Hire a temporary worker as an in-home caregiver: Overview
New measures for low-wage positions
Starting September 26, 2024, certain LMIA applications submitted for low-wage positions will be affected by the following measures:
- certain LMIA applications for low-wage positions in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher won't be processed
- in some sectors, the current 20% cap on the proportion of low-wage positions is being reduced to 10%
- in the construction and healthcare sectors, the cap on the proportion of low-wage positions is being reduced to 20%
- the maximum employment duration for low-wage positions is being reduced from 2 years to 1 year
Temporary refusal to process LMIA applications for low-wage positions in Montréal
From September 3, 2024, to March 3, 2025, certain Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) applications submitted for low-wage positions in the economic region of Montréal won't be processed.
Certain in-home caregiver positions aren't affected by this temporary measure. For more information, consult Hiring in the province of Quebec.
Please read our latest notices:
National Occupational Classification (NOC) Migration
The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) has switched to the 2021 version of the NOC. Learn more about the NOC 2021 transition.
1. Overview
The TFWP is intended to be used when you are facing short-term skills and labour shortages, and only when no Canadians and permanent residents are available.
Families can hire a foreign caregiver to provide care, in a private residence, to children, seniors or persons with certified medical needs, when Canadians and permanent residents are not available.
Under the TFWP, families can hire foreign caregivers. However, the caregivers must:
- provide care on a full-time basis (minimum 30 hours per week)
- work in the private household where the care is being provided
- meet the requirements set by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)/Service Canada and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
These families or private household employers will be able to hire foreign workers, on a live-in or live out basis, for 2 categories of in-home workers, which include:
1. Caregivers for children
- children under 18 years of age
This category could include positions such as:
- childcare provider, live-in caregiver, nanny (NOC 44100)
2. Caregivers for people with high medical needs
- elderly persons, 65 years of age or over
- people with disabilities, a chronic or terminal illness
This category could include positions such as:
- registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse (NOC 31301)
- licensed practical nurse (NOC 32101)
- attendant for persons with disabilities, home support worker, live-in caregiver, personal care attendant (NOC 44101)
Note: Foreign caregivers working in Canada may be eligible for permanent residency, provided they meet IRCC requirements. For more information on the pathways to permanent residence for caregivers, and the specific occupations that are eligible, visit IRCC.
Employers must meet the program requirements for the streams for high-wage positions or low-wage positions, including paying the prevailing wage for the occupation in the location where the work will be performed and conducting the necessary recruitment and advertisement requirements for the stream.
As of September 26, 2024, employers submitting an LMIA application for a low-wage position may request a maximum employment duration of 1 year, down from 2 years.
Employers submitting an LMIA application for a high-wage position may request an employment duration of up to 3 years. The employment duration must align with the employer’s reasonable employment needs.
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