1

MARCH 20-22, 2013

THE FAIRMONT WATERFRONT
900 CANADA PLACE WAY
VANCOUVER, CANADA
2ND
CANADA-AUSTRALIA
ROUNDTABLE
ON FOREIGN QUALIFICATION
RECOGNITION
FOREIGN CREDENTIAL RECOGNITION IN CANADA
Backgrounder prepared by
Quinn Albaugh and F. Leslie Seidle
11 March 2013
3
I
n recent years, immigrants admitted to Canada have been increasingly educated in fact, more educated
than individuals born in Canada.
1
At the same time, a considerable proportion of immigrants work in low-skill
occupations, even if they have relatively high levels of education.
2
Many of them also have relatively low earn-
ings and high unemployment.
3
In addition, research has shown that immigrants with foreign degrees and work
experience receive lower returns to education and job experience than immigrants with Canadian degrees and
experience and, particularly, Canadian-born individuals. These trends suggest that the human capital of many
of Canadas immigrants is not being fully utilized.
For most jobs, the main barrier that internationally-trained individuals face is employers uncertainty about
how to evaluate foreign degrees and work experience. This may lead them to prefer candidates with Canadian
credentials. However, for regulated professions, which account for about 20 percent of all jobs in Canada, in
most cases it is necessary frst to obtain a licence from a regulatory body within each province in order to be
able to obtain a job in that feld.
4
The assessment and recognition processes for licensure introduces a number
of additional hurdles for internationally-trained individuals. Some of these may be warranted after all, the
actions of regulated professions often have tremendous consequences for the public, such as in health care
and public safety. At the same time, it is important to ensure that people who are qualifed are actually able to
practise. Otherwise, their skills may be underutilized.
Attempting to develop policy remedies is particularly difcult in Canada due to jurisdictional issues. Pro-
vincial governments are primarily responsible for the regulation of professions. There are almost 500 regulatory
bodies across Canada that govern professions.
5
In addition, jurisdiction over immigration is shared between the
federal and provincial governments (with federal paramountcy). Through the Canada-Quebec Accord on Immi-
gration
6
and the Provincial Nominee programs developed over the past 15 years, provincial governments have
become increasingly involved in the related area of immigrant selection. As a result, many stakeholders have a
role in processes related to foreign credential recognition.
Licensing criteria often include language requirements, fees, and onshore clinical or competency assess-
ments, all of which can constitute signifcant barriers. Some critics have argued that these procedures restrict
access in order to dampen supply and thus raise wages; others would argue that high standards are necessary
to maintain professional standards, particularly in felds dealing with public health and safety issues. However,
regardless of the reasons, these requirements can constitute signifcant barriers.
7

4
A Signifcant Problem
S
everal Canadian researchers have attempted to measure the extent to which foreign credentials are not rec-
ognized or are only recognized after a number of years in Canada. Some research relies on the Longitudinal
Study of Immigrants to Canada, a series of surveys of 2,000 immigrants who arrived in 2000-01. Each participant
was interviewed six months, two years and four years after landing. One study using this dataset found that,
while credential recognition rates tended to increase the longer the immigrant was in Canada, they were still
generally low.
8
By the fourth year after arrival, only 28 percent of those surveyed had their foreign degrees rec-
ognized, while 39 percent had their foreign work experience recognized. It also found that gaps existed among
immigrant groups, particularly based on age and gender: older immigrants and women were less successful in
having their credentials recognized.
Another relevant measure is match rates the percentage of people who obtain work in the regulated
profession that corresponds with their educational background. According to a 2010 Statistics Canada study
that used data from the 2006 Census, 62 percent of the Canadian-born were working in the regulated profes-
sions for which they trained compared to only 24 percent of foreign-educated immigrants.
9
Those working in
their source country feld tended to have far better employment outcomes. Immigrants with Canadian degrees
were far more successful than those with international degrees 53 percent of them had found work in regulat-
ed professions linked to their educational backgrounds.
