Immigrate to Canada from the Philippines
Canada is home to over 900,000 people of Filipino origin. The Philippines is one of the top three source countries of new immigrants to Canada. If you are looking to immigrate to Canada from the Philippines, you have come to the right place. This page provides an overview of Canadian immigration options available to Filipinos.
Overview: Why immigrate from the Philippines to Canada?
How can you immigrate from the Philippines to Canada?
Filipinos are in a strong position to immigrate to Canada due to their high levels of English language proficiency, education, and professional work experience. These are among the key factors that Canada considers when selecting economic-class immigrants.
Federal Skilled Worker Program
The Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) may be the best option for you if you are a Filipino living overseas. The FSWP allows candidates with work experience and no connection to Canada or job offer to apply for permanent residence.The program targets skilled workers who will be able to use their foreign work experience, education, language skills and other human capital factors to become economically established in Canada. More specifically, candidates must meet the following minimum requirements:
- One year of continuous full-time or equivalent paid work experience in the past 10 years in a skilled occupation classified under the National Occupational Classification (NOC) TEER category 0, 1, 2, or 3.
- Validated language ability is equivalent to Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) 7 in English or French across all abilities (reading, writing, listening, and speaking).
- Canadian educational credential (certificate, diploma, or degree) or foreign credential and Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) report.
- FSWP applicants must get at least 67 points on IRCC’s six immigration selection factors.
- Show that you have enough money for you and your family to settle in Canada.
What to do if you are eligible for the FSWP
The FSWP is among the three programs managed under the Canadian government’s Express Entry application management system.
Once you confirm you are eligible for the FSWP, you may upload your Express Entry profile onto the website of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
Upon uploading their Express Entry profiles, candidates from the Philippines receive a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score based on their human capital factors such as age, education, work experience, and official language ability among others.
Every two weeks, IRCC sends out invitations to apply for permanent residence to the highest-scoring candidates in the pool. In addition, IRCC sets a 6-month processing service standard under Express Entry.
The target is for more than 110,000 permanent residents to be admitted through Express Entry per year. Together, these elements make Express Entry one of the most attractive options and the fastest way for economic-class candidates to obtain permanent residence in Canada.
Provincial Nominee Program
The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is the other major option for Filipino immigration candidates.
Canada is a federal country with 10 provinces and three territories, the majority of which administer the PNP. The program allows each province and territory, with its own population and economy, to design immigration pathways based on its economic and demographic needs.
Through the PNP, provinces and territories can nominate skilled worker candidates for immigration to their respective jurisdictions.
Filipino candidates may be able to apply to immigrate to Canada directly through a PNP, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. They may also enter the Express Entry pool and be invited to apply for nomination by a province that will select candidates from the federal pool. If they are nominated through an Express Entry-linked stream, they will receive an additional 600 CRS points. This means they are virtually guaranteed to receive an invitation to apply for permanent residence (ITA) in a subsequent Express Entry draw.
Other Federal Immigration Programs
Filipinos may wish to consider other prominent federal economic immigration programs available to them. These include:
- Caregivers: Canada offers a number of permanent residence and work permit pathways for caregivers.
- Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP): Each of Canada’s Atlantic provinces welcomes economic class immigrants through the AIP.
- Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP): Participating Northern communities across Canada are able to welcome economic class immigrants via the RNIP.
- Agri-Food Immigration Pilot: Employers in Canada’s agri-food sector are able to recruit economic-class immigrants through this program.