Labour mobility for workers

Certified workers in regulated occupations can work anywhere in Canada without further training, testing or assessments.

Overview

Labour mobility opportunities apply to:

  • Workers in regulated occupations certified by another province or territory in Canada and seeking to work in Alberta.
  • Alberta certified workers seeking to work in a regulated occupation in another province or territory in Canada.

Worker Certification

Non-Alberta workers wanting to work in Alberta must apply to have their certification in a regulated occupation recognized by an Alberta regulatory authority before they can work in Alberta.

Your occupation needs to be regulated both in your current province/territory and in Alberta to be covered by Labour Mobility under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) (PDF, 2.5 MB) and the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA) (PDF, 688 KB).

Labour mobility does not apply to:

  • uncertified workers such as apprentices, interns or students
  • occupations for which there is no certification or licensing requirements such as restaurant services, clerical workers, retail, service employees or administrative and others

How to apply

Workers in regulated occupations must follow certain steps to have their certification recognized.

Step 1. Determine if your occupation is regulated

Alberta workers wanting to work elsewhere

To find out if your occupation is regulated in the province or territory, you wish to move, contact the regulatory authority in that province/territory.

If you are having difficulty contacting your regulatory authority, contact the Labour Mobility Coordinator of the specific province/territory you are moving to.

Non-Alberta workers moving to Alberta

To find out if your occupation is regulated in Alberta, see the list of regulated occupations and trades in Alberta.

Step 2. Determine if there is a labour mobility exception for your occupation

For some occupations, specific job duties can vary substantially between Canadian jurisdictions.

A province or territory can apply a labour mobility exception for an occupation, allowing a regulatory authority to impose additional requirements on workers.

See Exceptions to Labour Mobility to find out if an exception exists for your occupation in your destination jurisdiction.

Step 3. Verify you are in good standing

Contact your home regulatory authority to ensure you’re an active member in good standing.

Step 4. Submit your application

To start the application process:

  • contact the regulatory authority in the province or territory where you are seeking certification to get an application form
  • gather required supporting documents and
  •  complete and submit your application (with fees, if necessary) to the appropriate regulatory authority in the jurisdiction where you are seeking certification

Note: The application process should not include reassessment of your qualifications or additional testing or training requirements.

Allowable application requirements

Under the CFTA regulatory authorities may request:

  • an application or processing fee
  • insurance/malpractice coverage
  • a bond
  • a criminal record check
  • evidence of good character
  • proof of good standing
  • a short written examination regarding jurisdictional legislation and / or
  • demonstration of language proficiency in English or French, if you have not done so already

Step 5. After you apply

Processing time

The application and registration processing time varies from one occupation to another, and from one regulatory authority to another.

To find out how long it may take to process your application, contact the regulatory authority for your occupation in the province or territory where you wish to relocate.

If you have concerns

If you believe your certification from Alberta is not being properly recognized in another Canadian jurisdiction, or your certification from elsewhere in Canada is not being properly recognized in Alberta, contact Alberta Labour Mobility.

Resources for workers

Contact

To connect with Alberta Labour Mobility:

Phone: 780-422-5450 (Edmonton and area)
Toll free: 310-0000 before the phone number (in Alberta)
Email: labourmobility@gov.ab.ca

Address:
9th floor, 108 Street Building
9942 108 Street
Edmonton, Alberta T5K 2J5