Canada is known for welcoming hundreds of thousands of immigrants across its borders annually. The process can take months to years, and the checklist for applicants is long.

People still find the wait worthwhile, especially when asked to immigrate to a country where they’re able to work within their fields. Not being able to use any of these credentials upon arrival, however, becomes a long-term issue for them.

According to the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) website, “the current 2023–2025 Immigration Levels Plan proposes to increase the number of permanent residents Canada welcomes annually to 465,000 in 2023, 485,000 in 2024, and 500,000 in 2025.”

Immigrants make up a big chunk of Canadian society. According to statistics provided by the IRCC, immigrations account for almost 100 per cent of Canada’s labour force growth, and 75 per cent of Canada’s population growth in the economic category comes from immigration. 

By 2036, 30 per cent of Canada’s population will be of immigrants.

Most immigrants are highly educated, and they are required to present those credentials when they apply to come to the country. However, when they arrive, they’re not able to use them unless they redo their studies according to Canadian standards.

Calgary’s Centre for Newcomers vice president of career services, Marivic Prospero, said many of the centre’s clients are international trade professionals such as doctors, nurses, engineers, and pharmacists who are led to believe that they could practice right away in their profession without realizing that they need to go through the regulatory body requirements.

“They require a lot in terms of academic requirements, and work experience, and of course, money, because many of them [are told they] cannot practice right away as they to do more academic requirements, before they can take the licensure exam, which leads them into working in entry level jobs, and they most often get stuck there because they lose their motivation,” said Prospero.

These individuals’ professional and academic experiences can benefit Canada and Canadian society, especially after the pandemic. Canadian hospitals have been struggling with a shortage of nurses and doctors, for instance.

Yet, it took a pandemic and a staffing crisis for the federal government to launch an immigration program earlier this year to fast-track foreign doctors.

Who is the decision maker in the recognition process? 

According to the IRCC, newcomers who want to work in jobs that require a licence or certificate must have their foreign licences and certificates recognized. Foreign credential recognition is the process to recognize qualifications in professions where people need a licence from a regulatory oversight body to work.

“It is complex as provinces and territories are responsible for most regulated professions and trades, and in most cases, they further delegate that authority in legislation to regulatory bodies,” said Matthew Krupovich, an IRCC spokesperson, in a statement to LiveWire Calgary.

“We recognize that foreign credential recognition processes can represent a barrier for the integration of newcomers,” he wrote. 

“We applaud provinces like B.C. who have taken steps required to reduce barriers for in-demand professions.”

According to Prospero, there is a gap between the federal requirements when immigrants are asked to come here in terms of eligibility. Prospero said the solution is for all the decision-makers to ‘see eye to eye.’

“Nobody would impose on the regulatory body that they should actually take these bargains out, nobody would tell that they have to do this unless they themselves decide on that. Trying to meet eye to eye in terms of bringing into sync, what would be the eligibility policy criteria when you get somebody in Canada, and then be able to align that with what regulatory bodies requires,” she said.

Outside of a few federally regulated occupations, provinces and territories are responsible for recognizing foreign credentials, a spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), Maja Stefanovska, told LiveWire Calgary in a statement.

For these occupations, provincial and territorial law requires that an individual obtain a certificate, license, and/or register to use the reserved title for the occupation or to obtain the exclusive right to practice the occupation.

“About 20 per cent of jobs in Canada are regulated occupations, [such as], doctors, nurses, and engineers,” said Stefanovska.

According to the ESDC, each province and territory establishes education, training, and licensing standards and these vary from one jurisdiction to another. 

“In most cases, provinces and territories further delegate this authority in legislation to regulatory authorities. There are about 275 regulated occupations and over 600 regulators across Canada. However, even with the assessment and a license to practice, employers retain the authority to make hiring decisions,” said Stefanovska. 

The Alberta government has taken a couple of recent steps to remove barriers to the foreign credential process. A new, 13-member panel chaired by Bow Valley College’s Dr. Misheck Mwaba, will examine Alberta’s current system for credential assessment and recognition.

“The Foreign Credential Advisory Committee is undertaking an important initiative to advance the recognition of foreign credentials, and foster collaboration and coordination among various stakeholders including employers, regulatory bodies and educational institutions,” Dr. Mwaba said in a recent media statement.

“I look forward to working with the committee and cultivating an inclusive approach to workforce development in Alberta.”