10
The same study also found that match rate gaps exist across a variety of fields. The only field examined
in which there were not sharp differences between foreign-educated immigrants and the Canadian born
was chiropractics. Immigrants with degrees from English-speaking countries had higher match rates than
those from countries where other languages predominate. Most troubling of all, the study found that of
the immigrants who were not working in their field of education, 77 percent were in jobs that typically
require no degree at all.
11
Another study drawing on an online survey conducted in 2011 found that the unemployment rate for immi-
grants with degrees in regulated felds had the highest unemployment rate among immigrants from 2000-10, at
39 percent.
12
This was higher than the rate for those with high school education or less (37 percent).
Foreign-trained individuals have three options when they cannot work in their prior profession: abandon-
ing the profession, leaving Canada or obtaining new credentials either in the same or a diferent regulated
profession.
13
The frst has been relatively well-studied, the other two less so. However, a recent study of 309
foreign-trained engineers in Ontario found that only 37 percent of those who applied for an engineering job
in Canada had obtained jobs in the feld, while the others worked in relatively-low skill felds, such taxi driving
or telemarketing.
14
During qualitative interviews of a subset of this group, the researchers found that seven
pursued credentials other than or below that of professional engineer (P. Eng.), while one pursued an additional
university degree from a Canadian institution. Another study using the same sample noted that many inter-
viewees mentioned high costs, in both time and money, to obtain credential recognition, including fees and
wait times for obtaining documents(such as postsecondary transcripts) from overseas.
15
These studies illustrate
the barriers to obtaining additional certifcations, particularly additional degrees, which requires considerable
time and money.
5
Mitigating the Problem through Immigrant Selection
T
he criteria and processes for the selection of future immigrants, including assessments of occupational need and
the involvement of employers, can have important impacts on foreign credential recognition. Over the past few
years, a number of changes have been made to the regulations for immigrant selection to Canada, in part based on
evidence from Australias immigration policy reforms of the past decade or so (see backgrounder on Australia).
One such example is the Canadian Experience Class (CEC), which, since 2008, provides a pathway to permanent
residence for skilled temporary foreign workers with Canadian job experience and for people who come to Canada as
international students and obtain a Canadian degree.
16
Quebec, which selects economic immigrants who seek to settle
in the province, has a similar program. The programs are based on the assumption that people who qualify under them
will be better able to integrate into the labour market. They are also attempting to reduce the number of newcomers
who face the problem of unrecognized credentials. Research comparing immigrants who have qualifed for the CEC
with immigrants who entered under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP), often known as the points system,
suggests the former tend to have far better earnings and employment outcomes.
17
Signifcant changes to the FSWP have also been introduced. For example, since 2008, only applicants who
have been working for at least one year in one of the felds identifed on a Ministerial Instructions list of priority
of occupations qualify for processing.
18
This reform mirrors a process the Australian government put in place
a number of years ago. Also following Australias lead, as of 26 June 2010, mandatory language testing at the
application stage has been required for candidates for the FSWP and the CEC.
Applications under the FSWP have been suspended until 4 May 2013, when a major overhaul of the points
system will come into efect.
19
The new grid will prioritize younger applicants, people with greater skills in En-
glish or French and those who have guaranteed job ofers. It will also require a mandatory assessment of the
applicants educational credentials and a minimum level of language knowledge in English or French.
A further potentially signifcant change is the planned introduction (in 2014) of an Expression of Interest applica-
tion system (inspired by an approach developed in New Zealand and later adopted by Australia). Under an Expression
of Interest system ... prospective immigrants fll in an online form indicating their interest in coming to a host country
as permanent residents. The form can include information that relates to, for example, language profciency, work ex-
perience and assessed education credentials.
20
The details of the process are still under development.
