Because of the very high demand for migrant caregivers (also known as maids or nannies) in Canada there is no doubt why there are many nanny jobs in Canada and caregiver jobs in Canada for foreigners to apply to work in Canada.
If you are a caregiver home child care provider, nanny or maid, there is no cause for alarm for whether or not you can go to Canada to work as a foreigner.
Personal Support Workers are in high demand in Canada in a variety of clinical settings like long term care, home and community care, retirement homes, assisted living facilities, and acute care. The demand for PSW’s continues to increase allowing for endless job opportunities.
The increasing demand for caregivers in Canada makes the immigration process quite easy for anyone who would like to move to Canada as a caregiver or move to Canada as nanny from outside Canada and meets all the requirements.
What's Covered in This Article
Minimum requirements to move to Canada as a care giver / nanny / maid:
- Have at least six months of post-high school in-classroom training in child care; or at least one year of full-time paid work experience as a caregiver or role in a related field or occupation.
- In the last 36 months:
- you’ve worked full-time as a caregiver in Canada for a total of 24 months or more); or
- have a valid job offer from a Canadian employer to work in any one of the above occupations. The job must be a full-time position wherein you work a minimum of 30 hours per week.
- Must have completed equivalent of Canadian high school/secondary school education.
- English and/or French language proficiency skills for all four language skill areas (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) as set out in the Canadian Language Benchmarksor the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens.
- Your CLB test results must be at least benchmark level 5
- Results must be less than two years old at the time that IRCC receives your application.
- Demonstrated ability to successfully do the work as set out in the occupational descriptions of the National Occupational Classification (NOC).
- First aid certification and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training is an added advantage.
- Completed Canadian one-year post-secondary educational credential or equivalent non-Canadian educational credential e.g. personal support worker (PSW).
In addition to the above qualifications, your age, English and/or French language proficiency skills, can help boost your Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) points that determines whether you can immigrate to Canada or not under the express entry pathway.
Once you have identified your NOC code as a home child care provider and confirmed possession of all the above requirements, you can then process your Canada Permanent Residence and move to Canada under any one of the following programs:
- you may be able to come to Canada as a provincial nominee,
- you may be able to come to Canada through the Atlantic Immigration Pilot, or
- you may be able to work in Canada temporarily for up to two years then later apply for Canada PR.
All these three programs use the CRS point-based system and if you’re lucky to get the Invitation to Apply (ITA), your Canadian Permanent Residence application can be processed in 6 to 12 months.
Through any one of the above 3 streams, you can apply to come to Canada as a nanny/child care provider through any one of the below programs:
Caregiver Canada immigration pathways
As a caregiver, you have options to come to Canada to become a permanent resident or work temporarily.
This includes the following programs
You can still apply under the new 2022 cap for the Home Support Worker Pilot. In 2022, IRCC will accept up to 2,750 applications for this pilot.
- Home Child Care ProviderAs of Monday, January 17, 2022, IRCC received at least 2,750 applications under this pilot. This means
- the pilot is closed to new applications for 2022
- IRCC will return any other applications we receive and refund the fees.
The pilot will reopen to new applications on January 1, 2023.
- Live-in Caregiver (LCP) is closed to new applicants.
- Caring for Children ended on June 18, 2019. If you submitted a complete application before June 18, IRCC will continue to process it.
- Caring for People with High Medical Needs ended on June 18, 2019. If you submitted a complete application before June 18, IRCC will continue to process it.
- Interim Pathway for Caregivers ended on October 8, 2019. If you submitted an application before or on October 8, IRCC will continue to process it.
If you don’t meet the requirements for Canada permanent residence as a caregiver, you may be able to work temporarily.
The Home Support Worker Pilot (NOC 4412 to be replaced with NOC 44101 in Nov 2022)
Eligibility
You may be eligible to apply for the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or Home Support Worker Pilot, if you:
- have a genuine and valid job offer
- are able to do the job
- meet the language level
- meet the education requirement
- are admissible to Canada
- plan to live outside the province of Quebec as a permanent resident
Genuine and valid job offer
The job you’re offered must be:
- made using Offer of Employment IMM 5983 (PDF, 2.33 MB)
- full-time, which means at least 30 hours of paid work each week
- from a Canadian employer
- outside the province of Quebec
- from an employer who’s not an embassy, high commission or consulate
- genuine, meaning there’s a real need to hire you
The job you’re offered must be in the National Occupational Classification (NOC) job that matches the pilot you apply for:
Home support worker (NOC 4412 to be replaced with NOC 44101 in Nov 2022)
- You must care for someone who needs help from a home support worker either in your own home or in your employer’s home
- You don’t need to live in your employer’s home to qualify
- Only home support workers are eligible under NOC 4412
- Experience as a housekeeper doesn’t count
Home child care provider (NOC 4411 to be replaced with NOC 44100 in Nov 2022)
- You must care for children under the age of 18 in your own home or in your employer’s home
- You don’t need to live in your employer’s home to qualify
- Experience as a foster parent doesn’t count
Language levels
You need to take a language test to prove you meet the minimum language skills.
To measure your English or French skills, we use:
- Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) for English
- Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadien (NCLC) for French
The minimum language skill is CLB 5 in English or NLCL 5 in French for all 4 language skills:
- writing
- reading
- listening
- speaking
Education
You must have a completed post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year in Canada. If you don’t have a Canadian education credential, you need to get your foreign education credential assessed to show that it’s equal to a completed Canadian post-secondary education credential of at least 1 year.
If you’re currently working in Canada
If you’re working in Canada as a caregiver but you don’t meet the requirements for either pilot, you may be eligible to extend your work permit.
