PERMANENT RESIDENCE AS A CAREGIVER WILL END NOVEMBER 2019
Immigration Newsweek
By: Atty. Henry Moyal
A subtle tsunami in immigration law occurred this week. Its announcement sent ripple effects worldwide and every nanny agency from Hong Kong to Dubai were trying to piece together what immigration’s announcement meant to current workers under the caregiver program and to those who are planning to arrive.
On November 29, 2014, Canada Immigration restricted permanent residence applications through the Live-in Caregiver Program to workers whose initial entry to Canada was supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment received by Service Canada on or before November 30, 2014. At the same time, Canada Immigration introduced two new pathways to permanent residence: the Caring for Children Pathway and the Caring for People with High Medical Needs Pathway.
The introduction of these 2 new pathways was intended for only 5 years which means it will cease effect at the end of November 2019.
Further, the announcement in the official government web site last week clearly indicated that caregivers will no longer be able to apply for permanent residence after November 2019. If so, what about caregivers who arrived in Canada a month or two ago? They will never mathematically be able to accumulate 24 months of work to qualify? Or what about workers who will arrive to Canada as caregivers soon? Do these workers know that they will not be able to ever qualify for permanent residence?
Canada is the only country in the world that has this special program that permits caregivers to automatically become immigrants after two years of Canadian work. Has Canada been too generous all these years?
The reality is however that the new pathway program resulted in very few applications since 2014 ( under 2000). In contrast the live in caregiver program had over 10,000 from 2006-2014.
While the trend of immigration seems to suggest that this program will end, it would be beneficial to all if immigration was honest and transparent to let everyone exactly what lies ahead for caregivers.
A few days after the announcement, Canada Immigration amended its notice to the following:
We are reviewing the Caring for Children and Caring for People with High Medical Needs pilot programs to determine how caregivers will apply for permanent residence after the pilots expire on November 29, 2019. We will announce the details well before the pilots expire.
These 5-year pilot programs are scheduled to expire on November 29, 2019. To be eligible to apply for them, you will need to have two years of full-time work experience as a caregiver and submit your application before that date.
Attorney Henry Moyal is a certified and licensed immigration lawyer in Toronto, Ontario.
The above article is general advice only and is not intended to act as a legal document.
Send questions to Attorney Moyal by email canada@moyal.com or call 416 733 3193
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