More than 2,000 refugees will be able to be resettled more easily in Canada
The Economic Mobility Pathway Pilot Project will be continued and expanded. This was announced by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada on December 13, 2022. It should facilitate access to employment for 2,000 qualified refugees. However, the measure concerns the provinces and territories of Canada other than Quebec.
Launched in 2018, the Pilot Project on Pathway to Economic Mobility (PVAME) was initially intended to enable 500 refugees and their families to settle. This phase began in December 2021 and remains ongoing.
The goal of the PVAME is to allow refugees to settle in Canada in a simpler and safer way, but also to enable them to participate effectively in the recovery of the economy by strengthening the workforce of companies.
As part of this expansion, $6.2 million will be paid to six projects of partner organizations in the pilot project. This money will:
- partners (TalentLift, Jumpstart Refugee Talent and Talent Beyond Boundaries) to select potential candidates abroad, and
- to support refugees and employers, but also organizations helping newcomers to obtain affordable microloans.
How does it work?
You must have refugee status and be outside your country of persecution and Canada.
Then, it is possible to apply, alone or with the help of one of the three official partners or another partner (RefugePoint, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, FOCUS Humanitarian Assistance, International Rescue Committee).
This involves completing two applications simultaneously, on the Permanent Residence Portal (or by email):
- an application to one of the economic immigration programs, through the Atlantic Canada Immigration Program, the Provincial Nominee Program, or the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot Program,
- a request to the PVAME to help you meet the conditions of the program, complete and submit your request and prepare your installation in Canada.
Partner organizations connect refugees and employers. The candidate for immigration must receive a job offer before applying for immigration.
What the PVAME offers
- Biometrics fees are waived,
- Most applications will be reviewed in 6 months or less,
- Medical expenses before departure will be paid by the PVAME,
- Access to a loan can be requested to meet the financial requirements and establish yourself permanently with the Moulin Microcredits,
- Access to the Immigrant Loans Program (IPP) if the application is approved to offset travel and arrival costs,
- Access to the Canadian Orientation Abroad program to support integration.
As for the employers, the partner organizations support them in their search for employees. Support for refugees will allow them to arrive more quickly in the territory and start working more quickly.
For employers, see this page for more information.
Refugee Pact
Canada is the country that resettled the most refugees in 2021, at 20,400 people, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ 2021 Global Trends Report.
This initiative falls directly within the framework of the Global Alliance for the Mobility of Refugee Workers, chaired by Canada. This consortium was created in 2022 as part of the UN Global Compact on Refugees adopted in 2018 to help these populations integrate into the job market.
This pilot project and the Alliance were set up to respond to a historic global refugee crisis. According to the NGO Oxfam, the situation is “unprecedented”: more than 82 million people are officially “displaced”, the highest figure since the Second World War. Forced displacements have doubled since 2010.
To access the page dedicated to the Pilot project on the path to economic mobility
To access the IRCC press release
