Canada Introduces New Immigration Measures to Address Health Worker Shortages
Given the rising issues with healthcare in Canada, and in response to critical shortages in the healthcare sector, new features of the Express Entry immigration program are now being leveraged by the Government of Canada purposefully to attract health workers from around the world. This news update was announced by the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, at the end of June 20 assist in improving Canadian healthcare.
A Strategic Focus on Health Workers
Canada's labour force, particularly in healthcare, is experiencing unprecedented shortages and great variability in outcomes regionally. To address this discrepancy, Minister Fraser has unveiled modifications to the Express Entry program, allowing targeted invitations to apply for permanent residency to candidates with specific skills, training, or language abilities. This strategic focus begins with a dedicated round of invitations for health workers, including doctors, nurses, dentists, physiotherapists, and optometrists. This is a new application of our Express entry system that has been established for years to target permanent residence workers for those who want to live and work in Canada.
The first round, inviting 500 health workers, commenced at the end of June, with a subsequent round inviting 1,500 workers was scheduled for July 5. This phased approach ensures a smooth launch and demonstrates the government’s commitment to supporting the healthcare sector. Workers now have 60 days to apply for their PR and could enter the workforce by the end of September at the earliest.
Enhancing Healthcare Services
By attracting healthcare professionals through these category-based selection rounds, Canada aims to bolster the availability of medical services for its citizens. This initiative is part of a broader strategy to welcome in-demand professionals and skilled workers into communities nationwide. The program will run alongside general invitation rounds, with more details to be shared in the coming weeks.
Complementary Initiatives
The dedicated round of invitations is one of several initiatives to address labour gaps in the health sector:
Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP): This pilot, which recently expanded with two new streams, facilitates the immigration of skilled refugees and displaced individuals. Over 50% of EMPP applications have been for health care roles, such as nurses' aides and patient service associates.
Express Entry for Physicians: Recent changes to Express Entry now make it easier for physicians providing publicly funded medical services in Canada to obtain permanent resident visas.
Investment in Integration: In December, the government announced a $90 million investment to remove barriers preventing skilled newcomers from gaining work experience in their professions.
Historical Success: Between 2017 and 2022, 21,656 skilled newcomers arrived in Canada to work in health occupations, demonstrating the country’s success in attracting health professionals.
Supporting a Sustainable Health Workforce
This particular announcement aligns with Canada’s efforts to build a sustainable health workforce, as outlined in the Working Together to Improve Health Care for Canadians Plan. This plan, supported by a Budget 2023 commitment of nearly $200 billion over 10 years, includes $46.2 billion in new funding to improve healthcare services. A key component of this plan is streamlining foreign credential recognition and advancing labour mobility for internationally educated health professionals.
Quick Facts
From 2017 to 2022, skilled newcomers to Canada included 10,051 nurses, 4,449 doctors, 2,552 dentists, and numerous other health professionals.
Express Entry is Canada's main application management system for several immigration programs.
Recent changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act now allow for the selection of immigrants based on attributes supporting economic priorities.
Immigration accounts for almost 100% of Canada's labour force growth, addressing shortages in key sectors.
For more details on eligible jobs and categories, please book a consultation with an RCIC with MCD Immigration Consulting.