Federal Skilled Worker Canadian VIsa Immigration Program

Canada, just like many other developed countries, welcomes skilled workers from across the globe to work and live in Canada and contribute towards economic growth of the country. Canada federal skilled worker visa (also called Canada federal skilled worker permit or Canada FSW visa) is one of the many Canadian migration programs. It plays an extremely important role in filling the gap created by skill shortage in the country.

To start with, here are the basic federal skilled worker program requirements that every applicant needs to fulfill:

Work experience, which includes at least one year of working in a designated and related profession
Job offer from an employer or company in Canada. Foreign students or workers staying in Canada at the time of application are also counted as eligible.

Skilled worker program is a point-based system. According to CIC, a minimum of 67 out of 100 must be scored by the applicant to qualify for skilled worker visa.

Skilled worker program assessment criteria is divided into 6 categories that are:

Adaptability
Age
Educational qualifications
Employment experience
Employment offer
Language proficiency

Applicants who successfully get approved the skilled worker program for Canada not only enjoy the permanent resident status, but can also live and do a job unrestrictedly in Canada. Moreover, the skilled worker visa holders are free to work without any sponsorship, work permit, employer or employment offer.

What Are the Main Features and Highlights?

While a job permit has its own restriction, FSW visa allows working across Canada irrespective of place and time.
After completing 3 years of stay in the country, the FSW visa holders are eligible to apply for Canadian citizenship.
As a holder of Canadian passport and citizenship, they can travel to a number of countries with absolutely no need of visa.
Your family members can immediately accompany you to Canada. As a permanent resident, you can sponsor your family members at a later stage as well.
FSW makes you eligible for social security benefits like government-supported subsidy on healthcare and education.
Apart from unrestricted job opportunities, you are also entitled to the benefits like insurance and pension.
Federal skilled worker program processing time, which was more than 3 years previously, has been reduced to 6-12 months.
In case of federal skilled worker program application rejected, the High Commissioner will refund you.

Canadian FSW Visa Eligibility Requirements

To obtain FSW visa, the applicant must meet some important eligibility conditions which include:

Minimum of 1 year of work experience (full-time and continuous) or comparable paid job experience in one of the occupations approved by the concerned ministry
A valid arranged employment or job offer from a Canadian employer or company. The applicant must produce employment offer in written document and the offer must be indeterminate in duration and should meet the factors associated with arranged employment.
An overseas student currently enrolled in a doctoral or research program with a recognized Canadian educational institute is eligible to apply for FSW visa, if he or she:
- Has completed minimum of 2 years of PhD level education
- Boasts of high academic records and standards
- Has never received any sponsorship or award from the Canadian Government and will not return to his/her native country and will employ his/her skills, knowledge and experience in Canada
Applicants applying for FSW visa under Canadian PR should meet the conditions that include:
- Completion of a PhD education program from a recognized Canadian institute in no more than a year (before the visa application reaches the Centralized Intake Office)
- Has never received any sponsorship or award from the Canadian Government and will not return to his/her native country and will employ his/her skills, knowledge and experience in Canada
- In case, he/she has received any such sponsorship/award, he/she should have met the associated requirements, terms and conditions

Applying for Educational Credential Assessment

Applicants must obtain Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) that must be produced along with the FSW application. It is worth mentioning that applicants with Canadian education credential need not to undergo ECA. However, they should get ECA done in case they submit foreign education credentials as well.

ECA is important as it evaluates the educational credentials of the applicant in comparison with the equivalent educational credentials in Canada. Based on this assessment, the application approval authorities authenticate the credentials and are helped in taking the final decision.

It is advised to apply for ECA before May 04. Two important eligibility requirements for the application are:

Valid arranged employment or job offer/application under PhD stream/ application under eligible occupation stream
Minimum language capabilities threshold as proved by an approved 3rd party test

At present, CIC authorizes four organizations to conduct ECA. These include:

Comparative Education Service
International Credential Assessment Service of Canada
World Education Services
Medical Council of Canada

It must be noted that the Medical Council of Canada is authorized for ECA only for the occupations including:

Specialist physician (2011 National Occupation Classification [NOC] code 3111)
General practitioner/family physician (2011 NOC code 3112)

It must be noted further that codes 3111 and 3112 are not included in the approved occupation lists, but are valid only for those applying under PhD stream or those having a valid job offer meeting the requirements of these codes.

It is also worth mentioning that only the ECA reports issued after the date designated by CIC (April 17, 2013) will be considered valid.

