The National Occupation Classification (NOC 2021)

The National Occupation Classification 2021 (NOC 2021) has been developed by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Statistics Canada. It is a nationally recognized and standardized system assigning a five-digit code and job description to every occupation in the Canadian labour market. It outlines the nature of various occupations by considering the job title, duties, responsibilities, and required training. Although NOC 2021 has several purposes, it’s especially significant in immigration applications to Canada, as Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) uses NOC codes to evaluate every applicant’s work experience. Therefore, understanding the role of the NOC system in the Canadian immigration context is paramount. Keep reading to learn about its structure, use cases, revisions, updates, and how to use it.

The NOC System

NOC 2021 comprises over 40,000 job titles organized into 516 unit groups according to six Training, Education, Experience, and Responsibilities (TEER) categories and ten broad occupational categories. The hierarchical system consists of five levels, with broad occupational categories at the higher levels (e.g. health occupations) and more specific occupations at the lower levels (e.g. Registered Nurse).

NOC codes are broken down as follows:

• The firstdigit represents the broad occupational category and describes the type of work, or industry. NOC 2021 has ten broad occupational categories. For example, Skill Type 3 includes all health occupations, and the NOC codes for healthcare occupations begin with 3.
• The seconddigit represents the TEER category, describing the occupation's necessary training, education, experience, and responsibilities.

TEER 0: Management occupations

TEER 1: Occupations that usually require a university degree.

TEER 2: Occupations that usually require a college diploma, apprenticeship training of 2 years or more, or supervisory occupations.

TEER 3: Occupations that usually require a college diploma, apprenticeship training of less than two years, or more than six months of on-the-job training.

TEER 4: Occupations that usually require a high school diploma or several weeks of on-the-job training.

TEER 5: Occupations that usually require short-term work demonstration and no formal education.

• The first twodigits combined represent the major group. For instance, 31 refers to most health industry occupations requiring a university education. All these occupations will be assigned a NOC code beginning with 31, such as dentists (31110).

• The first three digits represent the sub-major group.
• The first fourdigits represent the minor group, referring to the first three digits of a NOC code. They group similar occupations within each major group. For example, judges (41100) and lawyers (41101) are both in Minor Group 411.
• The whole fivedigits represent the unit group or the occupation itself. Each unit group provides a short description and lists its primary duties, employment requirements, and examples of job titles.

Use Cases of NOC 2021

NOC 2021 is used by various individuals, organizations and professions, such as labour market analysts, statisticians, career counsellors, employers, job seekers, and government analysts. As mentioned above, NOC 2021 also plays a crucial part in the Canadian immigration process as an easy, standardized way for immigration authorities to determine whether an individual possesses the required work experience for a particular immigration program. NOC codes are critical when applying for an LMIA or Permanent Residence through an economic program such as Express Entry or a Provincial Nominee Program.

For example, only candidates with work experience in positions NOC 2021 considers skilled occupations can create an Express Entry profile. They have the chance to receive an invitation to apply for Permanent Residence under one of the three Express Entry Programs – Federal Skilled Worker (FSW), Federal Skilled Trades (FST), and Canadian Experience Class (CEC). Skilled work experience can be obtained in TEER categories 0,1,2, and 3, while TEER categories 4 and 5 don’t qualify. However, IRCC recently announced upcoming changes to this classification. Once in the pool, candidates compete with others according to the Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS), which ranks candidates according to their age, education, language ability, skilled work experience, and more. If an individual has met the cutoff score for a specific round of invitations, they can start their application. At this point, providing sufficient proof of work experience in the claimed NOC code is essential.

Most importantly, applicants must submit letters of reference from current and/or previous employers. They may also add pay stubs, offer letters and other supporting documents. Once submitted, an IRCC officer will review the documents provided and ensure that the lead statement, duties, and responsibilities outlined in the selected NOC code match the applicant’s work experience. If the officer finds that an applicant’s experience does not match the NOC code provided, the application may be refused or returned even if the job title matches.

Revisions and Updates

The first version of the NOC system was introduced in the early 1990s, and regular updates have been made since then using insights from research data from public consultations, censuses, employment services, and more. Minor revisions focussing on content updates, such as adding job titles into a unit group and modifying lead statements, or the primary duties of a unit group, have been conducted annually since 2017. In contrast, major revisions usually occur every ten years and often introduce more critical changes. This can include introducing new unit groups and reallocating unit groups. The next major revision is scheduled for 2031.

The most recent revision took effect on November 16th, 2022, when NOC 2016 was replaced by NOC 2021. The new version introduced TEER categories instead of skill type and level structure. It also moved from a 4-digit codification system to a 5-digit one, introducing the sub-major group, ten vertical broad occupational categories and six horizontal TEER categories. Additionally, many new job titles and unit groups were added, and the content was updated for most unit groups.

Identifying the Correct NOC Code

You can view all NOC 2021 occupations listed on the ESDC website. In addition, IRCC has designed a tool that simplifies finding your NOC code. There are two options:

1. You may search for your job title, related duties or industry directly using keywords. From there, you can review your results by consulting the lead statement, main duties, employment requirements, and example job titles. This will help you determine whether they match your experience.
2. If you cannot find your NOC unit group using the job title search, access the NOC matrixvia the Hierarchy and Structure For example, you may limit your search to NOC unit groups found under one broad occupational category, such as health occupations, or search by the usually required education level.

Despite frequent updates, you may not find your exact job title since it might be too rare, specific, or recent. Additionally, it is essential to be aware that only some of your primary duties may be listed in the NOC 2021, and in some cases, your experience may appear to match two or more NOC codes. In this case, determining which one fits best may require you to consult an expert, such as a Regulated Immigration Consultant (RCIC).

The Immigration Practitioner Centre

Ashton College’s Immigration Practitioner Centre (IPC) is your resource for staying current with the latest developments in the Canadian immigration field. We help ensure practitioners can provide their clients with the best possible and most up-to-date services. For example, we offer our certificate immigration law courses that provide attendees with practical training and are pre-approved for varying CPD hours by the CICC. The IPC also offers monthly CPD seminars via live stream to provide licensed Immigration Practitioners with a high-quality education and fulfil their CPD requirements. Learn more about our mission and our various courses and seminars: https://www.ashtoncollege.ca/immigration-practitioner-centre/