The short answer: if you are retired, unemployed, a student or a homemaker, choose the list entry with that exact name. Self-employed people and freelancers will not find an entry for them, so they pick the category closest to the kind of work they do, then the nearest job title. You can apply for a Canada eTA and fill in the form in one sitting; it’s a paid private service, separate from the Government of Canada.
Applying on canada.ca costs only the government fee.
The employment part of the form has six fields, and the first two are drop-down lists with fixed categories. For everything around these fields, see the full application, step by step.
What does the eTA form ask in the employment section?
Six things, in this order: occupation, job title, the name of your employer or school, the country, the city or town, and the year you started. On the live form the third label reads “Name of employer or school, as appropriate”: the employer if you work, the school if you study.
The occupation list has 15 entries: “Art, culture, recreation and sport occupation”; “Finance and administration occupations”; “Education, law and social community and government services occupation”; “Health occupations”; “Homemaker”; “Management occupations”; “Manufacturing and utilities occupations”; “Military/armed forces”; “Natural and applied sciences and related occupations”; “Natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations”; “Retired”; “Sales and service occupations”; “Student”; “Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations”; and “Unemployed”. The help guide for the form says to choose the entry that best describes your current situation, and a similar one when nothing matches exactly.
What to put on the eTA form: a table by situation
Find the row that looks like you. Where the help text is silent, the last column is a sensible suggestion, not an official template.
| Your situation | Occupation | Job title | Employer or school field |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employed by a company | The category nearest your work | Nearest title | Your employer’s name |
| Retired | Retired | Nearest option | Describe your position truthfully, for example “Retired” |
| Unemployed, looking for work | Unemployed | Nearest option | Same approach as for retirees |
| Homemaker | Homemaker | Nearest option | Same approach as for retirees |
| Student | Student | Nearest option | Your school, with its country, city and start year |
| Self-employed, freelance, sole trader | Category matching the type of work | Nearest title | Your business name, or a note that you are self-employed |
| Remote work for a foreign company | Category matching the work | Nearest title | That company, in the country where it is based |
| Two or more jobs | Category of your main job | Nearest title | The main employer |
| Parental leave, sick leave, study break | Current job category, or Student | Nearest option | The employer or university, if the link continues |
The entries in the Occupation column come from the official list, and the worker and student rows follow the help text. The employer column in the other rows is practical advice, guided by the form’s call for a complete and accurate application.
Retired: which occupation and what goes in the employer field?
Choose Retired, not the career you left behind, because the question is about your current situation. The sticking point is the employer box, which the help text covers only for workers and students. If the form asks for it, a short honest entry such as “Retired” is what many applicants use, though no official sample confirms it.
For country, city and year, give details that fit your case, such as where you live and the year you stopped working. That is a reasonable approach, not an official sample; the help text says this box means the year you started working or studying.
Unemployed or between jobs: does it affect your eTA?
Pick Unemployed.
Whether the choice changes the outcome is not stated anywhere, so nobody can honestly promise either result. What is documented is how entry works. An eTA does not guarantee admission, and at the border an officer may ask about ties that will take you home, where a job is only one example next to a home, financial assets or family, and about money for the stay. If you live on savings or a pension rather than wages, be ready to explain that in person.
Self-employed, freelance or running your own business
The 15 entries include no self-employed or freelance option, so choose by what you do all day. A freelance graphic designer fits the arts and culture category, a sole trader doing bookkeeping fits finance and administration, and a plumber with their own van fits trades. Then take the nearest job title.
For the employer box, enter the name of your own business, or “Self-employed” if you trade under your own name. That is common practice, not an official rule.
Working remotely for a company outside Canada
Choose the category that matches the work, the nearest job title, and name the actual employer.
An eTA is not a work permit and gives no right to work in Canada. Separately, canada.ca says digital nomads working remotely for an employer outside Canada can live and work here for up to six months at a time with visitor status, with no work permit. The eTA is simply the document a visa-exempt visitor needs to board a flight. If your trip involves meetings with clients, business trips and meetings explains where visiting ends and working begins.
Students, homemakers, parental leave and more than one job
Students select Student and give the school, its country and city, and the year they started. Homemakers select Homemaker and treat the other boxes like retirees.
On parental leave, sick leave or a study break, ask whether the link to your employer or university continues. If it does, naming them is a reasonable reading of “current employment situation”. With several jobs, give the main one. None of this has an official script, so keep entries true.
Your job has changed since you got your eTA
Jobs change within the five years an eTA can last. The government requires a new eTA with a new passport, and its pages do not name a change of job as a reason to reapply. Its Help Centre does say that after a mistake such as a wrong email or passport number, you must apply again.
An outdated employer entry is not a wrong passport number. If you simply moved on, the rules do not say you need a fresh application, and what can and cannot be corrected after approval lists what is checked at the airport. If you made a mistake at the time of applying, read what to do if you already submitted a wrong answer.
If English is not your first language
The form exists only in English and French, but the government publishes field descriptions in 19 language versions. Read the labels there, then answer in English. “As appropriate” only means: write whichever of employer or school applies to you. More on those translations is in help with the form in other languages.
The short version
- Retired, Unemployed, Student and Homemaker each have their own entry in the occupation list.
- There is no self-employed or freelance entry, so choose the category that matches your type of work.
- The job title is the nearest option in the list.
- With no employer, describe your position truthfully and briefly.
- No source says whether being unemployed or retired changes a decision, so promises either way are guesses.
- A later job change is not listed as a reason for a new eTA; a mistake made when applying is.
FAQ
What do I put for occupation if I am unemployed? Select Unemployed from the list. If the employer box is required, write a short true description such as “Unemployed”; there is no official example.
What occupation should a retiree choose on the Canada eTA? Select Retired, not your former profession. In the employer field, a short honest note that you are retired is what applicants commonly use.
Will being unemployed affect my eTA approval? Nothing published says it does or does not. An eTA is no guarantee of entry, and an officer may consider your ties and funds on arrival, so be ready to explain how you support yourself.
Is there a self-employed option in the eTA occupation list? No. None of the 15 entries says self-employed or freelance. Choose the category closest to your work. A common approach is to put your business name in the employer field; there is no official example.
Do I need a new eTA if I change jobs? Nothing published names a change of job as a reason for a new eTA, while a new passport does require one. A mistake made when you applied is different: the Help Centre says to apply again.