EAC Fees include:

Comparative Education Service: CAD 226
International Credential Assessment Service of Canada: CAD 200
World Education Services: CAD 180
Medical Council of Canada: CAD 104

Approved Occupations List (from 2014)

The list below mentions approved occupations for FSW applications, along with the 2011 National Occupation Classification Code:

Senior managers – financial, communications and other business services (0013)
Senior managers - trade, broadcasting and other services, n.e.c. (0015)
Financial managers (0111)
Human resources managers (0112)
Purchasing managers (0113)
Insurance, real estate and financial brokerage managers (0121)
Managers in health care (0311)
Construction managers (0711)
Home building and renovation managers (0712)
Managers in natural resources production and fishing (0811)
1Manufacturing managers (0911)
1Financial auditors and accountants (1111)
1Financial and investment analysts (1112)
1Securities agents, investment dealers and brokers (1113)
1Other financial officers (1114)
1Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relations (1123)
1Supervisors, finance and insurance office workers (1212)
1Property administrators (1224)
1Geoscientists and oceanographers (2113)
2Civil engineers (2131)
2Mechanical engineers (2132)
2Electrical and electronics engineers (2133)
2Petroleum engineers (2145)
2Information systems analysts and consultants (2171)
2Database analysts and data administrators (2172)
2Software engineers and designers (2173)
2Computer programmers and interactive media developers (2174)
2Mechanical engineering technologists and technicians (2232)
2Construction estimators (2234)
3Electrical and electronics engineering technologists and technicians (2241)
3Industrial instrument technicians and mechanics (2243)
3Inspectors in public and environmental health and occupational health and safety (2263)
3Computer network technicians (2281)
3Nursing co-ordinators and supervisors (3011)
3Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses (3012)
3Specialist physicians (3111)
3General practitioners and family physicians (3112)
3Dietitians and nutritionists (3132)
3Audiologists and speech-language pathologists (3141)
4Physiotherapists (3142)
4Occupational therapists (3143)
4Respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists and cardiopulmonary technologists (3214)
4Medical radiation technologists (3215)
4Medical sonographers (3216)
4Licensed practical nurses (3233)
4Paramedical occupations (3234)
4University professors and lecturers (4011)
4Psychologists (4151)
4Early childhood educators and assistants (4214)
5Translators, terminologists and interpreters (5125)

Please note that there is a limit of 25,000 applications in total and each category has a limit of 1,000 applications.

Point-based Assessment – What You Should Know

An applicant for FSW visa must score 67 out of 100 in the point-based assessment which is done on the basis of criterions like:

Adaptability
Age
Arranged employment or job
Educational qualification
Language proficiency
Work experience

For complete assessment of your profile in each of these categories, you are welcome to contact our Canadian federal skilled worker program visa consultant right now. You can get your exact score right now, along with useful tips to increase the score.

Remember that to qualify for FSW visa, you must:

Have valid employment of job offer
Have stayed in Canada as a foreign worker or overseas student (no more applicable)
Be a skilled professional with minimum of one year of experience (full-time/paid/equivalent part-time) in one of the above-listed occupations
Have work experience and must be included in Skill Type 0 (managerial), Skill Level A (professional occupation) or Skill Level B (technical occupation or skilled trades) as specified in the Canadian National Occupational Classification List.
Have work experience in the past 10 years before the application date

FSW Visa Fees

Canadian Federal Skilled Worker program fees include:

$550 for principal applicant
$550 each for family members with age 22 or above
$550 each for family members with age below 22 and married/in common-law relationship
$150 each for family members with age below 22 and unmarried/not in common-law relationship

If the application gets approved, you would need to pay Right of Permanent Residence Fee which is:

$490 for principal applicant
$490 for spouse/common-law partner

In addition, you would need to pay fees for police certificates, medical certificates and language evaluations.

How Do We Help?

ACME Overseas has successfully guided and assisted hundreds of applicants applying for Canadian FSW visa. With us, you can expect:

Advice from experts during every stage of application
Job search to obtain a valid job offer
Documentation for visa application
Federal Skilled Worker Program document checklist
Inputs to fill the application correctly and at every other stage
Correspondence with the concerned departments and offices on your behalf

In addition, we are dedicated to offer post relocation and settlement in Canada services that include:

Airport pickup
Orientation on arrival to get familiar with the region and society
Assistance in transportation and accommodation search
Introduction to the communities of people from your native country

Why Canada Is Perfect for Skilled Workers?

Canada is indeed a hot destination when it comes to overall growth of skilled professionals. Some of the reasons to apply for Canada skilled worker visa are:

• Exceptional work environments
• Brilliant education and healthcare facilities
• Secure society with low crime rate
• Outstanding living standards
• Overall growth opportunities

Getting Started

Register with ACME Overseas
Get a case officer allocated for one-on-one assistance
Get assistance in filling forms and preparing documents
Get interview dates fixed with our help
Submit the forms and documents as per our instructions
Once approved for visa, get guidance on relocation

ACME Overseas offers extremely useful Canadian immigration services at the best prices. By choosing us as your Canadian FSW visa consultant, you take the right step in the right direction. We would love to hear and resolve your queries.