Canada has announced new immigration pilots for home care workers. Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) confirmed these pathways will open on March 31, 2025. The programs are collectively called the Home Care Worker Immigration Pilots.
These pilots will replace the expired permanent residence pathways for caregivers. The new programs will allow eligible home care workers to obtain permanent residence upon arrival.
To qualify, foreign nationals must meet specific criteria. They must demonstrate a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 4 in language proficiency and have a Canadian high school diploma equivalent. Additionally, applicants need recent and relevant work experience and a full-time job offer for a home care position.
Earlier pathways for home care workers required only six months of eligible work experience to apply for permanent residence. This change became effective on June 16, 2024.
The introduction of these pilots follows IRCC’s June 2024 announcement of plans to launch new caregiver immigration programs. The prior Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot were officially closed on June 17, 2024. Their closure left a temporary gap in specialized immigration pathways for caregivers.
Canada’s history of caregiver pathways includes the Live-in Caregiver Program, which ended in 2014. Other programs, such as the Caring for Children Pilot and the Caring for People with High Medical Needs Pilot, closed in 2019. The Interim Pathway for Caregivers Program, Home Child Care Provider, and Home Support Worker Pilots were also discontinued.
The new pilots will be part of the 2025-2027 Immigration Levels Plan’s Federal Economic Pilots category. IRCC has allocated 10,920 admissions spots for this category in 2025. These spots will also be shared with the Agri-Food Pilot, Community Immigration Pilots, and Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot. The exact allocation for the new caregiver pilots has yet to be disclosed.
Further details and requirements for the Home Care Worker Immigration Pilots are expected soon.
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