Your employer will have to complete some steps before you can apply to extend your work permit.
Temporary work for caregivers
If you don’t meet the requirements for permanent residence as a caregiver, you may be able to work temporarily.
Apply to extend your work permit
If you’re currently working in Canada as a caregiver, you may be eligible to extend your work permit through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP).
Your employer will need to get a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) first.
Apply for a new work permit
Eligibility
In most cases, you can apply for a work permit to work in Canada temporarily as a caregiver through the TFWP if one of these applies to you:
- You’re in Canada and eligible to apply for a work permit from inside Canada.
- You’re outside Canada and your employer applied for an LMIA before June 18, 2019.
- You’ll be working in Quebec.
You can’t apply for a new work permit (that needs an LMIA) in these cases:
- Your employer applied for an LMIA on or after June 18, 2019, and
- you’re applying for a work permit from outside Canada through the TFWP and
- you plan to work in a province or territory other than Quebec
- You apply for a work permit at a port of entry on or after April 22, 2022.
- You’re in Canada as a visitor and apply for your first work permit on or after April 22, 2022.
How to apply
Your employer will need to get a positive LMIA first. Once they have a positive LMIA, you can apply for a work permit.
As an international student, is it better to enroll as a nurse assistant or a personal support worker in Canada?
It is better to go in for personal support worker (PSW) training in Canada because it is easier to get PSW admission in Canada as an international student, that it is to get as a nurse assistant.
Cheapest Best Institution College University to Study Personal Support Worker (PSW) Course in Canada
The cheapest, best, and also easiest college to study for a personal support worker (PSW) course in Canada is Confederation College.
Confederation College is a public college in Canada for studying PSW, established in Thunder Bay, Ontario in 1967.
Applications for the personal support worker (PSW) program in Confederation College are completed through the international Ontario Colleges (OCAS) portal.
Please visit the “How to Apply” page for more information.
Which PSW Program option is right for you?
There is a variety of PSW Program options which can be reviewed using the following eligibility criteria and links below:
PSW Mainstream (Fall Intake)
- A one year two semester programs within person courses, labs and clinicals.
- Domestic and International students are encouraged to apply but must reside in Thunder Bay or surrounding regional campuses.
- https://www.confederationcollege.ca/program/personal-support-worker
- Contact: tpynn@confederationcollege.ca
PSW Mainstream (Winter Compressed Intake)
- A one year two semester programs within person courses, labs and clinicals. This delivery of semester two is condensed in hours per week as opposed to the Fall Intake.
- Domestic and International students are encouraged to apply but must reside in Thunder Bay or surrounding regional campuses.
- https://www.confederationcollege.ca/program/personal-support-worker-winter
- Contact: tpynn@confederationcollege.ca
PSW Distance Education (Part Time Intakes)
- A two semester program taken over five semesters
- There are on-line “live” theory courses, and in-person labs and clinicals.
- Travel is required to Thunder Bay or one of the northern campuses to attend in-person labs and clinical.
- https://www.confederationcollege.ca/program/personal-support-worker-part-time
- Contact – de@confederationc.on.ca
PSW Distance Education Asynchronous
- A one year, two semester program with online asynchronous theory courses and in-person labs and clinicals.
- Travel is required to Thunder Bay or one of the northern campuses to attend in-person labs and clinical.
- https://www.confederationcollege.ca/program/personal-support-worker-asynchronous
- Contact – de@confederationc.on.ca
PSW Distance Education Accelerated Pathway
- Entry requires a 2-yr diploma in Recreation Therapy, Social Service Worker or Developmental Services Worker
- A one semester program with online, asynchronous theory courses, and in-person labs and clinicals.
- Travel is required to Thunder Bay or one of the northern campuses to attend in-person labs and clinical.
- https://www.confederationcollege.ca/program/personal-support-worker-accel
- Contact – de@confederationc.on.ca
View Other Programs Available to International Students …
Where to find caregiver jobs in Canada for foreigners
Look at individual provincial government websites or job listing portals.
Kindly note that the smaller the city the bigger the possibilities.
1.Personal support worker (PSW) job opportunities in Thuderbay Ontario
- Bayshore Home Care Solutions
- CarePartners
- City of Thunder Bay (Long Term Care) – Pioneer Ridge
- Dilico Anishinabek Family Care
- ParaMed Home Care
- Plan A Long Term Care Staffing and Recruitment
- St. Joseph’s Care Group (SJCG)
- SE Health
- Victorian Order of Nurses (VON)
- Wesway
- More Careers as a PSW
Certification in Ontario
As an unregulated profession, PSWs are not legally required to have certification in order to provide home health care in Ontario, however, many employers will prefer their employees to have PSW training.
Personal Support Workers in long-term care homes must complete a training program that meets the vocational standards set by the Ontario government. Training programs in Thunder Bay is available through Confederation College and Academy of Learning. Most programs only require a high school diploma and are one year in duration.
For internationally educated nurses who would like to work as a PSW in Ontario, the Ontario PSW Association has developed a process for them to obtain membership and work as a PSW. Learn more and see if you are eligible.
PSWs are among the most in-demand positions in Thunder Bay, Ontario with over 150 job vacancies between hospitals, long term care homes, and the private sector. The pay ranges from $18 to over $22 per hour.
2. Click on this link for QUALIFYING JOBS under the North Bay and area RNIP jobs portal
3. You can also find and personal support worker jobs in Canada and caregiver job opportunities in Canada from outside Canada on the Canada Job Bank website.
Awwwa madam Eva may the good lord continue to bless and protect you
Thank you Duke. God bless you too.