Policies to Address Difculties with the Credential Recognition Process
C
anada has not progressed as far in Australia in creating agencies and launching initiatives to promote the
recognition of foreign credentials. In part, this is because of the difculties of Canadian federalism, in which
the power to regulate access to professions and trades is at the provincial level. Nonetheless, the Canadian
federal government has taken a number of steps to improve foreign credential recognition. As in Australia, the
responses have focused on a number of related issues, including information provision, overseas assessment,
establishing pan-Canadian coordination of foreign qualifcation assessment and recognition practices across
provinces and territories, and developing mutual recognition agreements between governments or counter-
part regulatory bodies in other countries. In addition, a variety of organizations provide settlement services and
related programs to assist newcomers in their transition. However, unlike in Australia, one approach in Canada
6
has been to create agencies focused on whether regulatory bodies are unfairly denying access to regulated
professions to foreign-trained individuals.
The Federal Governments Role
At the federal level, a number of departments have launched initiatives to deal with foreign credential recog-
nition over the past decade. Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) launched the Foreign
Credential Recognition Program in 2003. It funds a variety of initiatives, including research and its dissemina-
tion, improvement of assessment systems, language training and bridging programs. The initiatives are not
delivered by HRSDC but by a variety of other organizations, including provincial and territorial governments,
unions, regulatory bodies, postsecondary institutions and non-proft organizations.
21
In 2004, a First Ministers meeting on health care issues led to the creation of the Internationally Educated
Health Professionals Initiative within Health Canada.
22
This initiative sets out clear goals for improving the status
of foreign-trained individuals within health professions, including fairness in licensing and bridging or remedi-
ation programs. Under this initiative, Health Canada provides funding for projects that ft with the policy goals.
In 2007, the Canadian government established the Foreign Credentials Referral Ofce (FCRO) within Citi-
zenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). Its purpose is to help individuals obtain information needed to have
their credentials recognized and apply those credentials within the Canadian labour market. In 2012, the FCRO
launched the International Qualifcations Network, a website where employers, provincial and territorial gov-
ernments, regulatory bodies, immigrant-serving organizations, sector councils and academic institutions can
exchange information on promising FCR initiatives and best practices.
Investigating Fairness in Foreign Credential Assessment
In recent years, a number of provincial governments have set up ofces that have a mandate to investigate fairness in
foreign credential recognition practices. Ontario was the frst province to take such steps through the 2006 Fair Access
to Regulated Professions Act. This established the Ofce of the Fairness Commissioner, which researches and sets stan-
dards for fair access to regulated professions in Ontario. It also monitors the practices of bodies that regulate various pro-
fessions, including keeping track of how much Canadian work experience is required for registration, reviewing audits of
internal practices and internal reviews from regulatory bodies and setting best practices for professional examinations.
23

Notably, each regulatory body under the Ofce of the Fairness Commissioners jurisdiction must submit a yearly report.
Following Ontarios lead, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Quebec have adopted similar legislation.
24
In Quebec,
the Commissioner has the power to investigate individual complaints, rather than only reviewing the practic-
es of professions. The Ofce of the Manitoba Fairness Commissioner has conducted reviews of the credential
assessment process (called registration reviews) for 14 regulatory bodies and published proposed plans for
improvement for seven of those. As of February 2013, 15 more registration reviews are underway.
25
The Nova
Scotia Fair Registration Practices Act (FRPA) Review Ofce only began its work in 2012.
26
Information Provision
Given that the evidence suggests that many foreign-trained individuals are not familiar with the credential rec-
ognition and licensing processes, one major policy intervention has been to provide them with relevant infor-
7
mation. A variety of stakeholders are involved in such initiatives. At the federal level, the FCRO plays a key role in
providing information to applicants.
The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, on which all provincial and territorial governments are rep-
resented, has established the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (CICIC), which provides
information on how to become certifed in many professions across Canada or on how to obtain that informa-
tion directly from regulatory bodies.
Every province has a website with information on which professions and occupations are regulated. Ontario
has two HealthForceOntario for health care occupations and Global Experience Ontario for other regulated
occupations. However, it may not occur to some individuals to look for these websites, and, in any case, not all
of them have detailed information on how to apply for professional licensure.
A number of regulatory bodies and national associations of regulatory bodies have websites designed to make
information on credential assessment and recognition more accessible to foreign-trained individuals. For example, the
Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants has a website, Becoming a CA in Canada, that provides a self-assessment
tool for applicants so that they know what criteria they will have to meet in their particular situation, given their edu-
cation, years of experience and foreign chartered accountant status, among other criteria. The federal governments
Foreign Credential Recognition Program provided partial funding for creating this website, which illustrates one way
governments can facilitate improvements at the professional organization level.
