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NOC 21203: Land surveyors
NOC 21203 is a TEER 1 occupation. It counts as skilled work for Express Entry under FSW and CEC. It is not on any 2026 category list, so candidates compete in general and program rounds.
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Land surveyors plan, direct and conduct legal surveys to establish the location of real property boundaries, contours and other natural or human-made features, and prepare and maintain cross-sectional drawings, official plans, records and documents pertaining to these surveys. They are employed by federal, provincial and municipal governments, private sector land surveying establishments, real estate development, natural resource, engineering and construction firms, or they may be self-employed.
Job titles filed under this code
Official example titles
- Canada lands surveyor
- cadastral surveyor
- city surveyor
- land surveyor
- property surveyor
Also included: land survey supervisor
Not this code
Close occupations that have their own code
- Civil engineering technologists and technicians → 22300
- Engineering managers → 20010
- Geomatics engineer → 21300 Civil engineers
- Hydrographic surveyor - geology → 21102 Geoscientists and oceanographers
- Land survey technologists and technicians → 22213
- Survey engineer → 21300 Civil engineers
- Technical occupations in geomatics and meteorology → 22214
- Urban and land use planners → 21202
Main duties
This group performs some or all of the following duties:
- Develop survey plans, methods and procedures for conducting legal surveys
- Plan, direct and supervise or conduct surveys to establish and mark legal boundaries of properties, parcels of lands, provincial and Canada Lands, Aboriginal land claims, wellsites, mining claims, utility rights-of-way, roadways and highways
- Survey and lay out subdivisions for rural and urban development
- Determine precise locations using electronic distance measuring equipment, global positioning systems (GPS), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV)/drones
- Analyze, manage and display data using geographic information systems (GIS) and computer-aided design and drafting (CAD)
- Record all measurements and other information obtained during survey activities
- Prepare or supervise the preparation and compilation of all data, plans, charts, records and documents related to surveys of real property boundaries
- Certify and assume liability for surveys made to establish real property boundaries
- Advise, provide consultation and testify as an expert witness on matters related to legal surveys
- May supervise other land surveyors, and land survey technologists and technicians.
What this code means for Express Entry
TEER 0–3 work counts toward the Federal Skilled Worker Program.
One year of this work in Canada can qualify for the Canadian Experience Class.
Not in a Federal Skilled Trades group.
CRS points from November 3, 2026
NOC 21203 is on IRCC's high-wage occupations list at the 1.3x level. From November 3, 2026, at least 12 months (1,560 hours) of Canadian work in it adds 20 points to your Canadian work experience points in the CRS, and a valid job offer in it is worth 50 points; the higher of the two counts. No LMIA is needed.
IRCC high-wage list (list from 2023 to 2025 wage data, read 2026-10-16) · CRS calculator with the new rules
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Employment requirements
- A bachelor's degree in geomatics engineering or survey engineering or a college diploma in survey science or geomatics technology with additional academic credits and successful completion of equivalent examinations set by a regional board of examiners for land surveyors is required.
- A one- to three-year articling period is required.
- Successful completion of professional land surveyor examinations is required.
- A federal or provincial land surveyor's licence is required.
Good to know
- Federal statutes require a separate licence from the Association of Canada Land Surveyors to survey areas such as national parks, Aboriginal lands, offshore areas and northern territories.