Logging, forestry, landscaping and other related labourers
Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourersNOC 85121, TEER 5
NOC 85121 (Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers) is TEER 5.TEER 5
Occupations that usually need short-term work demonstration and no formal education
- Express Entry
- IRCC counts only TEER 0 to 3 work for the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the Canadian Experience Class, so work in NOC 85121 does not count toward either.
- 2026 categories
- IRCC's 2026 category lists do not include NOC 85121.
- Median wage
- $20.75 an hour across Canada, from Job Bank's 2025 wage release (2023-2024 data).
- Provincial programs
- Each province sets which occupations its streams take. From our registry: OINP Ontario Workforce Priority stream, status Open, verified November 12, 2026.
How to read this code
- Broad category
- The first digit is the broad occupational category, the widest grouping in the NOC.
- TEER
- The second digit, 5, is the TEER category: TEER 5.
- Group
- The first four digits, 8512, are the minor group: Logging, forestry, landscaping and other related labourers.
- Occupation
- All five digits, 85121, are the unit group, the occupation itself: Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers.
Also called: grounds maintenance worker, bulb planter - landscaping, cemetery labourer, gardening helper, golf course worker
This page shows the official duties for NOC 85121, where its TEER sits in immigration rules, and the wages Job Bank reports. It describes the rules. It does not decide anyone's case.
What the job involves
Statistics Canada text, quoted word for word. IRCC compares your duties with this description, not your job title.
Lead statement
Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers perform work to assist in the construction of landscapes and related structures, and to maintain lawns, gardens, athletic fields, golf courses, cemeteries, parks, landscaped interiors and other landscaped areas. They are employed by landscaping and lawn care companies, golf courses, cemeteries, and landscaping operations of public works departments and private establishments.
Example job titles
- bulb planter - landscaping
- cemetery labourer
- gardening helper
- golf course worker
- grass cutter
- grounds maintenance worker
- landscape labourer
- park maintenance labourer
- park maintenance worker
- sod layer
- transplanter - landscape maintenance
Main duties: check yours
IRCC's rule for the Federal Skilled Worker Program: you must have performed "the actions in the lead statement" and "most of the main duties listed". Tick the duties you do. The count helps you compare. It is not a decision.
Verify on canada.ca(opens in a new tab)This group covers more than one job. Compare yourself with the duties under the job closest to yours.
Lead statement: not ticked. Main duties ticked: 0 of 5.
The rule asks for the lead statement and most of the main duties. IRCC gives no number for "most", and an officer decides.
Few ticks? Read "Classified elsewhere" below: it names the codes for jobs that sit close to this one.
Your ticks are kept in this browser only, so they are here when you come back. Nothing is sent. "Clear ticks" erases them.
If your duties look different
Statistics Canada names the jobs that belong in a different NOC. If one of these sounds more like your work, open that code and compare.
Classified elsewhere
- 22114Landscape and horticulture technicians and specialists (See 22114 Landscape and horticulture technicians and specialists)
- 85103Nursery and greenhouse labourers (See 85103 Nursery and greenhouse labourers)
- 75119Other trades helpers and labourers (See 75119 Other trades helpers and labourers)
- 75212Public works and maintenance labourers (See 75212 Public works and maintenance labourers)
- 74205Public works maintenance equipment operators and related workers (See 74205 Public works maintenance equipment operators and related workers)
- 73200Residential and commercial installers and servicers (See 73200 Residential and commercial installers and servicers)
Usual employment requirements
- Some secondary school education may be required.
- A provincial licence to apply chemical fertilizers, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides may be required.
Where TEER 5 sits in immigration rules
Each row gives the rule, then what it means for this occupation. The programs set many other conditions too, so read the official page before you act.
Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Experience Class
The rule: both programs count work experience only in TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3.
What this means: NOC 85121 is TEER 5, so work in it does not count toward either program. This includes work done in Canada. Other programs set their own occupation rules, and the rows below show some of them.
Federal Skilled Trades Program
The rule: this program goes by NOC group, not by TEER alone. IRPR s. 87.2 lists Major Groups 72 (less Sub-major Group 726), 73, 82, 83, 92 and 93 (less Sub-major Group 932), Minor Group 6320 and Unit Group 62200, other than a restricted occupation.
What this means: NOC 85121 is not in one of the listed groups, so work in it is not skilled trade experience under this program.
Express Entry category-based selection, 2026
The rule: IRCC publishes a closed list of NOC codes for each category. NOC 85121 is not on any 2026 occupation list.
What this means: None of the 2026 lists include a TEER 4 or 5 occupation. French-language proficiency is a separate category based on test results (NCLC 7 in all 4 abilities), and it still requires eligibility for an Express Entry program.
