NOC Code Canada: What It Is and How to Find Yours (2026)

A NOC code is Canada's official 5-digit identifier for your occupation. If you're applying for jobs, applying for PR, or looking up a Canadian wage band, you need yours.

What is a NOC code

The National Occupational Classification (NOC) is the system Canada uses to organise every occupation in the country. Each occupation has a unique 5-digit NOC code and a description of its duties, requirements, and example titles.

What does NOC stand for in Canada

National Occupational Classification. It's maintained jointly by Statistics Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). The latest version is NOC 2021, which came into force on November 16, 2022.

NOC 2021 in plain English

Each 5-digit code reads like this: 2 1 2 3 0.

• 1st digit — broad occupational category (1 = business/finance, 2 = sciences, 3 = health, etc.).
• 2nd digit — your TEER level (0–5), describing the training and experience required.
• 3rd–5th digits — the specific occupation.

How to find your NOC code

1. List your real job title and your top 5–6 duties in plain English.
2. Run them through the NOC code finder — instant top matches with TEER and resume keywords.
3. Open the top 2 matches on the official ESDC NOC site and pick the one whose duties best match yours (aim for ≥70% overlap).

How to use it

• For jobs: mirror the NOC's duty language on your resume — recruiters and ATS look for it.
• For pay research: Job Bank publishes wage bands by NOC + region.
• For immigration: your NOC + TEER decides Express Entry eligibility.
• For LMIA: NOC drives high-wage vs low-wage LMIA stream.

Disambiguation: NOC letter vs NOC code

If you searched "NOC letter", "NOC certificate", or "NOC online" and meant a No Objection Certificate, that's a different document used in some non-Canadian contexts. This guide is about Canada's National Occupational Classification code.

Next: the full NOC code list by TEER and NOC codes by province.