Just this afternoon, Immigration Minister Chris Alexander announced the changes to the Live-in Caregiver Program. Now called the Caregiver Program, the announced make several key changes to the program. We are still analyzing the announcement, but here are our initial reactions:
- Caregivers across the country have been demanding for permanent residency on arrival. The government did not listen to their call.
- The changes are extremely vague, saying nothing about how caregiver rights will be protected.
- The government has capped childcare applications to a paltry 2,750 applicants, meaning many caregivers will continue to face major delays in processing applications, or in the worst case, risk deportation because of government delays.
- The requirements for the High Medical Needs Pathway are unrealistically onerous, requiring educational and professional certifications that are practically available only to people who are already citizens.
- E.g. you need to be licensed to practice in Canada to avail of this pathway. How do you get that if you need to, for example, do a practicum in Canada?
- The government still has not definitely stated whether those currently in the LCP will be grandfathered in.
- The changes do nothing to prevent abusive employers from revoking employment, leading to deportation.
- The new requirements do nothing about barriers to education like domestic tuition rates, which would help caregivers transition.
- The new requirements do nothing about the problem with children “aging out” of eligibility due to government delays.
