Canada – Caregiver Program

Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker – Caregiver Pilot Programs

Canada is caring for its caregivers by 2 new pilots that will help caregivers who come to this country make it their permanent home.

The Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker pilots will open for applications on June 18, 2019, replacing the expiring Canada caregiver program – Caring for Children and Caring for People with High Medical Needs pilots.

LMIA IS NOT NEEDED UNDER THIS NEW PILOT PROGRAM

Canada Caregivers will now only receive a work permit if they have a job offer in Canada and meet standard criteria for economic immigration programs. Once working in Canada, caregivers will be able to begin gaining the required 2 years of Canadian work experience to apply for permanent residence.

Through these new pilots, Canada caregivers will also benefit from:

occupation-specific work permits, rather than employer-specific, to allow for a fast change of employers when necessary;
open work permits and/or study permits for the caregivers’ immediate family, to help families come to Canada together; and
a clear transition from temporary to permanent status, to ensure that once caregivers have met the work experience requirement, they will be able to become permanent residents quickly.

These new pilots provide caregivers from abroad and their families with a clear, direct pathway to permanent residence.

Canada is committed to improving life for immigrants and supporting jobs for the middle class.

Some important highlights of the program are:

The new pilots, Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker, will each have a maximum of 2,750 principal applicants, for a total of 5,500 principal applicants per year, plus their immediate family.
Initial applications to the new pilots will have a 12-month processing service standard. A 6-month processing standard will apply for finalizing an application after the caregiver submits proof that they have met the work experience requirement.
With the move to occupation-specific work permits under the Home Child Care and Home Support Worker pilots, employers will no longer need a Labour Market Impact Assessment before hiring a caregiver from overseas.

Source-cic.gc.ca