Caregiver Services
for Canadian Families.
Caregiver services in Sri Lanka for Canadian families exist because Scarborough is a very long way from Colombo. Your parents are ageing on the other side of the world, and no flight gets you there the same day. BetterHands places a vetted carer in their home and writes to you after every shift, so Canadian families stop guessing.
The largest community
Outside Sri Lanka itself
9½ hrs
Toronto behind Colombo
1,000+
Carer profiles
Vetted and reference-checked
72 Hours
Placement guarantee
Or we escalate immediately
96%
First-match success
50+ matching factors
PHSRC
Registered nurses
For clinical home nursing
A large community, a long distance
Why Canadian Families Arrange Caregiver Services in Sri Lanka.
Canada holds one of the largest Sri Lankan communities anywhere outside the island. Most of it sits in the Greater Toronto Area — Scarborough above all, then Markham, Ajax, Pickering, Brampton and Mississauga.
Being large has real advantages. There is a temple nearby, a grocer who stocks the right things, and someone who knows a good doctor. Recommendations travel fast, and so do warnings.
However, none of that helps a parent in Colombo at two in the afternoon. The community is here; the parents are there. That gap is precisely what professional caregiver services are built to close.
- Adult children working full-time in the GTA, with no sibling left in Sri Lanka
- Parents who never emigrated, so no Canadian entitlement applies
- Families who cannot take three weeks off to manage a recovery in person
- Households where the only other option was moving a parent into a home
The distance is the whole problem
When You Cannot Simply Fly Home to Sri Lanka.
Canadian families discover this at the worst possible moment. A parent falls, a hospital calls, and the honest answer is that nobody can be there tomorrow. Therefore the arrangement has to work without you in the room.
Always a stopover
No airline flies Toronto to Colombo direct. Routes connect through Doha, Dubai, Istanbul or London, and door-to-door journeys run past twenty hours.
Winter adds risk
A January storm at Pearson can cost a day before you have even left Canada. Emergency travel from Toronto is less dependable than the distance alone suggests.
Fewer relatives left
Many Canadian families emigrated in large groups. As a result there is often no cousin in Colombo to send round, which is a different problem from being merely far away.
A point worth being clear about
What Canadian Home Care Does Not Cover Overseas.
Publicly funded home care in Canada is a provincial responsibility. In Ontario it runs through Ontario Health atHome; other provinces have their own equivalents, with their own assessments and waiting lists.
All of them share one boundary. They fund care delivered inside the province. None of them fund a personal support worker for a parent living in Colombo, because that parent is not a resident and never was.
Pensions are a separate question. Old Age Security can be paid abroad where someone lived in Canada for at least twenty years after turning eighteen, and CPP is payable overseas. However, a parent who never emigrated has no claim on either. Confirm any individual case with Service Canada rather than assuming.
The practical position for most families
- Provincial home care stops at the provincial border — there is no overseas equivalent to apply for.
- Care in Sri Lanka is a private arrangement, paid directly, with no assessment queue to join.
- Sri Lankan daily rates mean full-time support often costs less than part-time help in Ontario.
- You approve the care plan and the budget before anything starts, from Canada.
Six time zones, one reporting rhythm
How Care Works Across the Canada–Sri Lanka Time Difference.
Canada spans more clock than any country we serve. Toronto is 9½ to 13½ hours behind Colombo at the near end, and Vancouver sits three hours further back again. As a result the update has to be written to a Sri Lankan schedule, not a Canadian one.
Eastern Time
Toronto · Ottawa · Montreal
9½ hours behind in summer, 10½ in winter
Mountain Time
Calgary · Edmonton
11½ hours behind in summer, 12½ in winter
Pacific Time
Vancouver
12½ hours behind in summer, 13½ in winter
Why the update lands before your morning
A carer finishes the day shift in Colombo around six in the evening. In Toronto that is roughly half past eight the previous morning in summer — so the written update is typically waiting when a Canadian family starts its day, not buried at three in the morning.
