Major Opportunities For Internationally-Trained Nurses As Canada Looks To Plug Labour Shortage

Canada is looking to recruit thousands of internationally-trained nurses to fill a chronic labour shortage in its health service.

It means there are a multitude of opportunities for nurses and those in nursing-related occupations to immigrate to Canada in the next few years.

Multiple nursing-related occupations are among the more than 30 healthcare jobs included in new occupation-specific Express Entry draws.

Healthcare jobs were the first group of professions to be targeted under the new draws, which began at the end of June.

The nursing occupations included were:

There are many programs through which nurses can immigrate to Canada and the country has certainly thrown open wide the doors to immigration.

In its 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan, Ottawa has set its immigration target for 2023 at 465,000 new permanent residents. The country is to welcome 485,000 new permanent residents in 2024 and another 500,000 in 2025. That’s a total of 1.45 million immigrants to Canada over the coming three years.

Canada is looking for individuals who have a range of skills, education and experience that can help them gain employment in Canada and successfully integrate into Canadian society.

In New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia, licensing bodies have made it easier for these physicians and nurses trained in other countries to practice in Canada.

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In Atlantic Canada, the Nurses Association of New Brunswick (NANB) has given the green light to new pathways for the registration of internationally-educated nurses. 

With those changes, nurses from 14 countries can have their National Nursing Assessment Service reports submitted within 24 hours and registrations to work within 14 days.

The 14 countries include the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Hong Kong, India, Philippines, United Arab Emirates, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Morocco and Lebanon.

Nursing Associations In Several Provinces Welcoming Internationally Educated Nurses

NANB president Julie Weir says the bilingual nature of New Brunswick is a different reality than that facing other nursing regulators.

“In addition, NANB must take into consideration other important factors such as, supporting the internationally-educated nurse to be prepared to meet the demanding health care context and encouraging recruitment from French and English-speaking countries not identified by the World Health Organization that require health workforce support and safeguards,” she said in a statement.

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Next door in Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia College of Nursing (NSCN) sped up its registration and licensure process in March for registered nurses who are licensed in Canada, the Philippines, India, Nigeria, USA, UK, Australia, or New Zealand.

Under that new process, those nurses are eligible for registration and licensure in Nova Scotia immediately with no additional requirements other than passing the entrance exam. That move is expected to cut the processing time by 80 per cent, to only one day instead of five, for nurses already registered in Canada. 

Potential Hourly Wages For Different Provinces In Canada

Nurses in those other countries can expect that new process to cut their application times down from more than a year to only a few weeks. 

“The new approach will significantly decrease licensing time; increase licensure of nurses; reduce administrative requirements; and is aligned with new initiatives of health care partners,” said Sue Smith, chief executive officer of the NSCN.

 “It’s a safe and faster process for nurses who want to work in our province, which is a good news story for all Nova Scotians.”

In Central Canada, the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) proposed changes in mid-June that – if approved – will enable applicants to meet the education requirement to work as nurses in Ontario if they complete relevant nursing education recognized or approved in any jurisdiction. Applicants also will be required to complete a course to support their successful integration into Ontario’s healthcare system.

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“These proposed changes will make an incredible difference in reducing barriers to registration for our internationally educated nurse applicants, while also contributing to increasing human health resources to support the health system,” said Silvie Crawford, CNO’s executive director and chief executive officer.

In the Prairie province of Alberta, the College of Registered Nurses of Alberta (CRNA) also made a move in April to remove barriers for internationally-educated nurses by scrapping the lengthy and costly credential assessment before they could write the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN), an internationally-recognized entrance exam taken by all recent Alberta graduates.

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With the latest change, those who want to work as nurses in Alberta can now meet the competency requirement if they:

• are registered in any global jurisdiction and have already passed the NCLEX-RN;
• are registered in one of nine international jurisdictions, including the Philippines, India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Nigeria, Jamaica, New Zealand and Ireland, and request to write the NCLEX-RN with the CRNA, or;
• can confirm they have an equivalent education from any jurisdiction and request to write the NCLEX-RN with the CRNA.

International-educated nurses who want to work in Alberta can now also get the go-ahead to practice more quickly because the provincial licensing body has revised and standardized its processes and so sped things up.

Nurses Who Want To Practice In Canada Need To Have Their Credentials Recognized

The first step for a nurse eyeing Canada as a destination for immigration is to have his or her academic credentials evaluated to see if they are up to Canadian standards.

The Canadian government recognizes five organizations for the assessment of foreign educational credentials:

• World Education Services (WES);
• International Credential Assessment Service of Canada (ICAS);
• Comparative Education Service (CES);
• International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS), and;
• International Credential Evaluation Service (ICES).

Once the educational and background checks have been completed, the next step is for the prospective immigrant to have those nursing credentials recognized in Canada by the National Nursing Assessment Service (NNAS), a step that costs US$650.

The second step in the process for the foreign national looking to immigrate to Canada as a nurse is to create a profile on the NNAS application page.

That requires:

• the submission of two pieces of identity that must be notarized, copies of original documents that have been signed, dated and stamped;
• a completed nursing education form that can be downloaded from the website filled out, and signed before being sent to the school where the nurse was educated for that school’s officials to complete and then send directly to NNAS along with academic records or transcripts, course curriculum and course descriptions and syllabi;
• submission of the nursing registration form which is to be sent to the nursing licensing authority where the nurse is currently registered in his or her home country;
• the nursing practice/employment form which must be signed and sent to all employers the nurse has had over the past five years for them to complete and send to NNAS, and;
• the prospective applicant for immigration’s IELTS language testing results, which must be sent directly to NNAS from an approved language-testing organization or company.

Provincial And Territorial Nursing Associations Accept Completed Applications

After that has been done and the documents have been received by NNAS, the nurse can submit his or her application and pick the nursing group and provincial association to which they wish to apply.

These include:

• British Columbia College of Nursing Professionals and Midwives;
• College of Registered Nurses of Alberta;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta;
• College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of Alberta;
• Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association;
• Saskatchewan Association of Licensed Practical Nurses;
• Registered Psychiatric Nurses Association of Saskatchewan;
• College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses of Manitoba;
• College of Nurses of Ontario;
• Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec;
• Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers auxiliaires du Québec;
• Nurses Association of New Brunswick;
• Association of New Brunswick Licensed Practical Nurses;
• Nova Scotia College of Nursing;
• College of Registered Nurses of Prince Edward Island;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Prince Edward Island;
• College of Registered Nurses of Newfoundland and Labrador;
• College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Newfoundland and Labrador;
• Registered Nurses Association of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut;
• Government of Northwest Territories, Registrar, Professional Licensing, Health and Social Services;
• Registered Nurses Association of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut;
• Government of Nunavut, Department of Health;
• Yukon Registered Nurses Association, and;
• Government of Yukon, Yukon Department of Community Services.