There is a labour shortage of live-in caregivers in Canada. In response to this, the Live-In Caregiver Program was established by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and is jointly administered with Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC).

A live-in caregiver is someone who provides continuous, full-time, unsupervised care for children, the elderly or the disabled in a private household. Mandatory components of the program are that:

• the caregiver must live in the employer’s home;
• employers must demonstrate that household circumstances necessitate a caregiver to live in the home and that hiring a suitable Canadian citizen or permanent resident to work in the home on a daily live-out basis does not meet household needs;
• there is no demonstrable shortage of workers or in-home care giving positions on a live-out basis.

A person outside Canada seeking a work permit as a live-in caregiver in a private household in Canada must have:

• applied for a work permit as a live-in caregiver before entering Canada;
• successfully completed a course of study equivalent to secondary school in Canada;
• the ability to speak, read and listen to English or French at a level sufficient to communicate effectively in an unsupervised setting;
• an employment contract with their future employer; and either
• successful completion of six months of full-time training in a classroom setting; or
• completion of one year of full-time paid employment, including at least six months of continuous employment with one employer, in such a field or occupation within the three years immediately before the day on which he/she submitted an application for a work permit.

First, the employer must have the offer of employment for the caregiver from abroad approved (confirmed) by HRDC.

Next, the caregiver must then apply to CIC for a work permit. CIC will assess the background of the caregiver to ensure the specific qualifications and requirements of the program are met.

An HRDC confirmation does not automatically ensure that CIC will issue a work permit.
Once a caregiver has completed at least two years of employment within three years of arrival in Canada as a live-in caregiver, he/she will be entitled to apply for permanent residence in Canada.

• Skilled workers
  
• Investors
  
• Entrepreneurs
  
• Self-employed
  
• Provincial Nominees
  
• Maintaining permanent resident status
  
• Permanent Residence
  

Disclaimer: the information included on this website is intended to be of a general nature and does not constitute legal advice.