Given the time it may take to have international credentials recognized, providing information on require-
ments prior to landing can have benefts. To this end, CIC has funded the Canadian Immigrant Integration Proj-
ect (CIIP), an initiative of the Association of Canadian Community Colleges. It aims to provide prospective immi-
grants (Federal Skilled Workers, Provincial Nominees, their spouses and working age dependents) with relevant
information, which includes the requirements for qualifcation recognition in a particular feld of regulated
work. Immigrants who are in the later stages of the immigration process are referred to the CIIP. CIC reports that
more than 20,000 immigrants have already benefted from this program.
27
Following Australias example, the Canadian government has announced its intention to introduce pre-ar-
rival assessments of foreign educational credentials at the application stage.
28
The assessments, which will be
carried out by designated third party organizations, are intended to provide prospective newcomers with a
more realistic understanding of how their credentials compare to educational standards in Canada.
29
These
changes will come into efect for principal applicants to the FSWP on 4 May 2013.
Among the provinces, Alberta has taken the lead in this area. Its International Qualifcations Assessment Service
(IQAS) allows internationally-trained individuals to describe their educational credentials online in order to receive a
comparison of their credentials with those ofered by Canadian institutions. IQAS assessments, which can be basic
or specialized, are used by a number of Alberta regulatory bodies in the licensing process. The Government of Sas-
katchewan contracts with IQAS to provide these services to those seeking to work in that province.
In addition, a number of assessment agencies, which may be provincial government agencies, private orga-
nizations or educational institutions, have been established. Seven of these, including IQAS, are members the
Alliance of Credential Services of Canada. The members of the Alliance of Credential Services of Canada agree
to abide by the Pan-Canadian Quality Assurance Framework for the Assessment of International Academic Cre-
8
dentials.
30
This document sets out goals and guiding principles for ensuring that assessments of international
credentials correspond to a national vision of quality.
Developing National Standards
Compared to Australia, it is considerably more difcult to develop general national standards for professions
and occupations in Canada. The provinces and territories have nevertheless reached two major agreements that
have an impact on foreign credential recognition. In 2009, all provincial and territorial governments approved
amendments to Chapter 7 of the Agreement on Internal Trade. This requires all provinces and territories to
recognize professional certifcations from the others, barring serious concerns such as public safety. As a result,
once internationally-trained individuals obtain certifcation in one province or territory, it is much easier to ob-
tain a similar certifcation elsewhere in the country.
Also in 2009, federal, provincial and territorial labour market ministers committed to the Pan-Canadian
Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifcations. The Framework outlines national vi-
sion and sets out guiding principles for foreign credential recognition. It includes a pan-Canadian commitment
to timely service, namely that internationally trained individuals in the target occupations are informed, within
one year, whether their qualifcations will be recognized, if they need to meet additional requirements for regis-
tration, or whether they should consider a related occupation commensurate with their skills.
According to the 2012 Government of Canada annual FCR report, all regulatory authorities for the following eight
priority occupations from 2010 are meeting the commitment since December 2010: architects, engineers, medical lab-
oratory technologists, occupational therapists, pharmacists, physiotherapists, registered nurses, and fnancial auditors
and accountants.
31
The same commitment is now being met for the following 2012 priority occupations: for dentists,
engineering technicians, licensed practical nurses, medical radiation technologists, physicians and teachers (K-12). The
federal, provincial and territorial governments are now working on developing the next set of priority occupations
under the Framework, which will include occupations in the skilled trades. Although the longer term impacts of the ini-
tiative will not be known for some time, the Pan-Canadian Framework nevertheless demonstrates shared commitment
to improvement on the part of the federal and some provincial/territorial governments.
International Mutual Recognition Agreements
One way to assist migrants to obtain licensure is through mutual recognition agreements. These agreements re-
quire a great deal of time and efort from regulators, who must harmonize standards to some extent in order to
ensure that there is no loss of quality, even across jurisdictions that may not have categories that perfectly align.
