Canada PR caregiver programs to accept fresh applications from January 1, 2024 The Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot are two Canadian caregiver programs that will accept new applications starting on January 1, 2024, at 9 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). Two five-year pilot programs, the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot, allow eligible caregivers and their families to immigrate to Canada to become permanent citizens. You and your family members may be able to apply for the Direct to Permanent Residence category through the Home Support Worker Pilot or the Home Child Care Provider Pilot if you already have 12 months of relevant work experience. You may apply under the Gaining Experience category if you have fewer than 12 months of work experience or if you have never worked as a caregiver full-time in Canada. You are eligible to apply under the Direct to Permanence category if you have worked as a caregiver full-time in Canada for a cumulative total of 12 months or more within the previous 36 months. Additionally, Canada has reduced the minimum 12-month work experience requirement for domestic caregivers applying for permanent residence (PR). In the past, caregivers in Canada had to seek for permanent residency status after gaining 24 months of experience. Therefore, instead of requiring 24 months of experience, you now only need 12 months to be eligible. You need to provide IRCC the evidence that you have sufficient experience currently and have previously applied under the “Gaining experience” category. Find out the eligibility requirements Take a language test Submit proof of language skills in English or French Get your education assessed Submit your permanent residence application After you apply, complete the Biometrics for IRCC to decide on your permanent residence status. Currently for 2023, under Home Child Care Provider Pilot, the Online Cap has been reached while the Alternate format is still open. The Home Support Worker Pilot program is also open currently. Both the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and the Home Support Worker Pilot will begin accepting fresh applications on January 1, 2024.
Services miss estimates; Software better than expected: Services business grew 0.6% q-o-q cc and missed HCLT’s Q3FY23 guidance, mainly due to a 3.8% q-o-q cc decline in the ER&D segment. Growth in the IT&BS segment moderated slightly to 1.6% q-o-qcc but was in line with estimates. BFSI and Life Sciences were the key growth drivers, while communications were the drag among verticals. Growth was led by the Americas region, while Europe and ROW posted declines.
Decline in bookings reflects delays in decision-making: HCLT won 10 large deals in services and three large deals in Software with net-new deal TCV of $2.1bn, down 8% y-o-y. Deal wins were driven by the services portfolio, were centered on cost optimisation and vendor consolidation and came mainly from BFSI, manufacturing and Life Sciences verticals. Management highlighted a ramp-down in discretionary spending in Hitech and communications verticals but pointed to a strong deal pipeline.
FY24 guidance in line with expectations: HCLT has guided for 6-8% y-o-y growth for overall business and 6.5-8.5% y-o-y cc growth in services segment and 18-19% margins in FY24—all in line with our assumptions. We maintain our FY24-25 cc revenue growth and margin estimates and expect HCLT to deliver 6.5% cc revenue growth and 18.4% margins in FY24. However, we lower our earnings forecasts by 2% to factor the higher tax rate indicated by the management.
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Raise PT: HCLT has fared better in Q4, particularly in North America and BFSI, unlike its peers. However, rising demand uncertainty as a US recession nears remains a concern. HCLT’s stock at CMP trades at 17x PE and offers a 5% yield, which in our view should limit downsides and derating. Hence, we raise our target PE to 17x (16x earlier) and raise our PT to Rs 1,125, offering 8% potential upside.