Previous studies find a strong association between source country female labour force participation level and immigrant women’s labour market activity in the host country. This relationship is interpreted as the continued influence of source country gender role attitudes on women’s labour market behaviour. This article argues that the effect of source country female labour force participation rates extends beyond gender role attitudes by also contributing to labour market skills which help immigrant women navigate the host country labour market. When gender role attitudes are accounted for, source country female labour force participation rate is a strong predictor of immigrant women’s earnings in Canada. This is largely explained by differential occupational allocation in the host country.