Canada intends to admit nurses with foreign degrees
Local governments in British Columbia and Ontario are willing to make concessions to remove barriers to allowing foreign nurses to work.
British Columbia
The measure, that British Columbia has taken, is aimed at providing financial assistance to nurses to register in the province. Applicants must pay more than $3,700 CAD when applying for a licence and assessment of qualifications. The province now takes care of those fees for internationally educated workers. The authority also says it will cover the $4,000 CAD cost of license reinstatement for nurses returning to work after a break.
As BC Premier David Eby states, "There are talented and experienced nurses with the right experience who want to work in B.C. but are being left out because of the expensive and complicated registration process. Whether a nurse is trained in the province or out of the province, we are ready to welcome those who are ready to care for British Columbians."
The province is acting in a way that creates maximum access to health care for all British Columbians by recruiting health care professionals from a variety of specialities.
Ontario
Authorities in Ontario are also directing their efforts to retain health professionals in the region. In October, the provincial Ministry of Health, the College of Nursing and the College of Physicians and Surgeons adopted such changes:
- Internationally educated nurses may register and begin work before they are fully credentialed;
- retired nurses can return and work for a certain amount of time before they are fully registered;
- Nurses from other provinces are allowed to work in Ontario for up to 90 days.
On January 1, 2023, the long-term plan for recruiting nurses went into effect. It clearly outlined requirements to meet nursing registration deadlines, prohibit colleges from requiring Canadian work experience for registration, and accept the equivalent international experience. It also talked about adopting language tests.
Ontario temporarily covers the cost of exams, applications and registration fees at the Ontario College of Nursing, which can be as high as $1,500 CAD.
Canada's healthcare system is under pressure. More and more people need health care and fewer healthcare workers remain, especially since the pandemic.
Statistics show there were 151,200 job openings in health care in October 2022.
