The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, under section 6(2) states that every citizen and permanent residents of Canada has the right to move to and take up residence in any province; and to pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province. The protection in paragraph 2 is wider than that in paragraph 1, of the same section which is restricted to only Canadian citizens (see 8.1-Fundamental Rights) and confers rights on migrants who have obtained permanent residence.

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The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, under section 6(2) states that every citizen and permanent residents of Canada has the right to move to and take up residence in any province; and to pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province. The protection in paragraph 2 is wider than that in paragraph 1, of the same section which is restricted to only Canadian citizens (see 8.1-Fundamental Rights) and confers rights on migrants who have obtained permanent residence. Paragraph 3, of section 6 provides that the rights in paragraph 2 are subject to any laws or practices of general application in force in a province, not including those that discriminate against persons primarily on the basis of the province of their present or previous residence, and any laws which require reasonable residency requirements as a qualification for receiving publicly provided social services. Therefore each province may restrict social benefits, such as welfare, to persons who have lived in that the area for a certain period of time. They may also pass reasonable employment legislation that requires workers to have the necessary educational or practical qualifications to practise their profession or trade which limits the pursuit of livelihood in that area. It should also be noted that section 6 does not create an independent right to work that is separate from the mobility rights as was stated in the Skapinker case (below).

Paragraph 4 of section 6 provides that parts of the section do not preclude laws, programmes or activities that have as their object the amelioration in a province of conditions of individuals in that province who are socially or economically disadvantaged providing that the rate of employment in that province is below the average rate of employment in Canada. This might include employment laws or programmes which favour citizens of a particular province providing that the rate of employment is sufficiently low. However provinces may not introduce limitations on this right which make free movement for the purposes of employment almost impossible. Also as paragraph 2 of section 6, does not require a person to move to an area in order to pursue the means of livelihood, they may work in a place without actually living there. For example in the case of Law Society of Upper Canada v. Skapinker, in 1984, the Supreme Court found that the regulation in the province of Alberta which prohibited non-residents from associating with residents for the purpose of the practice of law violated the Constitution. This was because the rule seriously impaired the ability of non-resident members to pursue a livelihood in law, and made such a business arrangement completely unfeasible unless individuals became residents of Alberta.

Analysis provided by: Anisa Niaz LLM (Public Law), United Kingdom.

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