Not all job categories are covered. We are only talking about applicants who provided direct care to patients, at the height of the pandemic, such as orderlies, nurses, nurse’s aides, orderlies or service aides.
These asylum seekers must have worked in health establishments, such as CHSLDs, hospitals or private residences. Workers from placement agencies are also concerned, as are those providing home care.
This pan-Canadian regularization program will be announced this Friday morning in Montreal by the federal Minister of Immigration, Marco Mendicino.
The eligibility criteria
- Have applied for asylum before March 13 and obtained a work permit;
- Have worked in the health care sector, in health establishments;
- Have worked, according to the above criteria, at least 120 hours between March 13 and August 14, 2020;
- Have 6 months of experience, depending on the above criteria. Candidates will have until August 31, 2021 to accumulate this experience;
- Meet the eligibility criteria for permanent residence, particularly with regard to health and safety.
–
Ottawa had to revise its plans
This measure is in the air since the end of May. Justin Trudeau then greeted amazing people doing heroic work
. Initially, as revealed at the beginning of June Radio-Canada, the Liberal government had considered a regularization program with wider accessibility.
All asylum seekers working in the health sector, including for example security guards and housekeeping staff, were targeted. This idea had also been warmly hailed by the Bloc Québécois and the New Democratic Party.
But in the end, this will not be the case. Ottawa has revised its plans, after several difficult weeks of negotiations, in order to find common ground with the government of Quebec, which has opposed, behind the scenes, to such an opening.
Although the federal government has the power to grant permanent residence, Justin Trudeau’s team nevertheless wanted to find an agreement with the Legault government – the majority of asylum seekers concerned would be in Quebec – rather than move forward unilaterally. in this file, so as not to poison relations with his provincial counterpart.
Moreover, under an immigration agreement, Quebec must also issue a Quebec Selection Certificate (CSQ), hence the need, for Ottawa, to come to an agreement with the Legault government.
For its part, Quebec, which offered in May to process these files on a case-by-case basis, has also released a little ballast. While Prime Minister Legault initially mentioned a regularization of asylum seekers working in CHSLDs, this program will ultimately be open to those hired in any health service.
The immediate family concerned
This regularization program targets both asylum seekers awaiting a decision from the Immigration and Refugee Board, but also those who have had their application rejected and who have decided to stay in Canada. All immediate family members – spouse and child (ren) of a candidate eligible for this program will also be able to receive permanent residency, which allows them to live and work anywhere in Canada.
–
Almost a thousand people
Since the start of the pandemic, several events have been organized, immigration organizations and lawyers have also raised their voices to urge the two governments to come to an agreement, since Guardian Angels
, the nickname given to them by François Legault, were threatened with expulsion.
The opening of this program, which will last for several months, should take place in the coming weeks. The number of people concerned, across the country, would be around a thousand people.
–
