Canadian citizens and Canadian Permanent Residents have the right to work in Canada. As a general rule, most other individuals require a Work permit, issued by Canadian Immigration Officials, before commencing employment activities in Canada.

The Live-in Caregiver Program
A live-in caregiver is someone who provides care to children, the elderly or the disabled in a private household. After working two years as a live-in caregiver, you can apply to be a permanent resident of Canada. Learn how you can apply for the Live-in Caregiver Program.

There are four main requirements you must meet to qualify under the Live-in Caregiver Program:

• You must have successfully completed the equivalent of a Canadian high school education. This requirement will help to ensure that if you apply for permanent residence after two years as a live-in caregiver, you will be able to succeed in the general labour market
• You must have six months of full-time training in a classroom setting or twelve months of full-time paid employment, including at least six months of continuous employment with one employer in a field or occupation related to the job you are seeking as a live-in caregiver. You may have gained your training or experience in areas such as early childhood education, geriatric care, pediatric nursing or first aid.
• You must be able to speak, read and understand either English or French at a level that allows you to function independently in a home setting
• You must have a written employment contract between you and your future employer. The contract defines your job duties, hours of work, salary and benefits. The contract also reinforces your employer's legal responsibilities to you. This requirement helps provide a fair working arrangement between the caregiver and the employer and provides both parties with a clear understanding of what is expected of them.

An important requirement of the program is that employees must live in the employer's home. The Live-in Caregiver Program exists only because there is a shortage of Canadians or permanent residents to fill the need for live-in care work. There is no shortage of Canadians or permanent residents available for caregiving positions where there is no live-in requirement.

There will also be costs for a medical examination, passport and travel. You are responsible for these costs unless your employer offers to pay them.

The work permit

A work permit from a Canadian visa office will allow you to work in Canada as a live-in caregiver. The work permit is valid for one year, and you must renew it before it expires. You will need a letter from your employer stating that your job as a live-in caregiver is being offered for another year and a signed contract between you and your employer. Include this letter and a copy of the contract in your application to renew your work permit. You are authorized to work only for the employer named on your permit. However, this does not mean you cannot change employers for personal or other reasons. Both you and your employer should be aware that you are free to change employers while in Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Canada will not deport you for looking for another place to work. You must have received a new work permit before you begin working for a new employer (see "Changing jobs").

The contract

A signed employment contract between you and your employer is a legal requirement of the Live-in Caregiver Program. Your employer must give you a copy of the contract. It is part of the documentation that you must send to the visa office when making your application to work as a live-in caregiver. You will also require a copy of the contract if you need to request a new work permit. Both you and your employer must clearly understand the conditions of your employment before signing the contract. The relationship between employer and live-in employee is like any professional relationship. It is important to clearly set out what each person expects of the other to avoid any misunderstandings about the conditions of the working relationship.

The objective of setting out the relationship in a contract is to get the fairest working arrangement possible for both you and your employer. A contract can help to avoid future problems by protecting your rights and providing a clear statement of your obligations. A contract is a written, detailed job description that also describes the conditions of employment, including the maximum number of hours of work per week, and the wage rate for those hours of work. Nothing in the contract should violate provincial or territorial labour laws, which establish minimum employment standards such as the minimum wage and overtime payment for additional hours worked.

You are protected

As a live-in caregiver, you have legal rights respecting fair working conditions and fair treatment under employment standards legislation in most provinces and territories. Nothing in your contract must violate these rights. Employment standards legislation may cover rights in areas such as:

• days off each week;
• vacation time with pay;
• paid public holidays;
• overtime pay;
• minimum wage;
• other protection, including equal pay, equal benefits and notice of employment termination;
• maximum charges for room and board.

You must complete at least two years of employment as a live-in caregiver to apply for permanent residence in Canada. You must have completed these two years of employment within three years of your arrival in Canada. The two-year requirement does not include any extended time away from Canada. For example, if you go away on vacation for three months, that time will not be included as part of the two years of employment. In some countries, you may need to reapply for a temporary visitor visa before you return to Canada. If you leave Canada for more than one year or if your work permit has expired, you will have to reapply to the overseas visa office to return to Canada under the Live-in Caregiver Program. You are free to leave the program and return permanently to your home country at any time. However, you should give adequate notice to your employer.

Your application for permanent residence in Canada will not be assessed on the basis of your financial situation, skills upgrading in Canada, volunteer work, marital status or the number of family members you have in your country of origin. However, you could be found ineligible for permanent residence if you, your spouse or common-law partner, or any of your family members have a criminal record or a serious medical problem.

Your application for permanent residence could be cancelled if you misrepresented your education, training or experience to the visa officer when you first applied under the program.

Open employment

Once you have received a favourable assessment on your application for permanent resident status, you may apply for an open work permit. This will allow you to take any job you wish until you are granted permanent resident status. You will not receive your permanent resident status immediately. Normally, there are many people applying for permanent residence in Canada at any given time, and it may take time for your application to be processed.

Family members

You can include your family members in your application for permanent residence. You and your family members can then obtain your permanent resident status at the same time. Your family members abroad will be processed for permanent residence at the visa office in their country of residence. They will not be issued their immigrant visas until you have received yours, provided that the entire family passes medical and criminal screening and all other requirements are met. All your family members must pass medical and background checks, whether they are accompanying you or not. You cannot be granted permanent resident status until all your family members have passed their medical and background checks.