Canada has more than 100 economic immigration programs alone. Because nursing is oftentimes considered “skilled work” nurses may be eligible for just about any program that has “skilled work” as a requirement.

NOC code and skill level are important for eligibility

Nursing falls into one of two categories in the Canadian government’s National Occupation Classification (NOC). Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses fall under NOC skill level A and the code is NOC 3012. Licensed practical nurses, NOC 3233, fall under skill level B.

These codes and skill levels are important in determining which immigration programs you are eligible for, what other criteria you must meet for a particular program, and whether you were invited to apply in a given provincial immigration draw. Keep these in mind as you learn more about Canadian immigration programs for nurses.

Express Entry programs for nurses

Nurses may be eligible for the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) and the Canadian Experience Class (CEC). These two federal immigration programs are managed by the Express Entry system.

Express Entry is an online system that manages immigration applications for the federal government. Hopeful Canadian immigrants submit their profiles to the system and get a score based on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).

Express Entry candidates get points based on their skilled work experience, age, education, and official language ability, among other factors. The highest-scoring candidates get invited to apply for permanent residence in bi-weekly Express Entry draws.

Although draws for CEC and FSWP candidates have been paused during the pandemic, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced that they would return in early July. Also, the processing standard for new applicants would return to six months.

FSWP eligibiliity

The FSWP requires an applicant to have at least one year of continuous work experience within the past 10 years in a skilled occupation. The work experience may have been completed abroad. An FSWP applicant also must score a Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 in English or French on all four language competencies: reading, writing, speaking, and listening. In addition, they must score at least 67/100 on the six-factor test that assesses candidates’ education level, language skills, and whether they have a job in Canada.

CEC eligibility

The CEC requires one year of skilled work experience within the last three years. The work experience must have been completed in Canada. People applying with work experience at an NOC 0 or A skill level (such as registered nurses) must have at least a CLB 7. Those applying with NOC skill level B experience need a CLB 5.

Neither program requires a person to have a job offer but having one may increase your likelihood of receiving an invitation to apply for permanent residence.

Provincial Nominee Program

Although the federal government gets the final say on who can immigrate to Canada, the provinces can nominate certain candidates through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). Some PNPs are dedicated specifically to nurses, others just require skilled work experience. Sometimes, PNPs will hold immigration nomination draws specifically for nurses.

Multiple provinces have more than one program that welcomes nurses. Sometimes PNPs draw candidates from the Express Entry system and invite them to apply for a provincial nomination. If these candidates are nominated, they get 600 CRS points added to their Express Entry score. This award is more than enough to allow the candidate to be invited to apply for permanent residence.

Here is a list of some of the PNP pathways for nurses.

• Ontario invites nurses to apply through its Human Capital Priorities Stream.
• British Columbia offers a Healthcare Professional category under its Skills Immigration and Express Entry pathways.
• Saskatchewan has recently launched an International Health Worker EOI pool specifically for nurses.
• Nova Scotia’s Labour Market Priorities Stream occasionally holds draws inviting nurses to apply for a provincial nomination.
• New Brunswick’s Internationally Educated Nurses (IEN) program is a pathway for foreign nurses who can speak English or French.

Quebec

Quebec operates its own immigration system. While Canada still has the final say on Quebec immigration applications, certain programs like the PNP and Express Entry are not available in Quebec.

Instead, Quebec offers its Regular Skilled Worker Program and the Quebec Experience Program. Nurses may be eligible for either of these programs. Both of these programs require the workers to have a working knowledge of the French language.

Foreign Nurses Need To Have Their Credentials Recognized

Immigrating to Canada for these nursing professionals can be as simple as one, two, three. 

The first step for a nurse eyeing Canada as a destination for immigration is to have his or her academic credentials evaluated to see if they are up to Canadians standards.

The Canadian government recognizes five organizations for the assessment of foreign educational credentials: 

• World Education Services (WES);
• International Credential Assessment Service of Canada (ICAS);
• Comparative Education Service (CES);
• International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS), and;
• International Credential Evaluation Service (ICES).

Once the educational and background checks have been completed, the next step is for the prospective immigrant to have those nursing credentials recognized in Canada by the National Nursing Assessment Service (NNAS), a step that costs US$650. 

The second step in the process for the foreign national looking to immigrate to Canada as a nurse is to create a profile on the NNAS application page. 

That requires:

• The submission of two pieces of identity that must be notarized, copes of original documents that have been signed, dated and stamped;
• a completed nursing education form that can be downloaded from the website filled out, and signed before being sent to the school where the nurse was educated for that school’s officials to complete and then send directly to NNAS along with academic records or transcripts, course curriculum and course descriptions and syllabi;
• submission of the nursing registration form which is to be sent to the nursing licensing authority where the nurse is currently registered in his or her home country;
• the nursing practice/employment form which must be signed and sent to all employers the nurse has had over the past five years for them to complete and send to NNAS, and;
• the prospective applicant for immigration’s IELTS language testing results, which must be sent directly to NNAS from an approved language-testing organization or company.

Foreign Nurses Must Apply To Provincial Regulatory Authorities

After that has been done and the documents have been received by NNAS, the nurse can submit his or her application and pick the nursing group and provincial association to which they wish to apply. 

These include: 

• British Columbia College of Nursing Professionals and Midwives;
• College of Registered Nurses of Alberta;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta;
• College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of Alberta;
• Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association;
• Saskatchewan Association of Licensed Practical Nurses;
• Registered Psychiatric Nurses Association of Saskatchewan;
• College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Nurses of Ontario;
• Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec;
• Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers auxiliaires du Québec;
• Nurses Association of New Brunswick;
• Association of New Brunswick Licensed Practical Nurses;
• Nova Scotia College of Nursing;
• College of Registered Nurses of Prince Edward Island;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Prince Edward Island;
• College of Registered Nurses of Newfoundland and Labrador;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Newfoundland and Labrador;
• Registered Nurses Association of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut;
• Government of Northwest Territories, Registrar, Professional Licensing, Health and Social Services;
• Registered Nurses Association of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut;
• Government of Nunavut, Department of Health;
• Yukon Registered Nurses Association, and;
• Government of Yukon, Yukon Department of Community Services.