Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP)

The Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot (EMPP) is like a special plan in Canada to assist skilled refugees and their families in moving to Canada. This program is managed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and used to work with the Refugee Affairs Branch along with the United Nations Refugee Agency.

What’s cool about the EMPP is that it not only helps refugees come to Canada, but also helps Canadian businesses find more people who could be great workers. So, it’s a win-win – refugees get a chance for a new start, and Canadian employers get a bigger group of potential employees to choose from to meet their needs.

Major 2 Ways To Apply For EMPP

1. Selected Economic Programs

  • This part is about different programs in Canada called the:
    • Atlantic Immigration Program
    • Provincial Nominee Program
    • Rural and Northern Immigration Program (RNIP).
  • Together, they are known as the regional EMPP.
  • To be part of this, you have to qualify for one of these programs.
  • You start by applying to a province, territory, or RNIP community, depending on the program you want to go for

To be eligible for any of these, you need:

  1. Proficiency in English or French.
  2. Education or vocational training along with work experience.
  3. A full-time job offer from a Canadian employer

2. Directly Apply For The Federal EMPP

There are two options: one with a job offer and one without. To qualify, you must fulfill the requirements for work experience, education, and language skills. If you choose to apply for an economic immigration program through the regional EMPP, additional benefits include:

  • Making it easier for you to be eligible and apply for the program.
  • Allowing you to use a loan to meet financial requirements, supporting yourself and your family in Canada (your settlement funds)

Through The Direct Federal EMPP

  • Check application and biometric fees for you and your dependents.
  • Review and process your application in 6 months or less (in most cases).
  • Cover the cost of medical exams through the Interim Federal Health Program.
  • Allow you to access the Immigration Loans Program (ILP) to help with
    • Travel costs, if your application is approved.
    • Provide some pre-arrival travel services from the International Organization for Migration.
    • Cover the right of permanent residence fee.
  • Allow access to the EMPP-specific Canadian Orientation Abroad Programme to assist with settling in Canada

Economic Mobility Pathways Pilot Eligibility Criteria

1. You must be a refugee or displaced person

  • To prove eligibility, you need one of these documents:
    • Positive Refugee Status Determination (RSD) from the UN Refugee Agency or a refugee-hosting state.
    • Registration or record as a person of concern by the UN Refugee Agency.
    • Refugee certificate from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine in the Near East (UNRWA).
    • Registration or record as a person of concern with UNRWA.
    • Temporary protected status with a completed durable solution information form (IMM 0195).
  • If applying with temporary protected status, an officer will assess your case to determine if you lack a durable solution.
  • If you lack the mentioned documents, a trusted partner can:
    • Assess your eligibility as a refugee or displaced person.
    • Issue a referral letter if you meet the criteria.

Important: You must be living outside Canada when applying to the EMPP.

2. Criteria For Applying To The EMPP

Submit your application based on your work experience, education, and language skills for the Federal Economic Mobility Pathways Program (Federal EMPP. You’ll apply under 1 of these streams

1. Job offer stream

Job Offer Requirements:

  • You need a full-time job offer (at least 30 hours per week).
  • The job should be non-seasonal and come from a Canadian employer.
  • It should be for a job listed in TEER Categories 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 of the National Occupation Classification.

Work Experience Criteria:

  • Your work experience must be at least 1 year of full-time, paid work (1,560 hours) or an equivalent amount of part-time work.
  • This experience can be accumulated over any period.
  • The work should fall within TEER categories 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 and can even include periods of self-employment.

Education Requirements:

  • Your training, education, experience, and responsibilities should align with the TEER category of the job offer

Language Skills Requirements:

  • You need to demonstrate your language skills officially through an approved language test in either English or French.
  • Achieve the minimum score required for your job’s TEER category:
  • For job offers in TEER Category 0, 1, 2, or 3: Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB)/Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) 5.
  • For job offers in TEER Category 4 or 5: CLB/NCLC 4.
  • Ensure that your test results are less than 2 years old at the time of application

2. No job offer stream (up to 150 applications a year)

Work Experience Requirements:

You need at least 1 year of full-time, paid work experience (1,560 hours) in TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3, gained within the last 3 years before your application.

