Home Care Worker (caregiver pathway)
Caregivers — home child care providers and home support workers — have had dedicated routes to permanent residence in Canada. Right now those PR pilots are closed to new applications: the current Home Care Worker Immigration pilots show as closed, and the earlier pilots have ended (IRCC still processes applications received before the deadlines). A temporary work-permit route for caregivers remains available.
Draft · pending_review
Current status
Caregiver permanent-residence routes are not currently open to new applications:
- Home Care Worker Immigration pilots (Child Care and Home Support) — the current PR pilots — show as Closed for both applicants and employers.
- Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot — closed to new applications on 17 June 2024; IRCC continues to process applications it received on or before that date.
- Caring for Children Program and Caring for People with High Medical Needs Program — ended 18 June 2019 (only complete applications submitted before then are still processed).
If you want to come as a caregiver now, the temporary work-permit route below is the available option. Check IRCC for any reopening of the PR pilots.
What it is
These programs are for home child care providers (NOC 44100) and home support workers (NOC 44101) — people who care for children, or for someone who needs home support, in a private home. The newest permanent-residence route is the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots (Child Care and Home Support), for skilled workers who have a job offer in home care.
Who can apply
When open, the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots are for people who have:
- a full-time job offer in home care,
- relevant work experience or training, and
- the required language skills and education.
These criteria are from IRCC's pilot pages — note the pilots are currently closed to new applications.
Work temporarily as a caregiver
You may be able to work in Canada temporarily as a home child care provider (NOC 44100) or home support worker (NOC 44101) for an employer who has a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. IRCC notes these caregiver work-permit applications currently get faster processing. Whether you can apply depends on your situation — for example, you're going to work in Quebec, or you're already in Canada with a valid study or work permit.
Good to know
- Qualifying caregiver work means full-time work caring for children in a private home — not an institutional setting like a daycare (NOC 44100) — or caring for someone who needs home support in a private home — not a nursing home (NOC 44101). You don't need to live in your employer's home.
- Caregiver programs change often; always confirm the current status and any new intake on IRCC before acting.