As they wait, many immigrants struggle with quality of life

Regardless of the standards of each country and province, there’s still the issue that people with credentials should be given the means to have their skills verified and licensed, said legal professional and immigration consultant, Abdullah Mawazini.

They come here expecting that, yet the process doesn’t exist, he said.

Mawazini said immigrants then have to go through a lot more schooling and work to get Canadian credentials, which he says can be unnecessary.

The issue isn’t new but it’s ongoing.

Highly qualified immigrants end up working in retail or as taxi drivers or janitors, he said, and don’t make enough money to provide for their own families.

Doctors face less of an issue with the immigration department, and instead struggle to get their licenses from the Medical Council of Canada, he added. Mawazini said the IRCC decided to give preference to individuals of the medical field in May of 2023 by lowering the marks required to come to Canada.

The issue is still unresolved, however, because they can’t use their experiences when they come to the country, he explained.

“[They’re] bringing them to Canada and [they’re] killing them at the same time,” he said. “Because they come here, there is no way that they can find a job, or the system does not allow them to work. So, they are now Uber drivers, restaurant workers and something else,” Mawazini said.  

“We are not against these kinds of professions. But we are losing, and this is something that’s becoming like a nightmare for engineers, and doctors and nurses. Everyone knows the problem and they know the solution, but nobody is doing anything about it.” 

The IRCC said it currently funds third-party pre-arrival service provider organizations to provide selected permanent resident applicants with foreign credential recognition assessment and employment-related information and services.  

One of these services includes one-on-one coaching that can help prepare newcomers for the requirements of foreign credential recognition, before they arrive in the country.

In his statement to LiveWire Calgary, Krupovich said services such as essential training, employment counselling, mentorship, networking opportunities, and job matching are provided to newcomers through the settlement program to support newcomer labor market integration.  

“Recognizing that employment supports are only one part of settling in Canada, the settlement program offers eligible clients a full suite of services that also contribute to labour market integration, such as language training and supports for newcomers to build connections within their new communities.” 

According to a news release published by the IRCC on Jan. 3, 2023, Canada has reached its immigration numbers target in 2022 by welcoming 431,645 new permanent residents, surpassing their 2021 target goal. 

The news release also said the IRCC processed more than five million applications for permanent residence, temporary residence, and citizenship, which is double the number of applications processed in 2021.  

In its statement, the ESDC said the federal government’s foreign credential recognition program supports the labour market integration of skilled newcomers. 

The program funds projects to make foreign credential recognition processes faster and more efficient, provides loans and support services to help skilled newcomers navigate foreign credential recognition processes, and provides employment support to help skilled newcomers gain Canadian work experience in their profession or field of study. 

“In this way, the foreign credential recognition program is helping to reduce barriers that keep skilled newcomers from fully participating in the Canadian labor market and helping to respond to the demand for skilled workers in key sectors,” said Stefanovska. 

But Mawazini said this doesn’t answer the question or provide an explanation for why Canada is not yet benefiting from their professional skills – or allowing them to benefit fully from a new life in Canada.  

Searching for a solution to foreign credential recognition

Prospero said, influencing the regulatory body to consider the credentials of newcomers when they come is one of the solutions to the problem. She said, it’s a matter of flexing, or trying to adapt into how newcomers can enter their screens in such a way that they don’t have to study for two or three years.

“We’re not saying we want to dictate to regulatory bodies to step down on what they call the quality of professionals that they license, but probably provide some pathways that will make it easier for international trade professionals,” said Prospero.

According to Prospero, the regulatory body of engineering in Ontario recently hit a milestone, as they’re not requiring Canadian work experience.

“They totally took that off their licensing criteria and the criteria is now more flexible for newcomers. But it’s something that is not done by any other province,” she said.

“In Alberta, nurses can now just take the NCLEX lighting exam, whereas in the past you’d have to study for two years to be able to practice as a nurse in Canada.”

The Centre for Newcomers in Calgary is encouraging newcomers to start their career paths while waiting for their professional opportunities whilst growing their licensing credentials.

“If one cannot work as a nurse right now, what we try to help them with is provide career counseling on how to get into the medical environment instead of working at a warehouse, basically, you get to start understanding the industry environment, you get to know people, and then you get the opportunity to get exposed,” said Prospero.

Prospero said, the IRCC is aware of the situation, and are focusing on trying to figure out innovative ways to be able to extract it.

More information on Canada’s foreign credential recognition process can be found online.