Caregivers In Canada: Find Out If You Qualify To Hire A Foreign Caregiver

The caregiver program in Canada is designed to help families hire foreign caregivers in the absence of qualified and willing Canadians and permanent residents. Under the caregiver program in Canada, a foreign caregiver can be hired to provide elderly care services to seniors or those with disabilities or chronic disease in a health facility or in a home.

Foreign caregivers in Canada under this program have the option to either live with their employers or live outside on their own housing arrangements.

Conditions Under Which You Can Hire A Foreign Caregiver In Canada

Before you decide to hire a foreign caregiver under the Canada Caregiver Program, you must be able to meet the following conditions.

• Make sure you search for a qualified caregiver who is already in Canada first. The person can be a Canadian, permanent resident or a temporary foreign worker who is legally living in Canada.
• Your ability to pay the caregiver is an important part of the requirements if you wish to employ the services of a foreign caregiver.
• Be able to provide reasonable accommodation in your home in case the caregiver decides to seek a live-in arrangement in your residence.
• Prepare a job offer that defines caregiving duties for childcare, elderly care or person with disability or chronic disease.
• Apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from the Employment and Social Development Canada.

In order to hire a foreign caregiver who is already in Canada under the Caregiver Program,  you must obtain a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). The caregiver has to use your LMIA to apply for a new work permit for the caregiving job your are offering.

Basically, even though the foreign caregiver is already in Canada, you still have to follow the same process. The work permits for foreign caregivers in Canada are employer-specific. Anytime a foreign caregiver changes an employer, the new employer has to issue a new LMIA for the caregiver to apply for a new work permit again.

Basic Requirements For Foreign Caregivers To Qualify For Work In Canada

There are requirements that foreign caregivers must meet before they qualify to work in Canada under the Caregiver Program.

• A prospective foreign caregiver must have educational qualification that is at least equivalent to the Canadian secondary school diploma.
• A foreign caregiver must complete a six months caregiver training or one year caregiving work experience or related job within the last three years. It also includes six months of ongoing work with one employer.
• The foreign caregiver must be able to speak, read and understand English or French.
• A foreign caregiver must undergo medical, security and criminal checks prior to arriving in Canada.
• The foreign caregiver must have a signed written employment contract with the Canadian family or employer.

If the caregiver is outside of Canada, supporting documents to confirm the above mentioned requirements must be verified by a visa officer before a Canada visa is issued for the caregiver to travel to Canada.

Where And How To Find Foreign Caregivers

Caregiver Recruitment Agencies: One of the ways to contact and hire foreign caregivers is through recruiters or caregiver agencies. The caregiver agency looks for the foreign caregiver, conducts the recruitment process and presents the caregiver to the employer.

Some of these agencies include: Diamond Personnel, Ayah Nannies and Bahay Caregiver Services. Using a caregiver agency to hire a foreign caregiver from overseas is obviously convenient for the employer. However, it can be very expensive. You would have to pay between $1,300 to $ 5,000 as agency or recruitment fees to the caregiver agency for them to recruit a foreign caregiver from overseas for you.

Online Caregiver Job Boards: Online caregiver job boards are specialized websites where foreign caregivers browse in search of caregiver job opportunities. For a small membership fee, you can post a job ad on a website like www.caregiversincanada.com for foreign caregivers to apply directly.

Apart from the fact that online caregiver Job Boards save you thousands of dollars, there are other good reasons why some prefer this direct hiring. Caregiving is not a technical job that requires a set of special hiring techniques. Literally speaking, anybody can interview and hire a caregiver. Since your caregiver also works around your household, it makes sense to feel comfortable and bond very well with your caregiver.

By personally interviewing and hiring your caregiver directly, you would not feel like having a stranger in your house from day one.

For more information about hiring a foreign caregiver, visit the Employment and Social Development Canada website.