Updates to the Caregiver Pilot Program: December 2022
On December 6, 2022, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) updated the instructions for the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot. These 5-year pilot programs let some qualified caregivers and their families come to Canada and eventually become permanent residents.
Some of the changes for this program include:
- clarifications on language and educational requirements;
- updates to assessing genuineness of job offers; and
- additional information added to assessing admissibility.
In this article, we’ll explore these changes. However, if you are not familiar with the caregiver pilot process, please read the following article: Caregiver Pilot Program Process.
Table of contents
Language and educational requirements
The applicant must demonstrate that they have attained a language proficiency of level 5 in the CLB (English), or the NLCL (French), for each of the language skill areas: reading, writing, speaking, listening.
Language test results must be less than 2 years old at the time of receipt. Moreover, the results will be used as conclusive evidence of an applicant’s language proficiency. IRCC won’t consider other written evidence.
Education
The applicant must provide evidence that they have one of the following completed items:
- Canadian 1-year post-secondary (or higher) educational credential or
- foreign educational credential equivalent to the above and an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report issued for immigration purposes by an organization designated by IRCC.
Application process and who can apply
Eligibility for processing
All applications for permanent residence (APR) under the Home Child Care Provider and Home Support Worker pilots must be submitted to the Case Processing Centre in Edmonton (CPC-E), in Alberta.
There are two caps for each pilot:
- Intake cap: In each pilot, a maximum of 2,750 applications will be accepted for intake per calendar year. It applies to all applicants, even if their applications are incomplete.
- Processing cap: A maximum of 2,750 applications will be put into process per calendar year in each pilot. Applications must meet the requirements specified in section 10 of the IRPR and in the application kit to be considered eligible for processing.
Gaining experience category (Category A)
Applicants with less than 24 months of eligible Canadian work experience must satisfy eligibility and admissibility requirements upfront. These include:
- meeting the minimum language requirements
- meeting the minimum education requirements, also
- having a valid job offer and be likely to accept it
- being able to perform the work
- being admissible to Canada
Officers evaluate applications based on the criteria listed above. Therefore, if the applicant is eligible and admissible, the applicant is issued an occupation-restricted open work permit (OROWP). Moreover, their permanent residence application is put on hold.
In addition, dependents who apply for permanent residency with the principal applicant may be able to join the principal applicant. They may also be able to get an open work permit or study permit.
It is important to note that once IRCC issues the OROWP, the principal applicant must obtain 24 months of eligible, full-time, Canadian work experience. Applicants must submit proof of obtaining this work experience within three years of receiving their OROWP.
If the officer believes that the work experience submitted before issuing the OROWP does not match the criteria for valid work experience (e.g., inadequate time or inaccurate NOC) after the issuance of the OROWP, they may decline the application.
Direct to permanent residence category (Category B)
An applicant with at least 24 months of eligible Canadian work experience must satisfy the following criteria:
- meet the minimum language requirements
- meet the minimum education requirements
- meet the Canadian work experience requirement
- be admissible to Canada
If the officer determines that the work experience submitted does not meet the criteria for eligible work experience (e.g., they don’t have enough work experience, they don’t have the right work experience), they may refuse the application.
Completeness check upon receipt of application
Applicants must submit a complete application, including all mandatory forms, fees, information and supporting documents. According to IRCC, the Case Processing Centre (CPC) in Edmonton, Alberta will check the applications for completeness, in order by date of receipt. If the applications meet the requirements, the CPC will:
- enter the application information in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)
- recover the processing fee
- send an acknowledgement of receipt that has an E number to the applicant
Incomplete applications
If the application is incomplete, the CPC will return the incomplete package, along with the fees, to the applicant and records the action in GCMS [R12]. However, general exceptions apply.
Please note that this is a summary of the Caregiver Pilot Program requirements. You can obtain more information in the IRCC website.
Relevant articles
- The Caregiver Pilot Program in 2022
- The Caregiver Pilot Program Process, also
- Who qualifies for the Caregiver Pilot Program
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If you would like to apply to this program, please fill out the following form. We will get back to you as soon as possible. Alternatively, you may book a consultation session for specific questions. For other immigration purposes, please fill out our free assessment form.
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