Why migrate to Canada?
A major advantage of living in Canada is that, in most locations, it’s possible to buy a comfortable, large detached house on a normal income. Now rising wages and a strengthening currency have pushed Canada’s average wage higher than the USA’s, the UK’s and most of European countries.
Federal Skilled Worker
The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) selects immigrants based on their ability to succeed economically in Canada. After meeting eligibility requirements, applicants are assessed against selection criteria, also known as the “points grid.” There are 100 points available to applicants, with points awarded for official language abilities, age, education, work experience, employment already arranged in Canada, and adaptability. The current pass mark is 67.
After a thorough review of relevant research, an extensive program evaluation, stakeholder and public consultations, research and study of best practices in other immigrant-receiving countries, improvements to the FSWP were announced in December 2012. These improvements came into force on May 4, 2013.
A pause on the intake of most new FSWP applications has been in place since July 1, 2012, except for those with a qualifying job offer and those who applying under the PhD stream. The pause was lifted and an eligible occupations stream re-established on May 4, 2013.
While Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will not be accepting applications for the 24 eligible occupations until May 4, 2013, there are some new requirements that applicants can start preparing for, such as language tests and foreign educational credential assessments. The complete application process, featuring the new selection criteria, Is available on cic’s website effected may 4 2013.
All individuals who are considering applying on or after May 4 should be aware that if their application does not meet the new criteria, it will not be processed. A prospective applicant should ensure they meet at least one of the following requirements:
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They have at least one year of continuous work experience in one of the 24 eligible occupations;
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They have a qualifying offer of arranged employment (*note changes to the arranged employment process were previously published in this web notice); or
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They are eligible to apply through the PhD stream.
If prospective applicants are confident that they meet at least one of the above requirements, they must also meet the minimum language threshold and obtain an educational credential assessment (if submitting a foreign educational credential).
Eligible Occupations List
The eligible occupations stream will have an overall cap of 25,000 new applications and sub-caps of 1000 applications in each of the 50 occupations on the list.
Eligible occupations (with their corresponding 2011 National Occupation Classification code):
0013 Senior managers – financial, communications and other business services
0015 Senior managers – trade, broadcasting and other services, n.e.c.
0111 Financial managers
0112 Human resources managers
0113 Purchasing managers
0121 Insurance, real estate and financial brokerage managers
0311 Managers in health care
0711 Construction managers
0712 Home building and renovation managers
0811 Managers in natural resources production and fishing
0911 Manufacturing managers
1111 Financial auditors and accountants
1112 Financial and investment analysts
1113 Securities agents, investment dealers and brokers
1114 Other financial officers
1123 Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations
1212 Supervisors, finance and insurance office workers
1224 Property administrators
2113 Geoscientists and oceanographers
2131 Civil engineers
2132 Mechanical engineers
2133 Electrical and electronics engineers
2145 Petroleum engineers
2171 Information systems analysts and consultants
2172 Database analysts and data administrators
2173 Software engineers and designers
2174 Computer programmers and interactive media developers
2232 Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians
2234 Construction estimators
2241 Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians
2243 Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics
2263 Inspectors in public and environmental health and occupational health and safety
2281 Computer network technicians
3011 Nursing co-ordinators and supervisors
3012 Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses
3111 Specialist physicians
3112 General practitioners and family physicians
3132 Dietitians and nutritionists
3141 Audiologists and speech-language pathologists
3142 Physiotherapists
3143 Occupational Therapists
3214 Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists
3215 Medical Radiation Technologists
3216 Medical Sonographers
3233 Licensed practical nurses
3234 Paramedical occupations
4011 University professors and lecturers
4151 Psychologists
4214 Early childhood educators and assistants
5125 Translators, terminologists and interpreters
Minimum Language Threshold
All prospective applicants to the FSWP should first determine whether they meet the new minimum language threshold: Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 7 in all four skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). To prove language proficiency, a prospective applicant must take a third-party language test from an organization designated by the Minister and submit their test report along with their application to CIC.
Language test results will be accepted by CIC for two years from the date that they were issued by the designated organization.
CIC-designated language testing organizations include: Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP),International English Language Testing System (IELTS), and Test d’évaluation de français (TEF).
Third-party language tests are scored differently by each of the three organizations. Here are the scores on each of the tests that correspond to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 7 or higher:
English
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Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program (CELPIP)
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An FSWP applicant must score at least 4L on the CELPIP-General test in each of the four skills to meet the minimum language threshold.
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A score of 4L on the CELPIP-General test corresponds to CLB 7. A score of 4H corresponds to CLB 8, and a score of 5 or higher corresponds to CLB 9 or higher.
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International English Language Testing System (IELTS)
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An FSWP applicant must score at least 6.0 on the IELTS General Training test in each of the four skills to meet the minimum language threshold of CLB 7.
French
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Test d’évaluation de français (TEF)
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An FSWP applicant must score at least 206 in reading, 248 in listening, and 309 in both speaking and writing on the TEF to meet the minimum language threshold of NCLC 7.
Arranged Employment
Previously, employers have applied for an Arranged Employment Opinion (AEO) from Human Resources Skills Development Canada when they wished to hire a foreign national on a permanent, full-time basis and support their employee’s application for permanent residence through the FSWP.
Starting on May 4, 2013, CIC will no longer accept AEOs in support of an FSWP application. Instead, most offers of arranged employment will require a Labour Market Opinion.
Educational Credential Assessment (ECA)
Another important change that takes effect on May 4, 2013, is the introduction of the educational credential assessment (ECA). Prospective applicants may start the process of getting an ECA before May 4 if they are planning to submit a foreign educational credential. However, applicants should keep in mind the other program eligibility requirements listed above, i.e. whether they have a qualifying offer of arranged employment or are applying under the PhD stream or eligible occupations stream; and if they meet the minimum language threshold through a designated third-party test. Applicants who have Canadian educational credentials do not need to get an ECA, unless they are also submitting a foreign educational credential in support of their application.
The ECA process will help determine if the foreign educational credential is authentic and equivalent to a completed credential in Canada. For prospective applicants, the ECA can provide a realistic understanding of how their foreign educational credentials are likely to be recognized in Canada.
As of April 17, 2013, four organizations have been designated by the Minister to provide ECA reports for purposes of immigrating to Canada under the FSWP. Additional organizations may be designated by CIC in the future. The designated organizations are:
Comparative Education Service: University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies;
International Credential Assessment Service of Canada;
World Education Services; and,
Medical Council of Canada.
The Medical Council of Canada has been designated only for those principal applicants who intend to apply with specialist physician (2011 National Occupation Classification [NOC] code 3111) or general practitioner/family physician (2011 NOC code 3112) as their primary occupation in their FSWP application.
Neither NOC code 3111 nor 3112 is on the eligible occupations list that takes effect on May 4, so this will only affect those applying under the PhD stream or with a qualifying job offer based on those NOC codes.
Applicants should contact the designated organizations directly for further information on their documentation requirements, processing times and fees.
CIC will only accept ECA reports issued after the date the organization was designated by CIC to provide
ECA reports for immigration purposes (i.e. April 17, 2013). An ECA report will be valid for immigration purposes for 5 years from the date that it was issued by the designated organization.