So far, the broadest such agreement afecting foreign credential recognition in Canada is the France-Que-
bec Agreement on the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifcations.
32
Each jurisdiction agreed to ensure
that, for a wide variety of professions and skilled trades under government regulation,
33
qualifcations for regu-
lated occupations earned in one jurisdiction would be recognized in the other.
In addition, a number of regulatory bodies have been involved in developing agreements intended to ensure that
their members will be able to practise after they move between countries. In 2007, Engineers Canada, which represents
the provincial and territorial engineering associations, and Engineers Australia signed a mutual recognition agreement.

34
Similarly, the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia has had a mutual credential recognition agreement with
9
the Canadian Institute of Charted Accountants for several years. Although these agreements do not have the force of
law, they can be a practical way of resolving these issues without direct government intervention. After all, some level
of cooperation between regulatory bodies is necessary, given that each profession will have to come to a consensus on
the necessary standards to practise. These standards will vary considerably depending on the occupation. What works
for accountants may not work for dentists. However, regulatory bodies can learn from each others recent decisions in
order to make it easier for foreign-trained individuals to practise.
Settlement Assistance and Related Programs
One of the most consistent fndings in Canada has been that language skills, either French in Quebec or English
in the rest of Canada, are crucial to labour market success. In Canada outside Quebec, full- and part-time courses
in either English or French are available to permanent residents, often through community partners, through
the Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada program. A similar program exists in Quebec.
A number of community organizations, colleges, universities, regulatory bodies and other institutions of-
fer bridging programs for newcomers. These programs provide a variety of services, including assessment of
foreign qualifcations, work experience, professional (re)training, preparatory courses for certifcation exams,
language education and mentorship/career advice. The success of bridging programs can vary greatly by pro-
fession. Pharmacy programs, for example, have been quite successful,
35
while engineering bridging programs
have been generally less successful.
36
Some regulatory bodies, such as Certifed General Accounts Ontario, have
begun to ofer online bridging programs, which may provide easier or earlier access for newcomers. The BC Skills
Connect for Immigrants Program ofers a number of bridging services directly from the provincial government.
Immigrants fnancial resources vary greatly, although all of them have to demonstrate a minimal fnancial
capacity prior to being accepted. However, there is no guarantee that they will be able to aford various costs
associated with a professional credential recognition process. As of February 2012, the Canadian federal gov-
ernment has provided funding to a variety of groups that ofer loans under the Foreign Credential Recognition
Loan Pilot.
37
In Alberta, the Immigrant Access Fund (IAF, a private organization) has for several years provided
micro-loans to people with international credentials so that they can pursue professional licensure. IAF now
ofers similar services in Saskatchewan since early 2012.
Remaining Issues
A
s in the area of immigrant selection, developments in Australia have been of considerable interest to Ca-
nadian policy makers and stakeholders. Some of the Australian innovations, such as pre-arrival creden-
tials assessment, have already become part of the Canadian governments strategy. Canadian policymakers and
regulatory bodies would also beneft from further study of outcomes in Australia, as a way of knowing which
responses are more efective. However, it is important to keep in mind that Canadian federalism is even more
decentralized in this regard, which can make coordination at the national level more difcult. Even provincial
governments have limitations in their policymaking ability, given that the responsibility for setting standards is
delegated in legislation to regulatory bodies.
It will take some time before we know how the policy and program reforms introduced or announced by the
Government of Canada since 2008 will afect newcomers outcomes including the proportion who continue
10
to experience signifcant difculty fnding employment in their felds of education or training. In addition, re-
search perhaps with a case study focus could usefully examine the impact of changes in procedures and
other innovations introduced by particular regulatory bodies.
Another research gap concerns racial prejudice. It is unclear to what extent this afects the assessment of interna-
tional qualifcations or applications for licensure. One recent study suggested that employers who have underlying ra-
cial biases act out those biases towards visible minority applicants only when they do not have Canadian credentials.
