Canada’s Interim Pathway for Caregivers has now closed, ending an opportunity for certain qualified candidates to apply for Canadian permanent residence.

The window of opportunity expired on June 4, 2019, after opening on March 4.

It provided a chance for candidates who came to Canada expecting to qualify to remain here permanently, but then found out they did not, to apply for permanent residence.

According to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the pathway was designed to mitigate some of the confusion caused when changes were made to the caregiver system in 2014 under the previous Conservative government.

The Interim Pathway for Caregivers is separate from the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot.

These will replace the existing Caring for Children and Caring for People with High Medical Needs programs when they expire in November 2019.

The Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot will have a maximum of 2,750 principal applicants each, for a total of 5,500 principal applicants, per year. Spouses/common-law partners and dependent children will not count against the limit.

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Interim Pathway for Caregivers: Eligibility Criteria and Conditions

Candidates must meet the following criteria:

1. Be authorized to work in Canada on a work permit other than a Live-in Caregiver Program work permit.
2. Intend to reside in a province or territory other than Quebec.
3. Has obtained:
   1. a completed Canadian educational credential of at least a secondary school diploma; or,
   2. a foreign diploma, certificate or credential, along with an equivalency assessment — issued within five years before the date of application— that indicates that the foreign diploma, certificate or credential is equivalent to a completed Canadian secondary school diploma.
4. Has attained a level of proficiency of at least benchmark 5 in either official language for each of the four language skill areas, as set out in the Canadian Language Benchmarks or the Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens.
5. Since November 30, 2014, has acquired one year of authorized full-time Canadian work experience on a Temporary Foreign Worker Program work permit in any combination of the following eligible occupations:
   1. Home child care provider as per the terms of NOC 44112, other than any experience as a foster parent.
   2. Home support worker or related occupation, but not a housekeeper, under NOC 4412.

Submitting an application

All applications for permanent residence under the Interim Pathway for Caregivers must be submitted to the Case Processing Centre in Edmonton. 

Eligibility for processing

There is no cap on the number of complete applications IRCC will accept under the Interim Pathway for Caregivers. IRCC will only accept and process complete applications submitted from March 4, 2019, to June 4, 2019.