. There is also a Canadian investor option for those who have a net worth of at least $ 1.6 million Canadian, where for a fee of $220,000 they can effectively buy permanent residence in Canada.

Finally, for Greeks who are educated in certain fields or have skills in specific professions, they can self-petition themselves into Canada as permanent residents under the Canadian Federal Skilled Worker program. Here is the current list with the professions that are still open. This list should open up in all of the professions in July of this year, though there is no guarantee of that. Check back with the government website often to see if any changes have taken place. You can also contact me if you need assistance.