IRCC page modified October 16, 2026, checked November 12, 2026.
Atlantic Immigration Program
The rule: the program takes job offers in TEER 0 to 4 from designated employers in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The job must be full-time and non-seasonal.
What this means: TEER 5 is not in the program's job-offer rules, so a TEER 5 job offer does not meet them.
Provincial Nominee Programs
The rule: each province and territory sets its own requirements and streams, including which occupations and TEER levels a stream takes.
What this means: Check the stream's own page for this NOC code. One example from our program status registry:
Program status: OINP Ontario Workforce Priority stream: Open
The stream has launched and the expression of interest portal opened on August 4, 2026. It covers skilled workers with a qualifying job offer in any NOC occupation, plus self-employed physicians.
Verified November 12, 2026 · Official source
Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)
The rule: an employer, not a worker, applies for an LMIA, and ESDC assesses each job offer. The wage offered, compared with the provincial or territorial threshold, puts the job in the high-wage or low-wage stream.
What this means: Service Canada refuses to process low-wage applications for jobs in census metropolitan areas where unemployment is 6% or higher. Some sectors are exempt, such as primary agriculture, construction, food manufacturing, hospitals, and nursing and residential care. ESDC updates the list of areas each quarter. When this page was checked (September 26, 2026), the ESDC page showed the list for July 10 to October 8, 2026; open the ESDC page for the list in force today. A separate pause covers low-wage jobs in Montréal and Laval.
Wages in Canada
The wages Job Bank publishes for NOC 85121, for Canada as a whole and for each province and territory.
- Low
- $17.00
- per hour
- Median
- $20.75
- per hour
- High
- $28.00
- per hour
What this means: half of the people in this occupation earn less than the median and half earn more. Pay changes with the province, the employer and your experience.
Median by province or territory
| Province or territory | Median (per hour) |
|---|---|
| Newfoundland and Labrador | $18.00 |
| Prince Edward Island | $19.00 |
| Nova Scotia | $18.83 |
| New Brunswick | $18.50 |
| Quebec | $21.89 |
| Ontario | $20.96 |
| Manitoba | $18.39 |
| Saskatchewan | $20.00 |
| Alberta | $21.00 |
| British Columbia | $22.50 |
| Yukon | $30.31 |
| Northwest Territories | $25.00 |
| Nunavut | Not published |
Reference period 2023-2024. Data source: Employment Insurance Survey Data. ESDC Job Bank wages, release revised 2025-11-19. (opens in a new tab)
Search jobs for NOC 85121 on Job Bank(opens in a new tab)ClearToEnter is not affiliated with Job Bank or ESDC.
Related occupations
Codes in the same NOC group as 85121, the closest first.
Questions about this code
What is the TEER of NOC 85121?
NOC 85121 (Landscaping and grounds maintenance labourers) is TEER 5: occupations that usually need short-term work demonstration and no formal education. In NOC 2021, the second digit of a code is its TEER: in 85121, it is 5. Every job title in this unit group, such as grounds maintenance worker, shares that TEER.
Is NOC 85121 eligible for Express Entry?
IRCC counts work experience only in TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 for the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the Canadian Experience Class. NOC 85121 is TEER 5, so work in it does not count toward either program, including work done in Canada. IRCC's 2026 category lists do not include NOC 85121. Provinces set their own occupation rules for their streams.
What is the median wage for NOC 85121?
Job Bank reports a median wage of $20.75 an hour for NOC 85121 across Canada. The low figure is $17.00 and the high is $28.00. Medians by province and territory run from $18.00 in Newfoundland and Labrador to $30.31 in Yukon. The figures come from Job Bank's 2025 wage release (Employment Insurance Survey Data, 2023-2024).
What job titles are under NOC 85121?
Statistics Canada lists 11 example job titles for NOC 85121, including grounds maintenance worker, bulb planter - landscaping, cemetery labourer, gardening helper and golf course worker. The title alone does not set the code: IRCC compares your duties with the lead statement and main duties on this page.
Can an employer hire for NOC 85121 through an LMIA?
An employer, not a worker, applies for an LMIA, and ESDC assesses each job offer, including the wage. For low-wage jobs, Service Canada refuses to process applications in census metropolitan areas where unemployment is 6% or higher, with some exemptions.
Next steps
Read the rules behind this page, then compare pathways.
Guides
The law
Compare pathways for this occupation
The Pathway Explorer lists each major program and its published criteria. Take NOC 85121 and its TEER with you.
NOC 2021 Version 1.0: Statistics Canada and ESDC.