LPN interested in immigrating to Ontario

Silverdragon102, BSN · Nov 18, 2016

Nurse registration will take a while so better to start first. What plan are you using to immigrate?

KellyDAguilar · Nov 18, 2016

What do you mean by plan? So you don't need to get residency status first before applying to the nursing board?

dishes, BSN, RN · Nov 18, 2016

You should find out if your education is comparable to a Canadian PN education before you plan to immigrate, as it is likely that your US PN education will be deemed not comparable to a Canadian PN education by NNAS.

loriangel14, RN · Nov 19, 2016

Have you looked into what visa your are eligible for?

dayandnight · Nov 19, 2016

1) Licensing and immigration are separate issues. Getting a Canadian license won't do you any good if you don't have the legal status to work in Canada. LPN are not in the NAFTA jobs so getting a working visa would be very difficult (nurses can't get sponsored for visas at this tough immigration times..) so you have to figure out a way to come here.

2) license process takes 1+ yrs and probably your education will not be comparable as Canadian LPNs study longer than American lpns. You might need to take refresher programs and in a lot of cases, they won't accept non- permanent residents... (same term as green card holders in the states)

So you just need to time yourself right and find out ways to immigrate as you get your license paperwork ready.. or just retake the LPN program from scratch in Canada (as it will take the same amount of time + you will get connections and be more hirable in Canada + immigration option is a bit better if you study at a Canadian college)

Silverdragon102, BSN · Nov 19, 2016

Moved to the International Nursing forum

Some provinces will not issue a license without proof of living and working in Canada however you can go through the application process. As mentioned living and working in Canada is different to getting registered as a nurse whether LPN or RN so you really have 2 processes to go through. It will not be easy and it will take time it if it is what you really want to do you will make it

RN_Pro · Nov 20, 2016

@dishes and @companisbiki have provided some good information here. I think @companisbiki's suggestion that you take the full course from the beginning in Canada is probably your surest bet. That is the only way to pretty much guarantee you will be licensed at some point. And as pointed out, could make immigration a bit easier. Guaranteed NNAS will find your education non-comparable to a Canadian education and you will end up having to spend a lot of money on tests and likely going back to school. Might as well just take the whole program here and thus be guaranteed it will be comparable, because it will be a Canadian education. So in this case you would start out on a student visa and then a work visa and then apply for landed immigrant status eventually...

KellyDAguilar · Dec 27, 2016

So I should look into immigration first, licensure second?

dishes, BSN, RN · Dec 27, 2016

You can look into immigration first if you chose, but make realistic financial plans, as it is very likely that your LPN education will be deemed 'not comparable' to an Ontario PN education. Do not move if you cannot afford to attend nursing school in Ontario.

Fiona59 · Dec 28, 2016

A Canadian PN education is over two years long. It includes university level English, Psychology, Sociology, and a couple of electives (depends on the province) in addition to hours at the worksite.

How long was your course? We see many American posters discussing 9-12 months of education. That won't cut it up here. Our PN curriculum is basically the diploma RN course that was phased out over five years ago.