Canada to give permanent residency to caregivers upon arrival

Today, I'm very pleased to announce that we are launching new pilots that will provide permanent residency status for caregivers as soon as they arrive in Canada. The biggest change coming in these new pilots will be providing a one step immigration process. Before, caregivers first needed to get work permits and then obtain work experience before applying for permanent residency. Under the new rules, we're simplifying the process and providing them with a clear, straightforward pathway to state and care for our loved ones. The change will notably provide more autonomy for caregivers to leave workplaces with abusive situations and seek opportunities to advance in the care sector. And Lord knows, I've heard a lot of those stories not only today, but in the past as we've been listening and reaching out to people that have been providing that support and have been an abusive situation. I'm also pleased to share that we are lowering out of fairness the language requirements to Canada language management for Benchmark 4 under these new PR on arrival pilots. Our aim is to strike a balance between breaking down the barriers case caregivers face to get PR and selecting newcomers who will be resilient to changes in the labor market. Lowering the language requirements is a must need to change that we've heard directly from the community on and will align with other programs in my department. As well as provincial programs creating better consistency and fairness for all applicants. Caregivers will still have the needed language skills to work in the caregiving field. Let me be clear about that. And finally, as we look to address the desperate need for caregivers, we're also expanding the pilot programs from private household employers now to also include organizations who will directly employ home care workers. This will allow for and and not-for-profit organizations to provide jobs, job offers and help address home care needs where labor shortages exist.