38
Other studies have demonstrated that applicants names can have a signifcant impact on how employers assess job
applications. In a recent study, responses to online job postings were sent to employers in Montreal, Toronto and Van-
couver, with the applicants names randomized between names that sound English, Greek, Indian or Chinese; the qual-
ity of the applications was held constant.
39
Those with English-sounding names were 35 percent more likely to receive
call-backs than those with Indian- or Chinese-sounding names. Subsequent interviews with employers indicated that
some were concerned that international applicants might not have sufcient English skills and found their rsums
were harder to analyze because they reported foreign work experience.
Organizations such as the Foreign Credentials Referral Ofce, among others, have made considerable
progress in the provision of information and referrals to recent immigrants and, increasingly, to prospective
applicants. The Ontario Fairness Commissioner has documented that regulatory bodies in that province have
made progress in providing clear and accessible information to foreign-trained individuals and in developing
a broader set of pathways to regulatory approval. A small number of them have also made some progress in
non-discrimination and objectivity training and in improving the appeals processes for those turned down from
practising their profession.
40
There have no doubt been a number of useful innovations elsewhere in the coun-
try, but information on them is not readily available.
It is nevertheless fair to say that a good deal remains to be done in order to make it easier for foreign-trained
individuals to be able to work in Canada in their feld of education or training. Among other current challenges,
wait times for credential assessment and recognition are still much longer for foreign-trained individuals, and a
number of regulatory bodies still have Canadian experience requirements that may unfairly bar foreign-trained
individuals from approval to practise.
41
Perhaps most importantly, the unemployment rate for immigrants with
a degree in a regulated profession is higher than that for any other degree category, including those who have
a high school education or lower.
As in Australia, one of the challenges is a dispersion of authority among governments and professional bodies
responsible for licensing. Federally sponsored policy and program reforms, notably changes to selection rules, can
make a diference by helping tailor supply more closely to the demand within particular occupations. Some provincial
governments have taken concrete steps through the appointment of commissioners (or the equivalent), but further
leadership especially on the part of provinces that have not taken such steps would be benefcial. In addition, reg-
ulatory bodies and community organizations can continue to learn from others involved in addressing foreign creden-
tial issues in order to develop a set of policy responses and best practices to address the signifcant remaining issues.
11
Notes
1

Diane Galarneau and Ren Morissette, Immigrants
Education and Required Job Skills, Perspectives, December
2008, Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 75-001-X.
2 Jason Gilmore, The 2008 Canadian Immigrant Labour Market:
Analysis of Quality of Employment (Ottawa: Statistics Canada
Catalogue no. 71-606-X No. 5, 2009). See also Galarneau
and Morissette 2008.
3 Garnett Picot, Feng Hou and Simon Coulombe, Chronic
Low Income and Low-Income Dynamics Among Recent
Immigrants (Ottawa: Statistics Canada Analytical Studies
Branch Research Paper Series Catalogue No. 11F0019MIE,
No. 294, January 2007). During the mid-2000s, the earnings
of those entering under the Federal Skilled Worker Program
improved signifcantly; see Garnett Picot and Arthur
Sweetman, Making it in Canada: Immigration Outcomes and
Policies, IRPP Study 29 (April 2012), 6.
4 Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials,
Fact Sheet no. 2. Available online at http://www.cicic.
ca/404/recognition-of-professional-qualifcations.canada.
5 Strengthening Canadas Economy: Government of Canada
Progress Report 2011 on Foreign Credential Recognition
(Ottawa: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 2012), 16.
Available at: http://www.credentials.gc.ca/fcro/pdf/progress-
report2011.pdf.
6 The French version (full title: Accord Quebec-Canada relatif
limmigration et ladmission temporaire des aubains)
is available online at http://www.micc.gouv.qc.ca/
publications/fr/divers/Accord-canada-quebec-immigration-
francais.pdf.
7 Winnie Wong, Summary Report of the Australia-Canada
Roundtable on Foreign Qualifcation Recognition (Ottawa:
Public Policy Forum, 2011). Available online at http://www.
ppforum.ca/sites/default/fles/Report-EN-FINAL.pdf.