The work experience should not involve any period of self-employment.

Education Criteria:

You must have either a Canadian secondary school credential or a foreign degree, diploma, or certificate.

If your education is from outside Canada, it should come with an Educational Credential Assessment issued within the last 5 years.

Language Skills Standards:

Prove your official language skills through an approved language test in English or French.

Attain a minimum score of at least CLB/NCLC 7 in each of the 4 language abilities.

Settlement Funds Requirement:

Demonstrate that you have enough money to support yourself and your family in Canada.

This amount depends on your family size and can include grants, gifts, community donations, and household income earned by you, your spouse or partner, and any dependents.

3. Be admissible to Canada.

  • A medical exam
  • Security checks
  • Criminality (Police verification) checks

How to apply For Economic Mobility Pathways

1. Get Ready With All Your Docs

  • Positive Refugee Status: Have a positive Refugee Status Determination (RSD) from the UN Refugee Agency or a refugee-hosting state.
  • Person of Concern Registration: If you don’t have a positive RSD or can’t obtain one, show proof of being registered or recorded as a person of concern by the UN Refugee Agency.
  • Refugee Certificate (for Palestine Refugees): Possess a refugee certificate from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
  • Registration with UNRWA: If you haven’t obtained a refugee certificate, provide proof of being registered or recorded as a person of concern by UNRWA.
  • Temporary Protected Status: Show proof of temporary protected status along with a completed durable solution information form (IMM 0195).
  • Assessment with Temporary Protected Status: If applying with temporary protected status, an officer will evaluate your case to determine if you lack a durable solution.

Note: If you don’t have any of these documents, you can collaborate with a partner who can issue you a “trusted partner referral letter.

2. Referral Letter from a Partner

  • Confirm that you meet the definition of a convention refugee or country of asylum refugee.
  • Partners do not need to verify refugee status if they possess a temporary protected status (TPS) document.
  • Ensure you have no durable solution in place.
  • If you meet the criteria, partners like TalentLift, Talent Beyond Boundaries, and Jumpstart Refugee Talent will provide you with a trusted partner referral letter.
  • Include the trusted partner referral letter when submitting your application.
  • Partners capable of issuing referral letters include TalentLift, Talent Beyond Boundaries, and Jumpstart Refugee Talent.
  • While other partner organizations can assist in the application process, they do not have the authority to issue a trusted partner referral letter

3. Application Submission:

  • Independent Application Submission: You have the option to complete your applications independently or with the assistance of a partner.
  • Choosing an Immigration Representative: If you opt for an immigration representative, ensure you are knowledgeable in selecting a qualified one.
  • Application for Federal EMPP: If applying based on work experience, education, and language skills for the federal Economic Mobility Pathways Program (EMPP), only one application is necessary, regardless of whether you have a job offer or not

Applying through Regional EMPP:

  • Complete two applications:
    • One for an economic immigration program (e.g., Atlantic Immigration, Provincial Nominee, or Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot).
    • Another for the regional Economic Mobility Pathways Program (EMPP).
  • If eligible, apply online using the permanent residence portal.
  • Submit both applications together online.

Before & After You Arrive in Canada

Before

  • Before your arrival, you’ll receive access to the Canadian Orientation Abroad program.
  • This program provides a general orientation to life in Canada.
  • It helps you prepare for your move and connects you to free settlement services after your arrival, including language training.

After

Confirm your permanent resident status

  • To confirm your permanent resident (PR) status, use our secure online Permanent Residence Portal.
  • Wait until you receive an email from an address ending in cic.gc.ca; do not create your own account.
  • Follow the instructions provided in the email to confirm your PR status online.

Get your permanent resident card

  • Upon achieving permanent resident status, find your electronic confirmation of permanent residence (e-COPR) in the Permanent Residence Portal; it serves as proof of your new status in Canada.
  • In the portal, submit a photo to initiate the issuance of your first PR card; no separate application is required.
  • While awaiting your PR card, utilize the signed e-COPR to:
    • Confirm your permanent resident status in Canada.
    • Apply for government benefits and services.
    • Obtain a social insurance number for employment

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