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There is a special temporary worker program called the Caregiver Program. Caregivers provide care for children, elderly persons or persons with disabilities in private homes. (Formerly called the Live-in Caregiver program, it was recently changed as of Nov. 30, 2014.)

To work as a caregiver in Canada, you must make an application to the visa office for a work permit (www.cic.gc.ca/english/work/caregiver/index.asp). If your application is successful, you will receive a work permit. To be eligible, you must have the following:

• A positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from an employer in Canada.

• A written contract with your future employer, signed by you and your employer.

• Successful completion of the equivalent of at least one year of Canadian post-secondary school education.

• At least six months approved training or one year of full-time paid work experience as a caregiver or in a related field or occupation (including six months with one employer) in the past three years.

• Knowledge of English or French at the “initial intermediate” level at Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 5 as confirmed by a designated third party language test. (See Chapter 5, section 1.1).

• A work permit before you enter Canada.

Applicants in this category are usually interviewed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). It is important that you prepare thoroughly and know as much as possible about your future employment in Canada. Even though you most likely have never been to Canada, you will be asked questions about your employer, your family, your job duties, and where you will live. Be prepared!

After you have completed 3,900 hours of authorized full-time employment under this program within four years of your arrival, you can apply for permanent resident status. There are, however, certain requirements and restrictions in calculating these hours and becoming eligible for permanent residence, including a medical check. Fortunately the program has been improving in recent years including the elimination of the live-in requirement as well as the introduction of an open work permit that allows caregivers to find other employment so they can have more than one job or employer.

Note: On October 31, 2014 the Minister of Immigration Chris Alexander announced changes to this program including the elimination of the live-in requirement along with speedier processing times for permanent residence applications. For more about the changes to the Caregiver Program see: http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?nid=898719.