Canada has presented NOC 2021 and suggested that the immigration system will be implementing these changes in 2022.
The National Occupational Classification (NOC) plays a major role in determining the eligibility of a candidate for different immigration programs to Canada. Skilled workers and temporary foreign workers are required to show relevant work experience in the NOC requirements of the program for which he or she is making an application. For example, the Express Entry system is the major immigration pathway to Canada for skilled workers, and one of the eligibility criteria under the Express Entry is that candidates are required to show that their work experience falls under NOC skill level 0, A, or B.
The NOC can be defined as a national reference for occupations in Canada. NOC classifies employment activities in different categories in Canada, which helps to improve the understanding of the nature of the Canadian labour market, promote skills enhancement, run and implement government programs, conduct research, and aid the federal government in managing immigration and foreign worker programs.
The Canadian government revises the NOC within a cycle of ten years. These revisions in the NOC align with the changes in the situation of Canada’s economy and labour market.
This September, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Statistics Canada presented the NOC 2021. The NOC 2021 can be described as the final result of a lengthy process that included in-depth research, analysis, and evaluation of the economic and labour market conditions of Canada.
At present, the federal department of IRCC (Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada), ESDC, and other provinces and territories in Canada use NOC 2016 to manage different programs related to immigration and foreign workers. IRCC has further explained that the department is not planning to implement NOC 2021 until the fall of next year. The rationale behind this delay is to allow sufficient time for all stakeholders, including potential immigrants, to learn more about the effects of NOC 2021.
Changes per NOC 2021
The new revisions to NOC 2021 have been summarized by the ESDC as below.
- Currently, the NOC operates on a four-category “skill level” structure, and a new six-category system will be replacing this structure. This six-category method provides more emphasis on the status of Training, Education, Experience, and Responsibilities (TEER) that an individual needs to indulge in a profession. There are four skill levels in NOC up until now, including NOC A, B, C, and D.
- NOC A: Includes all occupations that need a college degree
- NOC B: Includes occupations related to skilled trades or jobs that need a college degree
- NOC C: Includes employment that needs job-specific training or intermediate skills
- NOC D: Includes labour employment that needs on-the-job training
- On the other hand, NOC 2021 will be operating on a 5-tier hierarchical system to categorize different occupations. Furthermore, as per NOC 2021, all occupations will have a five-digit codification instead of the current four-digit codification.
NOC 2021 will be using the TEER system, which will be inclusive of six categories: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, instead of the old four skill type categories (A, B, C, and D).
| TEER 0 | Management Occupations |
| TEER 1 | · Completion of a university degree (bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate);
OR · A few years of experience in a specific occupation classified from TEER category 2 (if applicable) |
| TEER 2 | · Completion of a post-secondary education program (two to three years) at a community college, institute of technology, or CÉGEP; or completion of an apprenticeship training program (two to five years);
OR · Occupations including responsibilities related to supervision and safety, such as police officers and firefighters; OR · A few years of experience in a particular occupation classified from TEER category 3 (if applicable) |
| TEER 3 | · Completion of a post-secondary education program (which is less than two years) at a community college, institute of technology, or CÉGEP; or completion of an apprenticeship training (less than two years);
OR · A few years of experience in a particular occupation classified from TEER category 4 (if applicable); OR · More than six months of on-the-job training, training courses, or specific work experience combined with some secondary school education |
| TEER 4 | · Completion of secondary school;
OR · A few years of experience in a particular occupation classified from TEER category 5 (if applicable); OR · A few weeks of on-the-job training combined with some secondary school education |
| TEER 5 | No formal educational requirements and short work demonstration. |
Impact of NOC 2021 on immigrants and foreign workers
There will be no impact or very little impact on a majority of immigrants and foreign workers with the effect of the NOC 2021. The explanation here is that even after the revisions in the NOC, candidates will be eligible for different immigration and foreign worker programs depending upon their work experience. However, some applicants will be impacted by these changes. Due to reclassification of work experience, a few candidates may now meet eligibility for additional programs, while others may no longer be eligible for the same reason.
It is still not very clear that how applicants will be impacted. We will have to await additional news from IRCC and ESDC on this.
In addition, there is a tool by Statistics Canada, which enables candidates to assess how their current NOC aligns with NOC 2021. The below table further reflects how the four NOC skill levels have been reclassified under the six TEER categories:
| NOC 2016 V1.3 Distribution of Unit Groups by Skill Level | NOC 2021 V1.0 Distribution of Unit Groups by TEER | ||
| TEER Category 0 | 9% | ||
| Skill Level A | 28% | TEER Category 1 | 19% |
| Skill Level B | 42% | TEER Category 2 | 31% |
| Skill Level C | 24% | TEER Category 3 | 13% |
| Skill Level D | 6% | TEER Category 4 | 18% |
| TEER Category 5 | 9% | ||
According to Statistics Canada, there are two key reasons why Canadian immigration has decided to replace the skill type model with the TEER system. To begin with, the TEER system provides a better understanding that to work in a certain occupation, what level of education and work experience is required. Second, Statistics Canada feels that the skill type model artificially divides employment into low- and high-skilled categories; on the other hand, with the implementation of TEER, stakeholders will get a clearer idea of how many skills are necessary for each job.
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