International Credentials Act will bring skilled professionals to the workforce faster
The Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills announced new legislation that will fast-track the previously cumbersome process for internationally-trained professionals to have their credentials recognized to work in B.C.
The proposed International Credentials Recognition Act will be debated this fall, and if passed, will be implemented early 2024, requiring 18 regulating bodies to remove barriers to foreign professionals seeking entry to B.C.’s workforce.
“With the skills shortage we have in this province, we cannot afford to leave anyone on the sidelines,” said premier David Eby. “That’s why we’re taking action to close the gaps in the system so people can get to work faster, fill in-demand jobs and provide much-needed services to people in B.C.”
Vancouver-based employment attorney Fred Wynne of Tevlin Gleadle called the previous system a “total hodgepodge” of varying requirements and processes for every type of employee to navigate, including regulators of each industry and post-secondary institution.
“Every single case was a little bit different, and every single profession was a little bit different,” he told HRD, “and that was sort of causing a barrier for foreign trade professionals to work in their chosen career, and then obviously on the flip side, for employers in those areas to get qualified people, because everybody's looking for employees right now.”
B.C.’s years long effort to bolster skilled trades
The legislation is the latest in a string of new provincial governances addressing B.C.’s shortage in skilled professionals by introducing superintendent offices for several industries – in 2021, the Professional Governance Act was enacted for the for the natural resources and built environment sectors, and in 2022 the Health Professions and Occupations Act was passed to oversee the health sector. The Skilled Trades BC Act was implemented in 2022 to encourage training, followed by the StrongerBC: Future Ready Action Plan.
In July of this year, the province released the results of a survey asking how international professional credential recognition could be improved, and that report is being used to develop new legislation.
Wynne explained that under the previous system, some professionals had to redo their entire programs, sometimes whole degree programs.
“That's quite a barrier for people coming from all over the place,” he said.
Inconsistent information, insufficient support, and difficult registration were identified as main barriers for international professionals navigating the previous system.
Sweeping regulations for 29 professions
The proposed legislation will introduce new requirements for professional regulators to expedite the process for applicants and make it more accessible, including removing “unfair” Canadian work experience requirements, lessening English language requirements, and reducing international fees to compare more equitably with domestic fees.
“It's about making that process easier and providing a sort of central clearinghouse where issues can be dealt with,” said Wynne. “It's how do you get people qualified more quickly so they can get in the office more quickly, is what this is supposed to address. We'll see how it goes when the rubber hits the road.”
Twenty-nine professions will be affected by the new rules, if the Act is passed, overseen by the following 18 regulatory bodies:
- Applied Science Technologists and Technicians of BC
- Architectural Institute of BC
- Association of BC Forest Professionals
- Association of BC Land Surveyors
- Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of BC
- BC College of Social Workers
- BC Institute of Agrologists
- BC Registered Music Teachers’ Association
- BC Society of Landscape Architects
- College of Applied Biologists
- College of Veterinarians of BC
- Director of teacher certification (and BC Teachers’ Council)
- Director of the Early Childhood Educator Registry
- Emergency Medical Assistants Licensing Board
- Law Society of BC
- Organization of Chartered Professional Accountants of BC
- Society of Notaries Public of BC
- Superintendent of Real Estate (and BC Financial Services Authority)