For Vancouver the same update arrives earlier still. Because clock differences shift with daylight saving on both continents, we treat these as approximate and confirm the exact reporting window with each family at the assessment.
What you actually get
How BetterHands Supports Canadian Families.
A free assessment first
We visit your parents, talk to them properly, and tell you what they actually need. Sometimes that is less than the family feared.
A carer matched, not allocated
Language, temperament, cooking, religious observance and medical experience all go into the match. Fifty-plus factors, not a rota slot.
A written update every shift
Food, medication, mobility, mood and anything unusual. Written at the end of the shift in Colombo, timed to reach you before your day starts.
Home nursing when needed
PHSRC-registered nurses for medication management, wound care, catheters and post-operative recovery at home.
One company accountable
Carers are employed and payrolled by BetterHands. If standards slip there is one number to ring, and we own the fix.
Unlimited replacements
If the match is wrong we replace the carer, with no cap inside your membership year and no argument about it.
Where our Canadian families live
Caregiver Services in Sri Lanka by Canadian City.
The care always happens in Sri Lanka. What changes city to city is the clock, and how much of a local network a family can fall back on.
Caregiver Services for Families Across the Rest of Canada.
Before you commit
What Canadian Families Ask First.
How much does home care in Sri Lanka cost?
A one-time annual membership covers coordination, payroll and unlimited carer replacements. Daily rates then apply by staff role, from carer through to registered nurse. Rates appear below, and the free assessment comes first.
Do I need to fly over to organise it?
No. Assessment, matching, approval and payment all run remotely from Canada. Given that every route involves a stopover and a winter storm can cost a day, this matters here. Your parents meet the carer in person.
Who is accountable if standards slip?
BetterHands is. Carers are employed and payrolled through us, not introduced and forgotten. One team owns the placement, there is a number to ring, and the replacement guarantee has no cap.
Where the care actually happens
Island-wide coverage in Sri Lanka.
BetterHands coordinates carers from our office in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, just outside Colombo. Placements run island-wide, including Kandy, Galle, Negombo, Matara and Jaffna.
No district loading applies. A placement two hours from the capital costs the same daily rate as one in Colombo 7. Families discharged from the National Hospital of Sri Lanka or private hospitals are transitioned home directly.
BetterHands (Pvt) Ltd
200 Narahenpita - Nawala Rd, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte 11222, Sri Lanka
+94 74 21 21 744Transparent pricing
Membership first, then simple daily rates.
One annual membership covers coordination, payroll and unlimited carer replacements. After that you pay a flat daily rate for the level of care your parents need. Fees are charged in Sri Lankan rupees.
BetterHands Annual Membership
LKR 20,000
One-time annual registration fee
- Unlimited caregiver replacements at no additional cost if you are not satisfied
- Payroll management and caregiver administration
- Ongoing coordination and support from the BetterHands team
- Access to all services covered under the BetterHands membership
Step two — daily service rates
Duties below are what each role normally provides — your care plan is tailored during the free assessment.
Caregiver
Daily living support and companionship
LKR 4,500/day
Most families start here — a parent who is managing, but should not be alone all day.
- Friendly conversation and companionship
- Bathing and personal care assistance (if required)
- Medication reminders and general supervision
- Simple meals and refreshments
- Short walks and light activities (if appropriate)
- Day-to-day assistance and emotional support
Nursing Assistant
Personal care plus basic clinical support
LKR 6,000/day
Common where diabetes, blood pressure or early-stage dementia needs daily monitoring.
- Everything in the caregiver role
- Vital signs monitoring (BP, blood sugar, SpO₂)
- Medication reminders and administration support
- Basic wound and continence care
Professional Nurse
Complex medical and post-operative needs
LKR 9,000/day
Usually after a hospital discharge, a stroke, or where wounds and IV care are involved.
