Advertisement
Career Pathways For Non-Skilled Applicants In Canada
Do you want to immigrate to Canada but are holding back when you do not have a degree or even a skilled work experience? You’re not alone. Most individuals confuse the idea that the only path of getting Canadian permanent residency (PR) is the very competitive system called the Express Entry program, which typically favor high skilled immigrants.1
Advertisement
This is the real good news, thinking that the economy of Canada has a colossal, chronic demand of non-specialized, basic labour. This requirement has led to realistic though sometimes longer Career Pathways to Non-Skilled Applicants in Canada that lead to PR successfully.
Advertisement
The Essential Workers bipartisan nominee program (PNP) benefit program
The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is your main point of concern should one be conducting a study on non-skilled employment that results into PR in Canada. In contrast to federal programs, PNPs enable individual provinces and territories to nominate candidates that would fit their individual labour market requirements, including those in low-skill groups.2

Central PNP Streams in NOC TEER 4/5 jobs:
- BC PNP Entry Level and Semi-Skilled (ELSS): It is a stable stream of workers in particular tourism/hospitality, food processing and long-haul trucking occupations in areas out of the Vancouver area.
- Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP) In-Demand Skills Stream: This stream focuses on in-demand positions in the agricultural, construction, and trucking sectors and is ideal to move into Canada, regardless of the lack of a degree or skills so long as you have a permanent job offer in certain categories of NOC TEER 4 and 5 outside the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).3
- Alberta Opportunity Stream: It is a program open to individuals who have a valid work permit and employment offer in most occupations in NOC TEER 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, as long as the applicant has the minimum language (CLB 4 specialization TEER 4/5) and education (high school diploma) requirements.
- NLP Insight: These Provincial streams do not have the federal Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score competition, and thus are the most feasible method that the Provincial nominee program essential workers may acquire a nomination.
Skilled Non-Skilled Jobs that demand high demand and have decisive PR Trajectories
The first and most important step would be to secure an LMIA-supported job (Labour Market Impact Assessment).9 An LMIA demonstrates that an employer requires a foreign worker. After having a work permit, the following jobs provide the quickest path on the way to becoming eligible to a PNP or the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) in the future:
Important Requirements and Steps to be taken
In order to exploit these career pathways effectively by the non-skilled applicants in Canada, pay attention to the following core areas:
Securing the Job Offer
The whole procedure depends on a job advertisement.10 Search of the Canadian employers who are seeking non-skilled foreigners who are willing to apply to an LMIA. The job must be:
- Full-Time: This is 30 or above hours a week.
- Non-Seasonal/Permanent: Necessary in most PR applications (except in case of a particular seasonal pilot).
- Low-Wage Stream LMIA: This stream is intended to address NOC TEER 4/5 roles.11.
Language Ability (Magic Number CLB 4)
You may be able to obtain a work permit without a high score in language but you will have to demonstrate having basic language use needed at the PR stage.12
- In the case of NOC TEER 4 and 5 jobs, the requirement in most of the PNPs (such as AIP) is simply CLB 4 (Canadian Language Benchmark Level 4).13.
- Action:ย It is time to begin preparing to take the IELTS General Training or CELPIP-General exam. Attend to simple speaking and listening.
Settlement Funds
You have to prove that you have sufficient funds that can sustain you and your family on arrival. This sum depends on the amount of people that belong to the family and is also changed by the government yearly.
FAQs
Is the word low-skilled a pejorative when it comes to the immigration to Canada?
Canadian government occupations system is called National Occupational Classification (NOC) and it is based on training, education, experience, responsibilities (TEER) which was considered low skilled before it became officially known as low-skilled.
Is it possible to have an Express Entry PR with TEER 4 or 5 job?
No. In general, Express Entry accepts jobs in TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3 (skilled).16 You should aim to get a TEER 4/5 job with the help of a work permit, experience in Canada, and apply to PR in a special PNP low-skilled workers (Atlantic, BC ELSS, etc.).
Canada What is the minimum CLB 4 requirements?
The minimum score needed by many of the low-skilled PR pathways is CLB 4 which translates to: Reading (3.5), Writing (4.0), Listening (4.5), and Speaking (4.0) on the IELTS General Training.
How can a Work permit to PR Canada low-skilled be obtained in the shortest time?
The Caregiver Pilots and Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) are generally the quickest non-Express Entry routes, since they are employer-sponsored as well as community-based retention programs.
Is it advisable to find Jobs among immigrants in rural Canada?
Absolutely. Smaller communities, particularly those which are involved in local pilots such as the old RNIP areas or in the Atlantic provinces, have intense labour shortages and it will be comparatively easy to find an employer who will be prepared to endorse your PR application.
Final Thought
You do not have a university degree or specialized training which is no big problem to successful life in Canada. By knowing that you will find your niche outside the Express Entry system, that is, to get an offer of a job under a Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) Low-Wage Stream and by using regional programs such as the AIP and provincial-specific streams, you open the possibilities of the real Career Pathways of Non-Skilled Applicants in Canada. Begin with employment, experience and make your work ethics your golden ticket to the permanent residence.
Disclaimer
This is an informative and informational article. The laws and program requirements regarding immigration are prone to change. It is strongly recommended that the readers confirm all the information on the official Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) site and provincial immigration departments before making any decision and launching an application.