Nursing is a highly in-demand field in Canada, so it’s a great career path to go down. The process for becoming a nurse in Canada varies depending on the province or territory in which you plan to work, but all of them have roughly the same guidelines. We’ve answered your questions about becoming a nurse in Canada, so you can get started on obtaining your dream job today.
Canada is a beautiful country with Vancouver as the most beautiful city. It has great locations such as the Banff national park, Niagara Falls, the Moraine Lake, the View of Quebec, and a host of others that attract tourists from all over the world. It is a wonderful country. Nursing is on the Priority Occupation List by the Canadian Government making it easier for skilled nurses to migrate to Canada And step by step process become a nurse in Canada
There are three different kinds of nurses in Canada:
RNs (Registered Nurses in Canada): RNs are nurses who have completed a university Nursing degree and have therefore qualified to become a General Registered Nurse.
RPNs (Registered Psychiatric Nurses in Canada): RPNs are nurses who have completed a bachelor’s degree in psychiatric nursing or have a degree in general nursing and post-graduate degree or additional study in psychiatric nursing. RPNs are regulated to practice in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.
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LPNs (Licensed Practical Nurses in Canada or Registered Practical Nurses in Ontario): LPNs are nurses who have
completed a post-secondary diploma program in nursing i.e., School of Nursing.
You can come into Canada as a nurse by:
- The academic route
- The job route
- The skilled worker immigration route
THROUGH JOB PROCESS
Things to NOTE:
- Different provinces in Canada have their own mandatory qualification, regulations
- and requirements that must be met before one can work as a nurse in Canada.
- Nursing falls under the 3012 NOC Code and is classified as a Skill Level A.
- You may apply for a licence in any province of your choice.
How To Become A Nurse In Canada
Step 1: NNAS registration/evaluation
Step 2: Province regulatory body registration/assessment
Step 3: Select the immigration method that suits you
Step 4: Process and submit your application
STEP 1: GET YOUR CREDENTIALS ACCESSED BY NATIONAL NURSING ASSESSMENT SERVICE (NNAS)
This is simply converting your qualifications into a North American standard. NNAS will:
- Verify your credentials.
- Compare & evaluate credentials to Canadian standard.
- Store your credentials.
Who is eligible for a NNAS evaluation?
- Graduate nurses outside Canada.
- Those who have never worked as a Nurse in Canada.
- Those who want to work as a RN, LPN, or RPN in Canada.
STEP 2: SUBMIT A NNAS APPLICATION
A. Create an NNAS application:
B. Submit two proof of identity documents to NNAS: These documents must be notarized by a government-approved official, signed with a seal indicating that they have seen
the original documents, made the copies and certify that they are true copies.
Proof Of Identification can includes.
- International Passport
- Driver’s license
- Birth certificate
- Marriage certificate
- Change of name affidavit
C. Submit a nursing education form: You would download the form from your online profile account, then sign and send it to the school where you trained as a nurse.
The form must be completed by the school’s official and sent directly from the school office to NNAS by mail or courier, along with copies of your academic records/transcript, nursing program curriculum/course descriptions, and/or course syllabi.
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D. Submit your nursing registration form: Download, print, and sign this form then send it to all nursing licensing authorities where you were licensed or registered outside of Canada. NNAS will not accept your nursing registration form if it is not sent directly from your licensing authority. If you have a diploma that allows you to work as a nurse in your country, ask the school that issued the diploma to send an official copy (but not the original) of the diploma in its original language to NNAS.
E. Submit your nursing practice/employment form: Sign and send this form to all the employers you have worked for in the past five years. The current year represents year one. NNAS will not accept your nursing practice/employment form if it is not sent directly from your employer by mail or courier.
F. Submit your IELTS language testing result: You will need to complete language testing and have the results sent directly to NNAS from your approved language testing agency. If your first language is either English or French, you may not have
to complete language testing if the main language where you live and work is English or French, and your nursing education program of instruction was in English or French (get an exemption from your school).
G. Submit your application: Once all documents have been received by NNAS, you can then submit your application and choose the provincial association and nursing
group you are applying to.
You would first have identified a Canadian province where your skills, qualifications, and experience as an internationally qualified nurse match the province’s specific requirements.
NNAS will send an advisory report to the provincial regulatory body you initially selected upon registration. You would be asked to commence with the registration process once your chosen provincial regulatory body receives the report from NNAS.
Once all your documents have been received by NNAS, you will get the ‘Ready for Review message. The timeline for this stage is not fixed but the fastest processing time is 12
weeks. It could take longer.
Either one of the two outcomes below will be sent to your chosen provinces.
If you receive an almost comparable/comparable report, you will have to take the licensing exam for that nursing group.
· If you receive non-comparable report, you have to complete some bridging courses.
Below is a list of provinces, the qualifications available, and the regulatory body involved:
- British Columbia – RN & PN: British Columbia College of Nursing Professionals
- Ontario – RN: College of Nurses of Ontario
- Saskatchewan – RN: Saskatchewan Registered Nurse Association
- Manitoba – RN & PN: College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba Practical Nurses College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Manitoba
- Alberta – PN & RN: College of Licensed Practical Nurses of Alberta College & Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta
NOTE: NNAS application fee is CAD650 as at the time of writing this book and you can pick a province and one nursing group (RN or LPN). You can choose more than one province for your advisory report to be sent to and each additional province costs $55. Also, if you will be adding both LPNs and RNs, (for nurses with both diploma and degree certificate), it comes with an additional cost of CAD220.
The ‘best’ provinces at the time of compiling this information are New Brunswick and Toronto as they have lesser rules when it comes to internationally educated nurses. New Brunswick will allow nurses to challenge NCLEX without having to write any additional exam or undergo a bridging program.
SALARY
Nurses’ salary in Canada varies depending on province and years of experience. However, it ranges from $57,307 – $83,168 and there is a salary increase each year until it reaches
a certain level.
Watch this YouTube Video: BECOMING A CANADIAN
NURSE; RN/LPN by Nurse Ifela [IG: @ife_ofela]
Part 1: https://youtu.be/0fv2tWZU0fk
Part 2: https://youtu.be/-0Tsfsauijc
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