Looking for free newcomer services in Ontario? A settlement agency is a good place to start. Depending on your eligibility and the program, you can get help with finding work, choosing English classes, understanding school paperwork or finding local housing support.
Maybe you have a résumé to rewrite, a school form you do not understand and a landlord asking for documents you have never needed before. You do not have to solve all three before booking an appointment. Tell the settlement worker what is holding you up and ask where to begin.
Start with the problem taking up the most space in your day. If it is work, ask for an employment appointment. If several things are tangled together, ask for a settlement worker. This guide covers eight Ontario organizations, mostly in the Greater Toronto Area and London, plus ways to find help elsewhere in the province.
Which Ontario settlement agency should you contact?
Scroll the table sideways to compare all columns.
| Organization | A useful starting point for | Area to check |
|---|---|---|
| ACCES Employment | Job-search advice and employment counselling | GTA; check program delivery |
| COSTI | Employment, English, housing and family support | Check the location for your program |
| Welcome Centre | Several settlement needs in one place | York and Durham regions |
| YMCA of Greater Toronto | Newcomer information and language assessment | Greater Toronto Area |
| Achēv | One-to-one information and referrals | Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville |
| Skills for Change | Employment, mentoring and skills programs | Toronto; check program delivery |
| CICS | Settlement questions and school connections | GTA; school services vary |
| London CCLC | Settling in London and school support | London, Ontario |
These are starting points, not rankings. The right office is the one that serves your area, accepts your immigration status and has help available for the issue you are facing.
1. ACCES Employment: when finding work comes first
If you have been sending applications and hearing nothing back, a conversation with an employment counsellor is a sensible next step. ACCES offers job-search resources, workshops, employment counselling, job matching and support with placements and staying employed.
Its programs also include mentoring and sector-specific options. Ask which service fits your background rather than signing up for the first workshop you see. An engineer returning to their field may need a different plan from someone looking for their first job.
ACCES lists offices in Toronto, North York, Scarborough, Markham, Mississauga, Newmarket and Brampton. Check the appointment location and whether the program is online before travelling.
2. COSTI: when you need help with more than one thing
COSTI is worth contacting when your questions cross over: English classes, work, housing and support for your family. Its service areas include employment, language and skills training, housing, and social and family support.
Tell the intake worker what is most urgent. “I need to find work, but I also need help understanding a housing letter” gives them something concrete to work with. Ask whether one worker can help you plan the next steps or whether you need separate appointments.
Check the current office details. COSTI announced a temporary move for its Toronto employment service from September 1, 2026; an old address saved on your phone could send you to the wrong place.
3. Welcome Centre: a first stop in York or Durham
Welcome Centres bring newcomer services together and help people find other support in York and Durham regions. That can be useful when you know you need help but do not know the name of the service.
The network lists centres in Ajax, Pickering, Markham, Newmarket, Richmond Hill and Vaughan. Contact the centre nearest you and explain what you need before booking. Ask which services run there and whether another provider will handle part of your request.
4. YMCA of Greater Toronto: information and language referrals
The YMCA's newcomer services are separate from the gym and recreation programs you may already know. Its Newcomer Information Centre provides free information and referrals. Its language assessment service assesses English or French for government-funded language programs at no cost.
If you want language classes but cannot tell which level or program to choose, ask about assessment and referral. Also ask about class times and location: a course is only useful if you can get there around work or school pickup.
The organization also has newcomer youth and pre-arrival services. Check the requirements for the particular program; the YMCA name does not mean every branch offers the same newcomer services.
5. Achēv: help making sense of your options
Achēv's Newcomer Information Centres offer free one-to-one information and referrals in Mississauga, Brampton and Oakville. Topics include employment, education, English classes, housing, health care, and child and family resources.
This is a practical first appointment if you have found several programs online but cannot work out which one applies to you. Bring the names or links and ask the worker to help you narrow them down.
The centre's published eligibility includes permanent residents and Convention refugees, and it asks for status documents at registration. Check with staff before visiting, especially if your status has changed or you are unsure which document to bring.
