Ahh, so I’ve been going nuts over details.
I’m participating in the Youth Mobility Agreement program between Canada and Germany, which allows youth ages 18-35 from both countries to obtain unrestricted work visas for a year in each other’s country. What’s great about this program is that the paperwork is minimal, there is no visa fee, you aren’t stuck to your employer, and processing time is faster than a normal visa & residence permit!
I am so grateful the program even exists. I love being Canadian!! There are youth mobility agreements between Canada and 40 other countries all listed on the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada website.
In terms of being ‘frugal’ about my choices here, I was finding it very hard to do so because I needed to make quick and snappy decisions, all at once. While under loads of stress, it can be hard to make smart, planned out decisions, which often end up costing more money.
For instance, my highest expense right now are plane tickets. Prices for plane tickets can vary so much based on flexibility. Some airlines even offer a spectrum of categories for flexibility, like KLM’s categories.
Since I’m not sure exactly how long I will remain in Germany for, I was getting really stressed about having to pay top $$ for flexible tickets and then having to pay extra penalty charges when I changed those dates later (because even though there the option to change, penalties associated too). Paying a penalty for not having thought out travel dates would be such a waste!
Also, because my passport is expiring next summer, I needed to buy tickets that coincided with those dates too, for the purposes of my visa application. Or pay $70 and go through lots of rush-stress to expedite my passport renewal (I need my passport in order to apply for a visa). If I went by my passport expiration date, I would’ve definitely had to change ticket dates later because I want to stay longer than what my passport reads. Even though I am able to renew my Canadian passport while abroad, I have a hunch that the German Consulate won’t be impressed with me overstaying my passport with the ‘promise’ that I’ll renew everything on time. Especially Germans. They’re very ‘by the book’, or so I hear. 
Good thing I am too. Ha!
So why am I in a rush, why don’t I just slow down? Well, I’m in a rush because I have a job lined up for me in Germany, but it’s not a firm offer yet. I’m a bit insecure about it, so I wanted to rush everything to get back to Germany and get that damn job!
Except(!), I have to work at government speeds here and the paperwork flow is not going to be faster just because I want it to. It would’ve been cutting it close to the date I wanted to be back in Germany by (end of November). I was afraid that something would happen, like my application would be delayed, and I would end up spending too much because of that. Expediting my passport is already $70, eek!! And if I had to change my plane ticket dates, it would be $150 plus the cost of fare difference to Air Canada. These are not drop-in-the-bucket amounts to me.
So, what I did instead, was call up my potential employer in Germany and had a talk with her about it. I basically wanted to feel more confident that the job would be there for me if I delayed my return to Germany, as well as express my interest in the job and company too. And it worked!!
My potential employer said that they would rather wait for me than not have me at all, and understood my work visa and timing dilemma. So, phew! It looks like I can plan to be in Germany by January 2009, and have that still be okay job-wise. BIG RELIEF! 
Since I’ll have a brand new passport (which I won’t need expedited!), I’m going to go ahead and book my return ticket to Canada at the latest date the airline will allow me to and not have to worry about my visa application being delayed because of it. And knowing me, I am more apt to extend my trip rather than to shorten it!
I am also opting to pay more upfront for flexible plane tickets, because my return date is a year away and I want the security of knowing I can change my ticket if I need to. It’s cheaper to pay for a date change than to let go of my return ticket and buy a one-way ticket home at the date I want. In the long term, this choice may actually save me money.
My decision to go to Germany in January instead of this November already saves me $70 from expediting my passport and at least $150 for plane ticket changes. I will also have some more time to research and compare health insurance plans, which I hope will further save me money. And I have the time and head space to think and plan about other wonderful things. Like Canadian tax implications.
A+ for me. 
