A Newcomer’s Introduction to Canada

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Immigrant-serving organizations

• LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada)
• Host Program
• ISAP (Immigrant Settlement and Adaptation Program)
• ELT (Enhanced Language Training)

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There are hundreds of immigrant-serving organizations in Canada. Many are staffed by former newcomers to Canada, who understand the challenges that immigrants may face. They usually have people available who speak your language and can accompany you as interpreters. Citizenship and Immigration Canada supports many of these organizations financially, helping newcomers adapt to life in Canada.

Settling in will be much easier if you contact an immigrant-serving organization as soon as you arrive. The people who work for these organizations can help you find a place to live and can answer your questions about shopping, education for your children, transportation, language training and other important matters.

Immigrant-serving organizations can help you:

• find a place to live;
• get your Social Insurance Number and health-care card;
• enrol your children in school;
• get language training;
• find a family doctor;
• find out about government and community services for newcomers;
• look for a job;
• develop a realistic budget; and
• get emergency food aid, if it is needed.

Note: In Quebec, the Ministère de l’Immigration et des Communautés culturelles is organized into different regions. Each region has a local office, called a Carrefour d’intégration, which works with the immigrant-serving organizations to help newcomers adapt to life in Quebec.

Most immigrant-serving organizations offer, or can provide information on, the following Government of Canada programs.

LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada)

LINC is a federal government program for all eligible adult immigrants. It offers:

• free language training for adult newcomers who want or need basic English or French;
• language classes given by school boards, colleges and local organizations;
• the choice of studying part-time, full-time, evenings or weekends, depending on your needs and your schedule; and
• transportation and child-minding, if necessary.

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Your local immigrant-serving organization can direct you to a LINC Assessment Centre, which will then refer you to organizations offering LINC classes. You can also refer to the book Welcome to Canada: What You Should Know to find a LINC Assessment Centre in your area.

Host Program

The Host program is a federally funded program that matches newcomers with a Canadian family or individual. Host volunteers help you:

• overcome the stress of moving to a new country;
• learn about available services and how to use them;
• practise English or French;
• prepare to look for a job; and
• participate in community activities.

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Your local immigrant-serving organization can direct you to a Host Program organization in your community.

ISAP (Immigrant Settlement and Adaptation Program)

ISAP helps newcomers gain access to community services to meet their immediate needs.

Under ISAP, immigrant-serving organizations can:

• refer you to economic, social, health, cultural, educational and recreational services;
• give you tips on banking, shopping, managing a household and other everyday tasks;
• provide interpreters or translators, if you need them;
• provide non-therapeutic counselling; and
• help you prepare a professional-looking résumé and learn job-searching skills.

The Immigrant Settlement and Adaptation Program (ISAP), a federal government program, pays for these services.

A list of immigrant-serving organizations across Canada can be found on the Internet at www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/welcome/wel-20e.asp.

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Manitoba, British Columbia and Quebec have programs similar to LINC, the Host program and ISAP, but they may have slightly different names.

ELT (Enhanced Language Training)

ELT aims to develop and deliver higher levels of language training and job-specific language training, including labour market understanding or experience across Canada. As a component of the Immigrant Settlement and Adaptation Program, ELT is expected to provide the following:

• Higher levels of language training, Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) or the Standards linguistiques canadiens (SLC) levels 7-10 (English or French) will be developed and delivered to help meet the needs of immigrants who enter the country with basic or intermediate English or French skills but need higher levels of language ability to enter and remain in the labour market;
• Higher levels (CLB/SLC 7-10) of job-specific language training will be developed and delivered to enable immigrants to find and retain jobs commensurate with their qualifications and skills; and
• In order to promote regionalization, CLB/SLC levels 1-10 (English or French) will be developed and delivered in smaller centres without language training infrastructure (specifically the Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada [LINC] program). (ELT is not intended to duplicate or substitute for the delivery of LINC);
• All of the above must include a bridge to work component, such as work placements, mentoring, cultural orientation to the workplace, preparation for licensure exams and internships for eligible clients.

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