Nanny&Me: Live-In Caregiver REFORM Overview with Guest EXPERT & IMMIGRATION LAWYER Caroline SCHULZ

Live-In Caregiver REFORM Overview with Guest EXPERT & IMMIGRATION LAWYER Caroline SCHULZ

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By now I’m sure you’ve heard about the changes that have been made to the Live-in Caregiver Program impacting families across Canada who are hiring nannies from abroad. There is so much content out there; tidbits of information across vaguely written government sources, and snippets of the reform cited in newspaper articles. Attempting to decipher the changes and what it all means can be overwhelming at best. I thought it would be helpful to bring in an expert to summarize the reform and tell us a bit about what this all means for families in Canada.

Enter, stage left, Caroline Schulz (applause), Immigration Lawyer at Schulz Legal. Caroline has graciously donated her time to put together this information for Nanny&Me readers, so thank you Caroline!

For families across Canada who are in the market for a live-in nanny, sponsoring abroad has become an increasingly popular choice in recent years. Hiring a live-in nanny from overseas has provided Canadians with the opportunity to obtain quality in-home childcare in a cost-effective way, but has this all changed? Amidst an ever-growing childcare crisis, the Canadian government implemented major changes to the Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP), now called the Caregiver Program. Most notably (and instilling the highest degree of panic in Canadian families) caregivers are no longer obliged to live with their Canadian employers, but what does this really mean for those of us seeking live-in caregivers?...

Let’s Break it Down…Talking Changes

End of live-in requirement

The new program puts an end to the live-in requirement. Caregivers may live with their employers if they so choose and in such cases, room and board can no longer be deducted from their wages.

Employers with live-in arrangements, as before, must continue to assure Service Canada that the accommodations they are offering meet minimum standards (re: size, finishings, furnishings etc.) before a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) can be approved.

Eliminating the live-in requirement could provide more incentive for Canadians to consider caregiver job opportunities. Employers may accordingly need to offer caregivers higher wages and benefits to satisfy Service Canada that they have made appropriate efforts to recruit Canadians.

Permanent Residence Application Caps

Caregivers are no longer guaranteed a path to permanent residence. In the past, caregivers were guaranteed permanent residency after two years of full-time employment, but now there are two streams for which caregivers can apply, and each one will be capped at 2,750 permanent resident applications each year. Caregivers can now apply for permanent residence under either the Caring for Children stream or the Caring for People with High Medical Needs stream. As such, eligible applicants may be rejected without consideration if the cap has been met.

The Caring for Children stream pertains to babysitters, nannies, and parent-helpers for children under eighteen. The Caring for People with High Medical Needs stream applies to foreign workers who provide support for the elderly or those with disabilities and may include registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, nurses aides, or home support workers.

To be eligible for either stream, caregivers must have:

• a written signed contract with their employer;

• a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA);

• a work permit before entering Canada;

• two-years of full-time work experience in Canada within the past four years in a relevant occupation (e.g. nanny for Children Class or nurse for High Medical Needs Class)

• intermediate level knowledge of English or French as proven by language test results;

• successful completion of the equivalent of at least one year Canadian post-secondary school education that is confirmed by an Educational Credential Assessment;

• a license to practice in Canada, if applicable (i.e.nurses)

Employers ought to ensure that a future caregiver meets the minimum language and education requirements.

Does the old program still apply?

Caregivers or prospective caregivers who have work permits based on Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) applications that were submitted to Service Canada on or before November 30, 2014 can apply for permanent residence under the LCP. In fact, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) has pledged to admit 30,000 permanent residence applications under the old program in 2015 to reduce processing backlogs. Such applications will be assessed based on the old live-in caregiver criteria. The caregiver must be able to demonstrate that their work permit was based on a LMIA that was submitted on or before November 30, 2014.

Caregivers with prospective employers who have applied for an LMIA after November 30, 2014, will not be eligible for permanent residence under the old program.

Take-away for Canadian families

The reforms have ended the live-in requirements for caregivers and are may increase the prevailing wage for caregivers. As always, employers must be careful to ensure that they are meeting their requirements pursuant to immigration and employment legislation.

FAQ

1. What are the broader implications of the reform on childcare?

The cost of hiring a caregiver is likely to increase as room and board can no longer be deducted. The program could become cost prohibitive for middle-income Canadians and the Canadian government may face increasing pressure to introduce some form of universal childcare.

2. Will the new rules have implications on the interest level of caregivers in coming to Canada due to the cap residency numbers, or are higher wages (over other countries) enough of an incentive?

Difficult to say as so many factors contribute to a caregiver's decision to come to Canada. Caregivers no longer have a guaranteed path to permanent residence as a result of the caps. On the other hand, wages for caregivers may increase and the government has pledged to process their applications for permanent residence within 6 months. This means less time apart for caregivers and their loved ones. Permanent residence applications under the old program often took several years to process during which time caregivers were separated from their families.

3. Is the reform, as a result of the permanent residence caps going to create higher demand in the local childcare market, driving up costs for families?

This is difficult to predict at this time. I don't believe there will be a significant decrease in the number of caregivers wanting to come to Canada. However, it may be more challenging to bring caregivers to Canada as the end of the live-in requirement may attract more Canadians to caregiver positions. Families will need to demonstrate that they have made efforts to recruit Canadians for caregiver positions, this may include offering increased wages.

4. The old live in caregiver website specified that employers could deduct room and board, the new rules state that this is not permitted, however the Ontario labour rules state that employers can, but the labor rules were written prior to the new live in caregiver rules. What is the status of room and board deductions?

Under the new rules, employers cannot deduct room and board from wages.

5. Are families allowed to charge rent?

Families cannot charge rent. This would effectively be the same as deducting room and board from wages.

6. Do you foresee the changes having any impact on work permit processing times from Hong Kong for those applications currently in the pipe? (ie. those submitted in the old program).

The changes do not directly impact upon work permit processing times. The government has only pledged to more quickly process permanent residence applications.

7. Are families required to pay for a return flight for nannies? (vs. a one-way ticket as in the past).

Families ARE required to pay for a nanny's return flight if he/she wants to return home at the end of his/her employment. If a nanny switches employers, the new employer would be responsible for this cost.

8. For families grandfathered in under the old program, are all aspects of the program grandfathered in? For example, in the old program, one could extend an LMIA quite easily. If a family applied for two years, they could extend it for another two with a written request. Will they still be able to do this?

No. If a caregiver's work permit expires, the family will have to apply for a new Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) and demonstrate that no Canadians or permanent residents are available for the position. LMIA applications are increasingly time consuming and complicated. Employers must now advertise the position on the national Job Bank and two other mediums for at least four weeks before applying for the LMIA. If the LMIA is approved, the nanny can then apply for a new work permit.