Caregiver

A foreign individual who applies for permanent resident status or a temporary work visa in Canada as a caregiver may be eligible for both. Along with job experience, specific caregiver applications will determine if the foreign national is eligible for permanent residency or whether they need to apply for a temporary work visa.

Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot

Both the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot are five-year pilot projects that would make it possible for capable carers and the members of their families to obtain permanent residence status in Canada. If a foreign national is eligible for permanent residency, it will depend on both their employment history and the details of their application. An applicant will choose one of three possible applications based on their qualifying work experience:

• The applicant does not have any qualifying work experience and has never worked full time as a caregiver in Canada.
• The applicant has some qualifying work experience equalling less than 24 months based on either current or previous caregiver work within Canada.
• The applicant has 24 months or more of qualifying work experience as a caregiver in Canada based on the last 36 months.

The application process will vary based on which application the foreign national qualifies under.

Applying to either the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or the Home Support Worker Pilot

The applicant will select one of the two caregiver pilots for Canada, depending on the industry the foreign national decides to work in. The applicant will submit a work permit application along with their application for permanent residency if they are eligible for it under one of the two caregiver pilot programmes. If an application meets the requirements, they will be given a temporary occupation-restricted open work visa that will allow them to work as a caretaker while they wait for the confirmation of their permanent residency.The temporary work visa can be used to gain further experience if the applicant's work history does not meet the requirements for permanent residency. The Canadian government will make a final determination regarding the application for permanent residency once adequate documentation of work experience has been presented.

Find out more about Caregiver applications and how it is related to your individual situation.