Philippine Asian News Today | Page 16

A16 PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY April 16 - 30, 2016 IMMIGRATION CORNER LEARN ABOUT CREDENTIAL ASSESSMENT IN CANADA The Notary Corner By Editha Corrales Nelson Immigration Consultant, Notary Public, Mediation / Arbitrator You will need to have the education, work experience or professional credentials you received outside Canada assessed if you are: • immigrating to Canada as a Federal Skilled Worker • coming to Canada to work in specific professions or trades, or • coming to Canada to study, Credential assessment will help you: • see whether your credentials are equal to the standards set for Canadian workers • find out whether you need more training, education or Canadian work experience • understand the types of jobs for which you might be qualified • help employers understand your qualifications You can start the credential assessment and recognition process before you arrive in Canada. This takes time and costs money. 1. TO IMMIGRATE AS A FEDERAL SKILLED WORKER (FSW) To apply to the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), you must get an Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) of your completed foreign educational credentials. An ECA is used to verify whether your: • foreign degree, • diploma, • certificate, or • other proof of your credential. is valid and equal to a completed credential in Canada for the purpose of immigrating to Canada. Remember that you will also have to have your skills and training assessed to work in particular jobs in Canada. 2. TO WORK IN SOME JOBS IN CANADA, INCLUDING CERTAIN TRADES Reminder: No matter which type of job you are looking for, make sure you have the language skills needed. Even if you have the language skills needed to immigrate to Canada, those skills may not be strong enough to work in your preferred profession. There are two types of occupations in Canada: regulated (including trades) and non-regulated. Regulated occupations, including trades A regulated occupation (for example, architect, engineer or plumber) is controlled by provincial and territorial (and sometimes federal) law and governed by a regulatory body or apprenticeship authority. They are also called professions, skilled trades or apprenticeable trades. These jobs are regulated to protect public health and safety, and to make sure that people working in those jobs are qualified. About 20 percent of jobs in Canada are regulated. A regulatory body usually assesses credential recognition. Check with the regulatory body or other organization for your occupation to find out whether you need an assessment. They can tell you which credential assessment agency you should use. You can find contact information for your regulatory body on Job Bank. You can also check their website to find information about: • licensing, • eligibility, • the recognition process, and • fees. To work in a regulated occupation and use a regulated title, you must: • have a licence or • a certificate or • be registered with the regulatory body for your occupation in the province or territory where you want to work. Each regulated occupation has its own requirements for getting a licence or certificate. Requirements can be different between provinces and territories. Requirements for entry usually include: • An assessment of your training and skills against the profession’s standards by comparing your original academic transcripts and other related documents, such as university course WWW.PHILIPPINEASIANNEWSTODAY.COM descriptions, with the training provided by Canadian colleges and universities • Written examinations, an interview or both • An evaluation of your language and communication skills • A specified period of supervised work experience You will be evaluated as an individual. Do not compare your experience directly with that of someone else. You must understand the requirements as they apply to your own situation in the province or territory where you intend to work. If you want to work in a trade (carpenter, electrician, bakers), visit Red Seal for more details about the training, skills and experience you will need to meet. As a tradesperson, you may be eligible to immigrate through the Federal Skilled Trades Program. In Canada, some provinces and territories regulate certain professions and trades while others do not. If you have a licence to work in one province or territory,