- Everything in the nursing assistant role
- PHSRC-registered clinical nursing
- Wound care, injections, and IV therapy
- Catheter, NG tube, and post-operative care
Daily rates are charged in addition to the one-time annual registration fee of LKR 20,000. The same daily rates apply to day care, night care and live-in support — no shift premiums, no travel supplements for any district. Hospital bystander cover is priced by shift length instead — see that service page for its packages. A free care assessment is provided before any commitment.
A one-way transfer for the caregiver is arranged at the start of placement.
Families we look after
Trusted with the people who raised us.
“BetterHands transformed my mother's quality of life. The caregivers are professional, compassionate, and treat her with so much dignity. Our whole family is relieved and grateful.”
Chamari W.
Colombo 07
“After my father's heart surgery at Lanka Hospitals, the nursing team from BetterHands provided exceptional post-operative care at home. They were thorough, kind, and always on time.”
Roshan & Dilini P.
Nugegoda
“My grandfather was very lonely after being discharged from hospital. His BetterHands companion has become a true friend — he is happier and more engaged than he's been in years.”
Priya N.
Kandy
Questions from Canada
Frequently Asked Questions from Canadian Families.
Yes. BetterHands runs a free assessment with your parents in Sri Lanka, matches a carer, and sends a written welfare update after every shift. You approve the care plan and pay from Canada. No family member needs to fly over to set the placement up.
No. Publicly funded home care in Canada is provincial, and it covers care delivered inside that province after a needs assessment. Care for a parent living in Sri Lanka is paid privately. Provincial coverage does not travel, whatever the family circumstances.
Toronto sits about nine and a half hours behind Colombo through the summer and ten and a half in winter. Vancouver is three hours further back again. Carers write the update at the end of the Sri Lankan shift, so it is waiting when you wake rather than arriving overnight.
Practically, yes. Every route from Toronto to Colombo stops at least once, usually through Doha, Dubai, Istanbul or London. Door-to-door journeys run past twenty hours, and winter weather adds its own risk. Reliable care on the ground matters more, not less.
Not for arranging care. Most of our Canadian families have parents who never emigrated, which means no Canadian entitlement applies at all. The care is a private arrangement from the start, and Sri Lankan rates make daily support genuinely affordable.
Only if your parent is themselves entitled to it. Old Age Security can be paid outside Canada where someone lived here at least twenty years after turning eighteen, and CPP is payable abroad. A parent who never lived in Canada has no claim. Confirm any individual case with Service Canada.
Most placements begin within seventy-two hours of an approved care plan. Where a parent is being discharged from hospital, we work to the discharge date instead. The assessment itself is usually arranged within a day or two of your first call.
We replace them, and there is no cap on replacements inside your membership year. Carers are employed and payrolled through BetterHands rather than introduced and forgotten, so accountability sits with one company and one number to ring.
BetterHands nurses are registered with Sri Lanka's Private Health Services Regulatory Council. Canadian pension and home care entitlements should be confirmed with Service Canada and your province, as individual circumstances vary.
Keep reading
Related pages for Canadian families.
Half a world away should not mean in the dark.
You cannot get to Colombo quickly, and there may be nobody there to ring this afternoon. That is the position most Sri Lankan families in Canada find themselves in. Caregiver services in Sri Lanka were built for exactly this distance.
A vetted carer in the house. Home nursing when the condition calls for it. A written update after every shift, waiting for you before your Toronto morning begins. One team accountable, with unlimited replacements if the match is wrong.
The assessment costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Sometimes it tells families their parents need less than they feared. Either way you stop piecing the truth together from short phone calls.
Check it yourself
Sources and further reading for Canada families.
Entitlements and health guidance change. These are the official sources — go to them rather than taking our word for it.
Your parents are in Sri Lanka.
We are already there.
A 15-minute call, scheduled around your Canadian day rather than the middle of your night. We will tell you honestly what your parents need — even if that turns out to be less than you expected.
1,000+
Caregiver profiles
96%
First-match success
Trained
Caregiver training
72
Hours to placement