8 Ren Houle and Lahouaria Yssaad, Recognition of
Newcomers Foreign Credentials and Work Experience,
Perspectives, September 2010, Statistics Canada Catalogue
No. 75-001-X.
9 Danielle Zietsma, Immigrants Working in Regulated
Occupations, Perspectives, February 2010, Catalogue No. 75-
001-X, Statistics Canada, p. 15. For a similar study using 2006
Census data, see Magali Girard and Michael Smith, Working
in a Regulated Occupation in Canada: An Immigrant-Native
Born Comparison, Journal of International Migration and
Integration, February 2012. Published online only.
10 Zietsma 2010, 19.
11 Research on match rates does not take into account
immigrants desired occupations in Canada. One study
found that as many as 40 percent of federal skilled worker
principal applicants wanted to switch to a diferent feld
from the one in which they had worked in their source
country, although many from this group ended up working
in their source country feld anyway; see Gustave Goldmann,
Arthur Sweetman and Casey Warman, The Economic Return
on Immigrants Human Capital: The Impact of Occupational
Matching, CLRSN Working Paper no. 21, 2009.
12 Mehrunnisa Ahmad Ali, Audrey Kobayashi, Susanna Clif-
Jungling, Joanna Ochocka, Jonathan Lomotey, Liliana Araujo
and Dragan Kljujic, Making Ontario Home, 2012 (Toronto:
Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, 2012).
Available online at http://www.ocasi.org/downloads/OCASI_
MOH_ENGLISH.pdf.
13 Adnan Tregn, What Do Immigrants Do When They Cant
Practise Their Professions? Immigrant Professionals in the
Ontario Settlement Service Sector, CERIS Working Paper no.
85, December 2011, 1.
14 Usha George, Ferzana Chaze, Sarah Brennenstuhl and Esme
Fuller-Thomson, Looking for Work But Nothing Seems to
Work: The Job Search Strategies of Internationally-Trained
Engineers in Canada, International Migration and Integration
13 (2012): 303-323.
15 Usha George and Ferzana Chaze, Credential Assessment of
Internationally Trained Professionals: How Efective is the
Process for the Purpose of Securing Employment? Journal of
Immigrant & Refugee Studies 10 (2012): 124-130.
16 Skilled temporary foreign workers may apply to the CEC
after 12 months of Canadian work experience. Graduates
(former international students) also require one years work
experience, which they must earn over a 36-month period.
See Citizenship and Immigration Canada, News Release
Attracting the best and brightest skilled workers, 11
December 2012, available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/
english/department/media/releases/2012/2012-12-11.asp.
17 Arthur Sweetman and Casey Warman, A New Source of
Immigration: The Canadian Experience Class, Policy Options,
July-August 2010. See also Houle and Yssaad 2010, 23.
18 The list of occupations, issued through a ministerial instruction,
has been revised a number of times since the inception of this
process; see Picot and Sweetman (2012), 20-21.
19 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Backgrounder Overview
of the New Federal Skilled Worker Program.19 December 2012.
Available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/
media/backgrounders/2012/2012-12-19.asp.
20 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Expression of Interest
Transforming Canadas economic immigration programs,
14 December 2012. Available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/
english/resources/enewsletter/2012/12/interest.asp.
21 A list of projects funded by HRSDC under the Foreign
Credential Recognition Program is available at http://www.
hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/workplaceskills/credential_recognition/
FCR_projects.shtml.
22 Health Canada, Internationally Educated Health
Professionals Initiative. Available online at http://www.hc-sc.
gc.ca/hcs-sss/fnance/hcpcp-pcpss/iehpi-ipsfe-eng.php.
23 Fair Access to Regulated Professions Act (2006), available
online at http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/
english/elaws_statutes_06f31_e.htm.
24 For Manitoba, the Fair Registration Practices in Regulated
Professions Act (2007), available at http://web2.gov.mb.ca/
laws/statutes/2007/c02107e.php. For Nova Scotia, the
12
Fair Registration Practices Act (2008), available at http://
nslegislature.ca/legc/bills/60th_2nd/3rd_read/b211.htm.
