Apply to change employers in the Live-In Caregiver Program
You need to give your biometrics
In most cases, you now need to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics) after you apply.
Find out who needs to give biometrics and how the new application process works.
Biometrics and the application process
We refer to your fingerprints and photo as biometrics. We collect biometrics for most applications. Find out what happens from when you submit your application to when you get to Canada and where biometrics fits in the process.
1. Apply for your visitor visa, study permit or work permit
If you want to visit, study or work in Canada, make sure you’re eligible to apply. Use our application guides to help fill out your application properly, then submit your application.
Avoid processing delays by sending us a complete application.
2. Get your fingerprints and photo taken
If you’re between 14 and 79 years old, you probably need to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics).You only need to give your biometrics once every 10 years to make repeat trips to Canada easier.
You must pay the biometrics fee when you submit your application. Otherwise you may experience delays.
Find out who needs to give, how to give, and where to give your biometrics.
3. We process your application
After we get your biometrics, we start processing your application. See how long it takes to process your application.
If we need more information from you, we’ll contact you.
4. We make a decision on your application
When we finish reviewing your application, we let you know if you’re approved to come to Canada. If you are, we issue your documents.
If your application is refused, we send you a letter that tells you why.
5. You travel to Canada (if you’re approved)
Make sure you travel with the documents we gave you. This includes travel documents like a visitor visa, study or work permits or an eTA (electronically linked to your passport).
Airline staff and border service officers at ports of entry will ask to see your travel documents. If you don’t have them, you may not be able to board your flight to Canada.
Make sure children under 18 travel with the right documents.
6. We check your identity when you arrive in Canada
When you arrive, we check your identity to make sure that you are the same person who was approved to travel to Canada. We may use your biometrics to do this.
If we can’t verify your identity, you may be detained by a border services officer. These officers help protect the health and safety of Canadians.
If the officer determines that you’re not admissible to Canada, you won’t be allowed to enter Canada. If you came by air, you’ll have to take a return flight to where you came from.
7. You’re allowed to enter Canada
If you pass the identity check and meet the entry requirements, the border services officer stamps your passport and lets you know how long you can stay in Canada. You’re normally allowed to stay in Canada for up to six months.
Children under 18 must meet the same entry requirements as adults. The border services officer may ask minor children to show other documents depending on whether the child is travelling alone or with someone.
The Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP) is closed to new applicants.
Follow these steps to apply for a new LCP work permit if you:
- came to Canada through the program and
- want to stay in the program and
- want to change employers
1. Sign a written employment contract with your new employer
You and your future employer are legally required to sign a written employment contract. The written contract will make sure there is a fair working arrangement between you and your employer.
The contract must show that you and your employer meet the requirements of the Labour Market Impact Assessment for in-home caregivers. It must include a description of:
- all benefits the employer must provide to you, including:
- transportation from where you live now to where you will work in Canada
- medical insurance from the date you arrive until you are covered by provincial health insurance
- workplace safety insurance for the length of your contract
- all recruitment fees, including any amount a third-party recruiter or agents hired by the employer charges you
- job duties
- hours of work
- pay
- housing
- vacation and sick leave benefits
- details on how the employment can end (if you quit or if the employer no longer wants to hire you), including:
- the amount of notice you or the employer must give
- how they will pay the remaining wages
- what will happen to any vacation time that is still owed to you
Service Canada has a contract template you can use to create the employment contract. Your contract does not have to look exactly like the template, but it must contain all the mandatory information and clauses.
Your employer will need to submit this contract as part of their Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application. You will also need to submit the signed contract with your work permit application. The contract you submit must match the employment contract your employer submitted with their LMIA application. You must explain any changes, like a new start date, if they do not match.
Note: If you will work in the province of Quebec, you must use the Quebec contract template.
2. Make sure your employer gets a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment
Before you can apply for a new work permit, your employer will need to get a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Service Canada. The LMIA must show that you have agreed to live in your employer’s home. This is so that you stay eligible to apply for permanent residence through the LCP.
If you choose to live outside of your employer’s home, you will no longer be a caregiver in the LCP. Make sure you meet the requirements for permanent residence through the LCP before you decide to live outside your employer’s home. If you don’t meet the live-in requirements, you may still qualify for permanent residence through the Caring for Children or Caring for People with High Medical Needs classes.
The positive LMIA confirms that there is a need for this job in Canada and the employer can hire a foreign worker to do it. It also shows that the wages and working conditions your employer is offering:
- meet provincial or territorial employment standards
- match the wages paid to Canadians in the same occupation
If your employer gets a positive LMIA, you will be able to apply for permanent residence through the LCP, when you have met the work requirement.
3. Apply for a new work permit
To change employers in the LCP, you need to apply to change the conditions of your existing work permit. In this case, the condition you’re changing is the employer you work for. When you submit your application, you must include
- a copy of the employment contract you and your employer signed
- a copy of the positive LMIA your employer received, that includes a live-in option
- an attestation of issuance of your Quebec Acceptance Certificate (CAQ), if you work in the province of Quebec
You must submit your application at least 30 days before your current work permit expires.
If your current work permit expires before you submit an application to change your employer, you must apply:
- to restore your status as a temporary resident in Canada and
- for a new work permit
You must do this within 90 days of the expiry date on your current work permit. You also need to pay an extra fee to restore your status. This means you must pay both the Restoration of Temporary Resident Status fee and the regular work permit fee.
After you apply to change your employer
We review your application to change your employer.
If we approve your application, we mail you your work permit. If we refuse your application, we send you an explanation letter by email to your account.
You can’t start working for a new employer until you receive your new work permit.
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