Who can access refugee and displaced talent mobility programs?

Any person with employable skills who has been forcibly displaced from their country may be able to access a displaced talent mobility program. This includes refugees, stateless people and other people in need of international protection (see glossary). 

Individual states set their own immigration criteria for displaced talent mobility programs, and employers also have their own skill and competency-based criteria for selecting candidates. People migrating through refugee labour mobility will need to fulfill both these state and employer criteria. 

In addition, organizations supporting displaced talent often have their own eligibility criteria – such as working only with displaced people in a particular geographic location or candidates who meet certain humanitarian criteria. 

This section will explain each of these elements in more detail and answer frequently asked questions about eligibility.

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Suitability for recruitment by international employers

In most cases, applicants must have a valid job offer from a qualified employer to be eligible to relocate through a labour mobility program (see exception to this here). This means that displaced individuals need to be able to compete effectively in international recruitment processes. 

The criteria employers use to hire may vary significantly from the eligibility criteria for immigration set by governments. In some cases, employers may have more demanding criteria than governments, or vice versa. Although international employers are seeking workers at every skill level across a wide range of industries, the following factors increase competitiveness for international employment:

In-demand professions: Some professions are more internationally “in-demand” — this means employers in multiple regions continuously struggle to find enough local workers to fill available roles. See internationally in-demand professions for more information.

Experience: When looking to recruit internationally, most employers are looking for people who have some level of demonstrated work experience. 

Language abilities: Many employers are looking for applicants who will be able to work in the language of business (often English) immediately upon arrival. Read more about assessing language abilities for labour mobility programs. 

Skill, competence and attitude: Employers select candidates based on the qualifications they are looking for – whether it be technical skills, attitude, aptitude, demonstrated competence, or potential. Employers are best placed to judge whether candidates meet these requirements and do their own assessments through interviews and skill testing. 

Eligibility for immigration through displaced talent mobility programs 

Individual states set their own skilled immigration criteria, typically qualification or employment-based requirements, security, and health requirements. These criteria vary significantly between countries. Often these criteria need to be adjusted by states to remove barriers in the migration process that disproportionately impact displaced people (see identify and overcome displacement-related barriers during the visa application process). 

States that establish specific displaced talent mobility programs to address these barriers may impose specific eligibility criteria on applicants. Consult this site’s Overview of refugee labour mobility programs section for details on each country’s programs and specific eligibility criteria. Eligibility criteria may include one or a combination of the following: 

• Referral letter by a trusted partner that the applicant meets certain humanitarian or legal criteria. (eg. EMPP in Canada).
• Endorsement by a trusted partner that the employer needs access the program in order to hire displaced talent (eg. Skilled Refugee Pilot in Australia; Displaced Talent Mobility program in the UK). 
• Documentation or proof of registration with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR); refugee certificate from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine in the Near East (UNRWA); or positive Refugee Status Determination (RSD) from the UNHCR or a refugee-hosting state (eg. EMPP in Canada).
• Proof of temporary protected status and assessment by a visa officer that the applicant does not have a durable solution (eg. EMPP in Canada).

States are encouraged to avoid eligibility criteria that place onerous requirements on refugees, stateless persons, or UNHCR, or which create significant bottlenecks in referral pipelines, as these are antithetical to the aspirations of complementary pathways (see Guiding Principles on Refugee Labour Mobility Programs).

For specific criteria for labour mobility pathways, please visit the overview of global pathways.

Eligibility of accompanying family members

States also impose eligibility criteria on accompanying family members of primary applicants for labour mobility pathways. Typically this includes all of the security and health criteria placed on primary applicants and may include other criteria. 

Some labour mobility programs permit candidates to move with their immediate families – that is, their spouse and minor children. Other labour mobility programs allow primary applicants to apply and migrate independently but then sponsor their immediate family members once they have landed. 

Generally, individuals who are unable or unwilling to move without their extended family members (such as parents, siblings, cousins, or other more distant relations) are not likely to be able to benefit immediately from labour mobility programs. However, over time individuals who have migrated on labour mobility pathways may be able to sponsor extended family members – either through family reunion programs, private sponsorship or other complementary pathways. 

Eligibility for immigration through human capital-based displaced talent mobility programs

Many countries have skilled immigration programs. These programs are available to applicants who apply based on key financial and human capital criteria, sometimes demonstrated through “points.” These programs generally require things like education and previous work experience. Some programs require a job offer from a specific employer, while others do not. 

Several countries have adapted their programs for displaced talent mobility. These programs offer flexibility to employment-based visa programs. They can offer flexibility on requirements like previous work experience, or in requirements to have specific kinds of documents. Generally, to benefit from those areas of flexibility, the applicant must show they are displaced. 

Qualification for services from refugee and migrant-serving organizations

Refugee and migrant-serving organizations help facilitate displaced people’s access to international jobs and migration. In some cases, governments even require a referral from a trusted partner organization as part of the application process for a displaced talent mobility program.

Each organization sets its own criteria for who is qualified for its services. For example, many organizations only serve individuals located in particular geographies, from specific nationalities, or who demonstrate a particular level or type of vulnerability. 

Each managing organization’s criteria to qualify for services may be narrower or more broad than a specific country’s eligibility criteria. These criteria may also change over time. This diversity of approaches can be complex for displaced people to navigate. For this reason, organizations supporting refugee and displaced talent mobility programming must be transparent about their eligibility criteria. This ensures that displaced people can more readily pursue all options available to them.

See, for example, Talent Beyond Boundaries’ eligibility criteria.