For Quebec, An act to create the ofce of Commissioner for
complaints concerning mechanisms for the regulation of
professional competence (2009), available online at http://
www2.publicationsduquebec.gouv.qc.ca/dynamicSearch/
telecharge.php?type=5&fle=2009C50A.PDF
25 For the full list of registration reviews and action plans,
please see http://www.manitobafairnesscommissioner.ca/
registration-reviews/reports/
26 Vanessa Margueratt, 2011-2012 Annual Report: Fair
Registration Practices Act (Halifax: Department of Labour and
Advanced Education, 2012). Available online at
http://www.gov.ns.ca/lae/RplLabourMobility/documents/
FRPAAnnualReport2011-12.pdf.
27 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, News Release
Overseas Orientation Program Celebrates 20,000 Graduates,
13 February 2013. Available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/
english/department/media/releases/2013/2013-02-12.
asp?utm_source=media-centre-email&utm_medium=email-
eng&utm_campaign=generic.
28 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, News Release
Minister Kenney proposes to assess foreign education
credentials before skilled workers arrive, 28 March
2012. Available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/
department/media/releases/2012/2012-03-28.asp.
29 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, New Federal Skilled
Worker Program to accept applications beginning May 4,
2013. Available online at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/
department/media/releases/2012/2012-12-19.asp.
30 Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials, Pan-
Canadian Quality Assurance Framework for the Assessment of
International Academic Credentials.Available online at http://
cicic.ca/docs/2012/Quality_Assurance_Framework_EN.pdf
31 Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Government of Canada
Progress Report 2011 on Foreign Credential Recognition
(Ottawa: Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 2012), 5.
32 Entente entre le Quebec et la France en matire de
reconnaissance mutuelle des qualifcations professionnelles
(2008), available in French at http://www.mri.gouv.qc.ca/
Content/documents/fr/2008-12.pdf
33 For a full list of professions, see http://www.immigration-
quebec.gouv.qc.ca/publications/fr/arm/Liste-professions-
ARM.pdf. For a full list of the skilled trades, see http://www.
immigration-quebec.gouv.qc.ca/publications/fr/arm/Liste-
metiers-ARM.pdf.
34 The full agreement, Mutual Recognition of Registered/Licensed
Engineers by the Jurisdictions of Australia and Canada to
Facilitate Mobility, October 2007,is available online at http://
engineerscanada.ca/e/fles/MRA_engineers_australia.pdf.
35 Zubin Austin and Marie Rocchi Dean, Bridging Education for
Foreign-Trained Professionals: The International Pharmacy
Graduate Program in Canada. Teaching in Higher Education
11 (2006): 19-32.
36 George et at. 2012.
37 Canadas Economic Action Plan, 2012 (Ottawa: Public Works
and Government Services Canada, 2012). Available online
at http://www.budget.gc.ca/2012/plan/chap3-3-eng.
html#a501.
38 Joerg Dietz, Victoria M. Esses, Chetan Joshi and Caroline
Bennett-AbuAyyash, The Evaluation of Immigrants
Credentials: The Roles of Accreditation, Immigrant Race and
Evaluator Biases, CLSRN Working Paper No. 18, March 2009.
39 Diane Dechief and Philip Oreopoulos, Why do some
employers prefer to interview Matthew but not Samir? New
evidence from Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, CLRSN
Working Paper No. 95, February 2012. Available online at
http://www.clsrn.econ.ubc.ca/workingpapers/CLSRN%20
Working%20Paper%20no.%2095%20-%20Dechief%20
and%20Oreopoulos.pdf
40 Ontario, Ofce of the Fairness Commissioner, A Fair Way to
Go (Toronto: Queens Printer for Ontario, 2013), 42-44.
http://www.fairnesscommissioner.ca/fles_docs/content/
pdf/en/A%20Fair%20Way%20to%20Go%20Full%20
Report%20ENG%20Jan%202013.pdf
41 Ontario, Ofce of the Fairness Commissioner 2013, 53.