6. Skills for Change: getting back to your work
Skills for Change offers employment, settlement, language, mentoring, career-skills and trades programs. It is another place to ask about returning to a profession or deciding what training would actually help.
Be specific about your experience and your target job. Before committing to a course, ask what it covers, who can enrol, whether there are fees and what employers or professional bodies recognize. A program's title alone will not tell you whether it fits your next step.
7. CICS: community and school connections
The Centre for Immigrant and Community Services provides settlement information and referrals covering employment, housing, education, health and community resources. Services are offered in multiple languages and community settings.
CICS also describes school settlement support in North York through the Settlement and Education Partnerships in Toronto program. If your question involves a child starting school, ask whether a settlement worker serves that school or can connect you with someone who does.
You can start with a small question. Understanding a school notice or finding the right assessment office is a perfectly reasonable reason to call.
8. London Cross Cultural Learner Centre: help in London
If you live in London, start with local services before arranging appointments in Toronto. The London Cross Cultural Learner Centre lists settlement, employment support, English learning, community connections and settlement workers in schools among its programs.
Ask for help with the part of settling in that is holding you up. For families, it is worth asking how school settlement support works and whether it is available through your child's school. Confirm eligibility and appointment arrangements directly with the centre.
How to find newcomer services near you in Ontario
For Ottawa, Windsor, Hamilton, Kingston, Northern Ontario or any community not covered here, use IRCC's service finder. Enter your city or postal code, then look for the kind of help you need. A nearby provider may be more useful than a large organization several hours away.
You can also dial 211 or search 211 Ontario for local community services. This is a useful route when your immediate question is about food, housing or another local support and you do not know which organization handles it.
Who can use free settlement services?
Eligibility belongs to the program, not just the agency. IRCC-funded services cover eligible permanent residents, protected persons and certain other groups. An international student, visitor or work-permit holder should not assume they qualify for every federally funded service.
From April 1, 2026, economic-class permanent residents have a limited period of access to IRCC-funded newcomer services. Check IRCC's current eligibility information and ask the provider how the rule applies to your permanent-residence date. Other funding streams can have different requirements.
When you contact an agency, ask: “With my status, which free programs can I use?” If you are not eligible for one, ask about alternatives. Also check whether any course, translation, assessment or other extra service has a separate charge.
How to book your first settlement appointment
Keep the first message short. For example: “Hi, I moved to Ontario recently and live in Brampton. I am a permanent resident and need help finding work in accounting. Can I book an appointment? Please let me know what documents to bring and whether the service is free.”
Swap in your own city, status and main concern. Ask about service in your preferred language, online appointments or accessibility arrangements if you need them. You do not have to explain your entire immigration history in the first email.
For the appointment, have your questions ready and ask which status documents are required. A résumé helps for employment advice; the letter or form you are struggling with helps for a paperwork question. Before you leave, write down the next action, the person to contact and any deadline.
Can a settlement agency find you a job or a home?
Housing information does not mean an agency can offer you an apartment. Employment counselling does not guarantee a job. And guidance about professional qualifications is different from the regulator's decision to license you.
Ask what the service will actually provide: an appointment, a referral, an application review or a place in a program. That makes it easier to judge whether you are getting closer to what you need.
Pick one next step
You do not need eight appointments. Choose one organization, send one message and ask for help with the thing you most need to sort out. If it is the wrong office, ask who you should contact instead.
Between appointments, use GuideCAN to organize the tasks you agree on or prepare a résumé to discuss with your employment worker.
Written and reviewed by the GuideCAN Editorial Team
Last reviewed
Editorially reviewed for clarity, practical usefulness and alignment with the official starting points listed below.
Official sources
- IRCC: Find free newcomer services
- ACCES: Employment services
- COSTI: Programs and services
- Welcome Centre: Locations and services
- YMCA of Greater Toronto: Immigrant services
- Achēv: Newcomer Information Centre
- Skills for Change: Programs
- CICS: Settlement services
- London Cross Cultural Learner Centre
- 211 Ontario: Find community services
Official rules, fees, deadlines and program availability can change. Confirm the current details before acting.