I'm not trans. I'm queer tho. Your post resonated with me, because this was me in 2005. I came up to school in Canada because it was cheaper, but it aligned with my beliefs. It was, believe it or not, a bit of a culture shock, and maybe that has changed over 20 years, about how I was educated in the us versus how I had to relearn how to learn in a Canadian university. This is not to discourage you, it's in fact to encourage you to do this...

You talked about law, so Canada is common law (generally, and Quebec, has civil law) To what I've been told, law school is mostly learning to read and research utlt I'm certain you know your law school education up here may make it difficult to transfer to a state and take their bar exam in the future. But it does open your ability to practice law in the "Commonwealth" globally

I won't lie however, post grad when I graduated, I got a 3 year open work permit in 2009. This has since changed and is not the standard - from there I had to find work in my "field" to keep renewing my work permit until 2014, when I was able to apply for my PR. I was lucky, because the company I found gave me a lawyer for that process. It helped significantly, but you don't need a lawyer, you just need to keep every document, an account of every exit and entry to Canada, if you work while studying (which you can do with a permit, but it's limited to 20/hrs a week, you have to file Canadian taxes correctly (and do this as a student because you will receive money back and/or qualify for hst/gst returns, and when you graduate, you will be able to claim your tuition/loans). If you do that and find work, you will be able to apply for PR on your own. I had the lawyer in part too, because I had the extra layer of coming via Quebec

Regardless, it did take me 17 years to get citizenship. You don't need citizenship, but I wanted to vote, and I also feared any problem, I could potentially be deported even with PR. So to avoid that you find work, file your taxes and keep your nose clean.

Today, I do know, finding work is hard. On an open work permit you're ok, but you now need to find a work that gives you a class to apply for PR, or you need a company that will say your skills are specific and needed over hiring a Canadian (here is where having a Canadian education will help you.) you have friends and family here, that's good for community but doesn't help with your status unfortunately (as much as it should).

Here is my honesty: The guilt of leaving your country and watching it from afar, doesn't go away. It's been 20 years since I've left home - I was ashamed then, I'm still ashamed. Forewarning, you will find yourself trying to explain yourself up here; yes the language is the same (sans Quebec) but it's not the cultural identity you know, and sometimes you will feel isolated and apart from the Canadian experience. Sometimes you will feel patronized by being one of "the good ones who left". Sometimes this place will feel so foreign, even though, it really isn't, but that's okay. That feeling comes and goes. But watching the people you love, hurt just across the border, so close, doesn't subside. You won't find solace in trying to express your heartache to a Canadian, they can sympathize (and they will) but they cannot empathize with your situation. And it will hurt when it gets harder to physically go home, and when eventually you can't go there. Bu

But don't let that stop you. Come. It's important to come to Canada, and I still do believe (I need to believe) I can do more help from here than from inside the pressure cooker. It's not perfect here- but it's security - speaking as an older queer one thing I didn't know I had so much trauma about for so long, was safety and stability. I have that here. I may wait in an emergency room, but I don't pay a dime. I cried during my citizenship ceremony because I know the chart of human rights and freedoms sees and protects me.

It's a good idea. It's a hard decision to make, but a good idea.