Does My Job Count as Skilled Work? How to Find Your NOC and TEER

Two people can both be called "coordinator" and do completely different jobs. IRCC knows this, so it does not go by titles. It uses the National Occupational Classification, the NOC, which gives every job in Canada a five-digit code and a list of duties.

The 2021 version of the NOC sorts jobs into six TEER categories. TEER stands for training, education, experience and responsibilities. IRCC's search table and the NOC website both show the TEER beside each code. Express Entry accepts work in TEER 0, 1, 2 and 3. TEER 4 and 5 work does not count, however long you did it.

TEER 0 is management. TEER 1 is work that usually needs a university degree, such as software engineers or financial advisors. TEER 2 usually needs a college diploma, an apprenticeship of two years or more, or is a supervisory role. TEER 3 usually needs a college diploma, an apprenticeship under two years, or more than six months of on-the-job training.

TEER 4 usually needs a high school diploma or a few weeks of on-the-job training, for example retail salespersons and home child care providers. TEER 5 needs a short demonstration and no formal education, such as delivery drivers and landscaping labourers. Those last two are outside Express Entry.

IRCC has a search table on its Find your NOC page. Type your job title, and it shows the matching codes with their TEER. Write down the code and the title. Then open the same code on the NOC 2021 website and read the lead statement and the main duties.

This second step is the one that matters. IRCC says your experience counts only if you performed the actions in the lead statement and most of the main duties listed. If the duties do not match what you did, you need a different code with duties that do.

Pick the code that most closely matches your work, not the one that sounds most impressive. IRCC says this avoids delays and makes sure you are assessed against the right program. A cook who mostly supervised the kitchen may fit a supervisory code better than the cook code, and the other way around.

For the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the job you count is your primary occupation, and it does not have to be your most recent one. For the Canadian Experience Class, your experience can be in more than one NOC as long as each one is TEER 0 to 3.

The Federal Skilled Trades Program only accepts certain groups: Major Groups 72 (except 726), 73, 82, 83, 92 and 93 (except 932), Minor Group 6320 for cooks, butchers and bakers, and Unit Group 62200 for chefs. The first two digits of your code are the major group. If yours is not on that list, the trades program is closed to you, though the other two programs may still be open.

We read your reference letters against the NOC duties before you choose a code. The letter and the code have to tell the same story, because an officer will read them side by side.