Ever since the start of the 21st century, Canada has emerged as the favourite destination for immigration aspirants from across the globe. The factors that make Canada attractive, especially for Indians, include low population, career opportunities, high quality of life and a secured future. Though most of the countries are going through serious economic crisis these days, the Canadian economy remains as upbeat as ever, requiring more workers to strengthen their workforce through immigration.
As far as Indians are concerned, immigration to Canada is possible through two major pathways:
Federal Skilled Worker Program – FSWP
Federal skilled migration is the most popular pathway among Indians to immigrate to Canada. The program has a lot of benefits as it offers the freedom to travel and work anywhere in Canada. Currently, a few important changes are being introduced to the program with an aim to align it with the needs and preferences of the Canadian economy and labour market. The program will be focusing on need-based skilled immigration and priority will be given to immigrants with skills that are scarce in the local workforce.
Major changes
The major changes proposed to be introduced for the Federal Skilled Worker Program include:
- The National Occupational Classification( NOC) will be given more importance and all the regime indicators will function in alignment with the NOC
- Age will be a major parameter in Federal Skilled Migration and more young immigrants will be encouraged to work for a longer period.
- As language is an unavoidable factor in adapting to Canadian society, it will be made a priority factor in selecting candidates for Canada immigration
- The academic credentials obtained from abroad will have to be evaluated by a designated assessment agency
- A new category called Federal Skilled Trade Class will be introduced for meeting provisional requirements of the Canadian labour force. This category will require applicants to have a job offer from a Canadian employer with a minimum duration of one year.
Provincial Nominee Program – PNP
In cooperation with the Canadian federal government, the provinces and territories of Canada are running provincial nominee programs. Each PNP operates independently and in tandem with their particular needs for labour and skills in different industry sectors.
The major factors that will be considered for selecting candidates for immigration, be it the federal schemes or PNPs, are:
- Education
- Financial capacity
- Language proficiency
- The capacity to adapt to and contribute to the Canadian economy
Having a job offer from a Canadian employer will be an added advantage.
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