Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has selected healthcare occupations as one of the five priority categories for Express Entry draws in 2023. Earlier this
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has selected healthcare occupations as one of the five priority categories for Express Entry draws in 2023.
Earlier this year, the IRCC introduced Express Entry category-based draws with the objective of choosing immigration candidates possessing specific qualifications, including education and work experience, to address labour market needs in Canada.
The five chosen categories, healthcare, science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), transport, trades, and agriculture/agri-food, were identified based on feedback and suggestions gathered from various stakeholders and the public.
Category-based draws operate similarly to the standard Express Entry draws, but they give precedence to candidates with work experience in the selected occupations rather than focusing solely on their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) scores.
The decision to prioritise healthcare as a targeted Express Entry category was driven by Canada’s long standing issue of facing a chronic shortage of physicians and nurses, which has had adverse consequences on primary and emergency healthcare services.
For instance, in May of this year, Niagara Health had to cease overnight operations at its urgent care centres in southern Ontario due to a lack of physician staff. In Minden, Ontario, a local hospital had to permanently shut down its ER due to staffing challenges. Furthermore, 180 emergency room doctors in Calgary drew attention to the critical state of emergency care in the city through an open letter.
Canada heavily relies on immigration to address job vacancies within its healthcare system. In the fourth quarter of 2022, there were 143,695 unfilled positions in the Healthcare and Social Assistance sector, resulting in a job vacancy rate of 6%. At that time, this sector had the highest job vacancy rate among all category-based occupations.
Additionally, a significant proportion of Canada’s medical workforce comprises foreign-born professionals, with 36% of physicians and 25% of registered nurses originating from outside the country.
Foreign-trained healthcare professionals often face challenges in obtaining the necessary licensing to practise in Canada. To alleviate this issue, IRCC has implemented measures aimed at simplifying the immigration process for these individuals, enabling them to find employment in their respective fields and assist in addressing labour shortages within the healthcare sector.
To determine the exact demand for healthcare workers, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) provides the Canadian Occupational Projection System (COPS). COPS offers insights into the employment outlook for various healthcare professions and calculates the anticipated number of job opportunities within these occupations from 2022 to 2031.
Some notable healthcare profession projections include:
- Registered nurses and psychiatric nurses: 155,400 new job openings
- Licensed practical nurses: 27,800 new job opportunities
- General practitioners and family physicians: 48,900 new job openings
- Specialist physicians: 29,800 new job opportunities
- Nursing coordinators and supervisors: 23,100 new job openings
- Optometrists, chiropractors, and other health diagnosing and treating professionals: 17,900 new job opportunities
- Pharmacists: 16,100 new job openings
- Physiotherapists: 14,300 new job opportunities
These statistics indicate that Canada is anticipated to welcome hundreds of thousands of skilled healthcare professionals to address the growing job openings and labour requirements in the healthcare sector over the next few years.
“The healthcare sector presents a significant opportunity for prospective immigrants to Canada,” according to former Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, who made this announcement when introducing category-based draws.
Fraser acknowledged that while healthcare professionals in Canada have been tirelessly delivering top-notch care, there is a recognized need for more workers to sustain the high-quality healthcare services Canadians deserve. Between 2017 and 2022, Canada admitted approximately 21,000 healthcare workers, averaging just over 4,000 workers annually. Fraser went on to reveal IRCC’s intention to double this number, aiming to bring in around 8,000 new healthcare professionals each year.
In addition to the Express Entry’s category-based draws, several provinces have also initiated draws specifically targeting healthcare professionals through Provincial Nominee Programs (PNP). For instance, Alberta has established a Designated Healthcare Pathway under the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program.
As a result, healthcare professionals interested in immigrating to Canada may find eligibility through various immigration pathways. Given the evident demand for healthcare workers, prospective candidates have the opportunity to bridge labour market gaps while pursuing meaningful and rewarding careers in Canada.
Historical Overview of Healthcare Express Entry Draws:
To date, the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has conducted two separate rounds of invitations exclusively for eligible Express Entry candidates with recent work experience in healthcare fields.
The inaugural healthcare category-based draw occurred on June 28, 2023, where IRCC issued Invitations to Apply (ITAs) to 500 immigration candidates with healthcare work experience. Candidates were required to meet a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 476 to be considered. Just eight days later, on July 6, 2023, IRCC carried out a second draw for healthcare professionals, inviting 1,500 eligible immigration candidates (with a minimum CRS score of 463) to apply for permanent residency in Canada.
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