The Trudeau administration has extended the interim rule by a further two years, allowing visitors to Canada to continue to apply for work permits while they are there.
It will still be possible for visitors applying under this policy who had a work permit during the previous 12 months to ask for temporary work authorization so they can start working for their new employer more quickly.
The COVID-era temporary policy, which was due to expire at the end of February, has been extended by two years, till February 28, 2025.
Employers in Canada have the option of hiring visitors if the temporary policy is maintained, as many are struggling with severe labor shortages during this moment of economic growth, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).
Canada had a 5% unemployment rate as of January. According to Statistics Canada data from December 2022, there were 848,000 fewer job openings overall than there had been at the beginning of the year.
Since September, the nation has added 326,000 jobs, bringing the total number of employed Canadians to more than 20 million for the first time.
Before, anyone who wanted to work in Canada had to apply for their initial work permit before they arrived.
If they had visitor status when they were granted a work permit, they would have to leave the country in order to receive their work permit.
To be eligible to apply, an applicant looking to benefit from this temporary public policy must
- have valid status in Canada as a visitor on the day they apply
- have a job offer that is supported by a labour market impact assessment (LMIA) or an LMIA-exempt offer of employment
- submit an application for an employer-specific work permit no later than February 28, 2025
- meet all other standard admissibility criteria
Generally, a valid offer is for a job that is:
- full-time and non-seasonal,
- for at least 1 year,
- in a skilled job listed as TEER Category 0, 1, 2 or 3 in the 2021 National Occupational Classification.
A job offer must be in writing, and must set out details of the job they are offering you, such as:
- your pay and deductions
- your job duties
- conditions of employment, like your hours of work.
A valid job offer must often be accompanied by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). One must be requested by the employer from Service Canada/Employment and Social Development Canada.
