Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced a pause on new application intake for the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots, citing sustained high demand and the need to prioritize existing applications.
The announcement was made on December 19, 2025, as part of Canada’s 2026–2028 Immigration Levels Plan, which aims to make the immigration system more responsive to labour market needs while maintaining sustainable processing levels.
According to IRCC, interest in the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots continues to exceed the number of available spaces. Many home care workers—who provide essential support to seniors, children, and people with disabilities—have already submitted applications for permanent residence through these pilot programs.
As application volumes have grown, processing times have increased. To address this, IRCC has decided to pause new intake until further notice in order to focus resources on processing applications already received.
IRCC confirmed that, as a result of this pause, the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots will not re-open in March 2026, as previously anticipated by many prospective applicants.
During this period, no new applications will be accepted. However, IRCC will continue to process all applications submitted to date in line with the Immigration Levels Plan.
The pause is intended to prevent further growth in application inventories and to support the government’s broader goal of bringing immigration levels back to a sustainable balance. IRCC acknowledged that this decision may be disappointing for prospective applicants and their families but emphasized that it is necessary to ensure system efficiency and responsiveness.
At this time, no timeline has been provided for when intake may resume. IRCC has stated that any future updates on the Home Care Worker Immigration pilots will be shared publicly.
Applicants and stakeholders are encouraged to monitor official IRCC communications for the most current information regarding program changes or potential re-openings.
See the announcement here.
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