Occupation Specific Programs

#1 Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot 

Overview:

Home child care providers and home support workers in Canada offer essential assistance to individuals who need help with daily activities due to age, illness, or disability. Working within the familiar setting of the individual’s home, these dedicated professionals provide personalized care (including tasks like personal hygiene, medication management, and mobility support), all contributing to the person’s physical well-being. 

The caregiver programs offer a pathway for these home child care providers and home support workers to transition from temporary foreign workers to permanent residents of Canada. However, this process involves navigating through several stages, each with its own eligibility criteria and application procedures.

Gaining Experience Category- Eligibility and Application Process

Candidates applying for the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or Home Support Worker Pilot under the gaining experience category must:

• have a genuine and valid job offer from a Canadian employer (the job offer must be full-time and outside the province of Quebec).
• have relevant experience and training demonstrating the ability to perform the job.
• meet the language requirement of CLB 5 in writing, reading, listening, and speaking.
• have completed post-secondary education.

Eligible candidates must apply for an occupation-restricted open work permit when submitting their permanent residence application under the gaining experience category. This permit allows the candidate to come to Canada as a temporary resident to obtain 12 months of work experience within three years. The candidate’s permanent residence application will only be accepted if they have 12 months of qualifying experience within the work permit timeframe.

Direct to Permanency Category- Eligibility and Application Process 

Candidates applying for the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or Home Support Worker Pilot under the direct to permanent residence category must:

• have at least  12 months  of full-time work experience in Canada in the 36 months
• meet the language requirement of CLB 5 in writing, reading, listening, and speaking.
• have completed post-secondary education.

Eligible candidates can apply directly to Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for permanent residency with a complete application.

Note: Since the program is limited in number of applicants and is on a first-come, first-served basis, applicants should prepare the required documents in advance to secure a spot.

#2 Agri-Food Immigration Pilot

Overview:

Agriculture and Agri-Food industry play a crucial role to Canada’s economy. To support this vital sector and address labor shortages, the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot offers eligible temporary foreign workers a pathway to Canadian permanent residency.  Each year, the program accepts up to 2,750 applications.

Eligible industries and occupations:

Industries are categorized according to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).  Under the pilot program, eligible industries include:

• Meat product manufacturing (NAICS 3116)
• Greenhouse, nursery, and floriculture production, including mushroom production (NAICS 1114)
• Animal production, excluding aquaculture, which encompasses:
• Cattle ranching and farming (NAICS 1121)
• Hog and pig farming (NAICS 1122)
• Poultry and egg production (NAICS 1123)
• Sheep and goat farming (NAICS 1124)
• Other animal production (NAICS 1129)

Occupations are classified by the National Occupational Classification (NOC) code. Eligible occupations for each eligible industry are listed below.

For meat product manufacturing (NAICS 3116), eligible occupations are

• NOC 63201 – Butchers – retail and wholesale
• NOC 65202 – Meat cutters and fishmongers – retail and wholesale
• NOC 94141 – Industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers
• NOC 82030 – Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors
• NOC 84120 – Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators
• NOC 85100 – Livestock labourers
• NOC 95106 – Labourers in food and beverage processing

For greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production, including mushroom production (NAICS 1114), eligible occupations are

• NOC 82030 – Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors
• NOC 84120 – Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators
• NOC 85100 – Livestock labourers
• NOC 85101 – Harvesting labourers

For animal production, excluding aquaculture (NAICS 1121, 1122, 1123, 1124 and 1129), eligible occupations are

• NOC 82030 – Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors
• NOC 84120 – Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators
• NOC 85100 – Livestock labourers
• NOC 85101 – Harvesting labourers

Eligibility for Permanent Residency

Candidates applying for permanent residency through the agri-food immigration pilot program must:

• have at least 1 year of cumulative, non-seasonal, full-time work in eligible occupations and eligible industries (the applicant must have an LMIA employer-specific work permit).
• have a genuine and eligible job offer.
• meet the language requirements of CLB 4 in reading, writing, speaking, and listening.
• have at least a Canadian high school diploma or equivalent foreign credentials.
• have sufficient funds to settle in Canada.
• maintain valid temporary resident status (if already in Canada).