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Occupations in Healthcare including Nursing were experiencing a personnel shortage in Canada even before the pandemic. Canada’s ageing demography was one of the major factors for the rising demand for medical professionals, especially Nursing staff in geriatric care. The COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020 is encouraging more Canadian immigration of nurses to fill job vacancies in the industry.
Seeing the rising demand for nurses as an occupation in Canada, the federal and provincial governments have added new permanent residency for foreign nurses.
Because nursing as a professional in Canada is considered a “skilled work”, Canadian immigration pathways for nurses are many yet not an exhaustive list. Let’s discuss some exclusive federal and provincial pathways for the immigration of foreign-trained nurses.
Canadian Immigration of Nurses through Provincial Pathways
Some Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) are dedicated specifically to nurses, others just require skilled work experience. Few PNPs also hold exclusive immigration nomination draws for nurses.
Sometimes PNPs may also draw eligible nurse profiles from the federal Express Entry pool and invite them to apply for a provincial nomination. Such nominated candidates get 600 CRS points added to their Express Entry score, effectively guaranteeing an invitation to apply for permanent residence.
Ontario, BC & Quebec Welcomes Foreign Nurses
Specific Canadian provinces like Ontario, British Columbia (BC), and Quebec are planning for long-term investments in welcoming more skilled healthcare workers.
For example, Ontario will invest $342 million over the next five years in improving the Canadian immigration of nurses. On the other hand, British Columbia provides up to $16,000 to about 1,500 internationally educated nurses to cover application fees, English language tests, and educational upgrading. Also, Quebec is investing $65 million to recruit and train nearly 1,000 nurses from francophone countries.
Here is a list of some of the PNP pathways for nurses.
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In order for nurses to qualify under Quebec immigration programs, they can choose between the Regular Skilled Worker Program and the Quebec Experience Program. Both of these programs require the workers to have a working knowledge of the French language.
Express Entry Eligibility for Registered Nurses in Canada
Express Entry is an online database system that manages immigration applications for permanent residency. Applications under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), Canada Experience Class (CEC), and Federal Skills Trade Program (FSTP) are managed here. Aspirants submit their profiles to the system and get a score based on the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS).
The registered profiles are assessed 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.
Canadian immigration of nurses may take place under FSWP or CEC. In order to qualify, foreign nurses must have at least one year of work experience. The qualifying band score for language proficiency under Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) is 7 in Engish or French The only difference is that FSWP candidates may have work experience outside Canada and CEC candidates must have worked in Canada.
National Occupation Classification 3012: Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses
Nursing as a job profession in Canada is valuable for its ease of work, high salary, and living standards.
In provinces such as Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia, the authorities regulate professionals trained exclusively as Registered Psychiatric Nurses. However, Registered Nurses in Canada may work as psychiatric nurses without a separate registration in all other provinces and territories.
Registered nurses in Canada and registered psychiatric nurses could progress to supervisory and managerial positions as they gain more experience.
What are some Job Duties of Registered Nurses in Canada?
Registered nurses in Canada are usually expected to perform the following duties:
- Supervising licensed practical nurses and other nursing staff;
- Assisting in surgery and other medical procedures
- Assessing patients for identifying appropriate nursing interventions
- Collaborating with members of an interdisciplinary health team for planning, implementing, coordinating and evaluating patient care in consultation with patients and their families
- Administering medications and treatments as specified by a physician or according to established policies and protocols
- Operating or monitoring medical apparatus or equipment
- Developing and implementing discharge planning processes on the admission of patients
- Teaching and counselling patients and their families on health-related issues in collaboration with other health care providers
Registered Psychiatric Nurses typically provide nursing care, supportive counseling and life skills programming to patients in psychiatric hospitals, mental health clinics, long-term care facilities, and community-based settings.
Other Nursing Occupations in Canada
- Nurse practitioners i.e. National Occupational Classification (NOC) 3124 – Allied primary health practitioners [refer to Appendix J]
- Nursing coordinators and supervisors i.e. National Occupational Classification (NOC) 3011 – [refer to Appendix K]
- Nursing service managers i.e. National Occupational Classification (NOC) 0311 – Managers in health care [refer to Appendix L] and,
- Registered practical nurses i.e. National Occupational Classification (NOC) 3233 – Licenced practical nurses
Work & Study for Registered Nurses in Canada
Aspirants can choose to specialize in areas by taking up suitable study courses at any Canadian university. Specialization in the mentioned fields may yield better results for registered nurses in Canada.
| Surgery | Obstetrics care |
| Psychiatric care | Community health |
| Critical care | Occupational health |
| Pediatrics | Geriatrics |
| Rehabilitation | Oncology |
For employment in Canada, Registered Nurses in Canada are required to fulfil the following conditions:
- Successful completion of a university, college or other recognized & approved registered nursing program
- Additional academic training or experience for specializing in a specific area of nursing will give the applicant an edge over others
- A master’s or doctoral degree in nursing if the applicant applies for Clinical Nurse Specialists, Nursing Consultants, and Nursing Researchers and,
For Registered Psychiatric Nurse in Canada, in addition to the above requirements, Registration with a regulatory body, especially in provinces like Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and the Yukon is mandatory.
Any international graduate from Canadian universities can qualify for a temporary residence visa like Post-Graduation Work Permit to work in Canada for up to 3 years.
Take this free assessment online to know your best chances of immigrating as a Registered Nurse.
Book your free appointment with CanApprove to discuss your case and know more options on work and settling permanently in Canada.
