Better Jobs Ontario: Updated Eligibility and Suitability Assessment Template

The ministry has updated the Better Jobs Ontario (BJO) Eligibility and Suitability Assessment template in EOIS-CaMS on February 19 to ensure consistency with the new program guidelines and align with current labour market policy.

Updates include the following:

• Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) name has been changed to Get SET (Skills, Education and Training).
• Confirmation that “good” or “very good” (3-year career outlooks) applies only to provincial employment prospects as identified on the Ontario Labour Market Information website.
• Under Occupational Experience:
  • “No previous work experience” changed to 3 points (from 1 point), reflecting the policy intent to prioritize applicants without prior work experience.
  • Individuals with “work experience in National Occupational Classification (NOC) training, education, experience and responsibilities (TEER) category 1 or 0 occupations” now receive 1 point, instead of 0 points. The “0 – not applicable” drop down option has been removed.

This update affects all service system managers (SSMs) and service providers (SPs) who assess BJO Eligibility and Suitability and all applicants whose assessments are completed using the updated tool.

SSMs and SPs should review the updated tool, ensure staff are aware of the scoring changes, and use the revised version for all assessments completed on or after February 19, 2026.

As specified in the Application Recommendation and Checklist (ARC) form, every BJO application package (except for Feepayers) must include a completed BJO Eligibility and Suitability Assessment Tool from EOIS-CaMS. If the tool is not submitted, or submitted outside of EOIS-CaMS, the application will be sent back to the SP.

The PDF has been created to help SPs better understand the suitability criteria and support them in completing the assessment in EOIS-CaMS.