Work permits in Canada authorize international citizens to get employed and settle in Canada for a short term, enhancing their qualification for economic permanent residence schemes by authorizing new immigrants to obtain Canadian employment skills.
In this article, we have gathered answers to six of the most frequently requested questions by new immigrants about work permits.
Table of Contents
What Type Of Work Permits Are There?
Work permits in Canada can widely be summarized in two classes:
- Open work permits (OWPs).
- Employer-specific/closed work permits.
Open work permits authorize employers to employ holders anywhere in Canada in several sectors.
On the contrary, employer-specific work permits only authorize holders to get employed by a particular employer and usually stipulate the place and term of employment. These work permits are generally described as Labour Market Impact Assessment-based work permits requiring an LMIA to sponsor the work permit request. An LMIA is a document that assesses the impact of hiring a foreign worker on the Canadian labor market. To successfully sponsor a work permit request, an LMIA is required to bring back either a favorable or unfavorable outcome.
How Long Does It Take To Run A Work Permit Application?
Processing periods for work permits can vary greatly depending on the scheme, the kind of employment permit requested, whether an applicant is inside or abroad, and many other aspects. To handle these effects, Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada have generated frequent up-to-date processing duration devices, which also record the division’s recent ability and backlog of requests.
Can Visitors In Canada Make An Application For A Work Permit?
Under everyday events, visitors in Canada who have visitor visas and do not hold a Canadian work or study permit cannot apply for work permits while they are inside Canada. Hence, because of a temporary policy modification carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic, which will elapse on 25h February 2025, most visitors in Canada can now make an application for employer-specific work permits. To be qualified, candidates are required to:
- Be physically available in Canada during the application process.
- Remain in Canada while IRCC runs the request. Under this public policy, if a candidate exits while their application is being run, they will not be qualified.
- Apply for your employer-specific work permit between 24th August 2020 and 28th February 2025.
- When applying for a work permit, visitors must be in authentic status. Authentic status means that the visitor’s visa or eTA is still valid and has not violated any conditions during their stay in Canada.
- Continue their visitor status if it has expired before they apply for a work permit.
Keep in mind that specific occupations are unqualified under this public policy.
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Ceritificat de Selection du Quebec holders are also qualified for this public policy. This document provided by the Quebec immigration administration states that the holder has been chosen to live in Quebec.
Can Candidates Appeal A Judgment On Their Work Permit Application?
Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, the national parliamentary Act that sets the nation’s immigration objectives and approaches, does not summarize the liberty of appeal for judgments on temporary resident applications, which are work, study, or visitor permits.
Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada motivates candidates to make another application, declaring that, if feasible, a different immigration official will check the new request. If a candidate assumes that the processing of their request did not observe procedural measures, they may seek a judicial review. This is a lawful process in which the Federal Court of Canada will check the efforts obtained by the processing official. Under the judicial review procedure, an attorney in Canada would represent the candidate.
How Can A Destroyed Or Lost Work Permit Be Replaced?
Holders of work permits who have forfeited or otherwise no longer possess their physical work permits must apply to replace the old document. Furthermore, holders must also reimburse a fee to have their work permits printed to complete the application.
Can I Apply For A Work Permit When I Land In Canada?
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada motivates all new immigrants to apply for work permits if they require one before they land in Canada. Hence, some people may be qualified to apply for their work permits at a Canadian port of entry. To be qualified to make an application at a port of entry, applicants are required to:
- Come from a visa-excluded nation.
- Be qualified for an electronic travel authorization (eTA) or move to Canada without a visitor visa.
- Satisfy all other conditions based on the work permit they are applying for.
New immigrants cannot make an application for a work permit at a Port of Entry if they:
- A visitor visa is required to move to Canada.
- Are applying for a post-graduate work permit.
- Are a national of a qualified visa-needed nation.
- Are an International Experience Canada (IEC) candidate who is not a national or permanent resident of the US.
- Are making an application for the Seasonal Agriculture Worker Program.
New immigrants applying to a Canadian Port of Entry may also need a medical test to support their request.
