Hiring Foreign Live-In Caregivers in British Columbia

Foreign Worker Quick Links:

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act includes special guidelines for the hiring of live-in caregivers in Canada.

GUIDELINES :

Before you apply to hire a foreign live-in caregiver, please note the live-in caregiver must :

• Work for you in a private home;
• Live with you, the employer;
• Be provided with a private, furnished room within the home;
• Be employed on a full-time basis (40 hours per week in BC);
• Meet Citizenship and Immigration Canada's requirements for language, education and work skills necessary to function in the Canadian labour market.

EMPLOYER REGISTRATION BY PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

In order to hire a foreign live-in caregiver in British Columbia :

1. You must first register as an employer with the Province by submitting the Domestic Worker registration form to the BC Ministry of Skills Development and Labour. The form is available on the following website: http://www.labour.gov.bc.ca/esb/forms/#domestic 
   
   
2. Once you have submitted the form, the Ministry of Skills Development and Labour will send you a letter verifying that you are registered as an employer.

   A copy of the registration letter must be included with the HRSDC Live-in Caregiver application or your application cannot be processed by HRSDC

HRSDC HIRING STEPS

After receiving the registration letter from the provincial ministry, you must :

1. Submit the HRSDC LCP application for a labour market opinion (LMO) to the Service Canada Centre responsible for your area.
   • Learn more about the HRSDC assessment criteria in BC including wages, employment standards and room and board provisions.
   
   
2. Fill a copy of the LCP employer-employee contract  provided.
   
   
3. Once HRSDC has approved your job offer, send a copy of the HRSDC confirmation letter and a copy of your employment contract to the foreign live-in caregiver.
   
   
4. Tell the foreign live-in caregiver candidate to apply for a work permit  from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). They must include in the application the approved HRSDC labour market opinion and the LCP contract signed by both you and the foreign worker.

   Next, CIC decides whether the foreign live-in caregiver will get a work permit according to the requirements to work and reside temporarily in Canada .