As a potential immigrant to Canada, you’re likely exploring various avenues to secure a work permit. The International Experience Canada (IEC) program is a viable path for qualified individuals, offering a sense of inclusivity and consideration.
Unlike several other programs, the International Experience Canada pool has a fair and transparent system, which provides applicants with a clear understanding of their chances of obtaining a work permit.
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Meaning Of IEC And The Type Of Work Permit It Provides
The International Experience Canada (IEC) is a temporary residence scheme for youth between the ages of 18 and 30 to 35 from nations that possess bilateral Youth Mobility Agreements with Canada. These agreements are consensus that permits youth from various countries to get employed and obtain skills in Canada while permitting Canadian youths to do the same in other nations. IEC candidates can have their work permit endorsed in as little as six weeks.
Visit their website to check if your nation has a bilateral youth mobility agreement with Canada. The updated age range may also be modified based on your country’s consensus with Canada.
The IEC is designed to be flexible, with an application season typically starting in January and continuing throughout the year until all work permits are issued. This flexibility empowers successful candidates to plan and settle in Canada for 24 months via three streams that provide work permits.
- The working holiday stream
- The young professional stream
- The international co-op (training) stream
If you are a citizen of a partner nation, you may be eligible to apply to more than one of these streams.
The Working Holiday Stream
The working Holiday stream is for people who:
- Do not have an employment offer
- Desire to work for more than one employer
- Willingness to work in more than one place
- Would desire to get paid some funds so that they can travel
The working holiday stream provides new immigrant youth with Open Work Permits (OWPs). Open Work Permits are a type of work permit that authorizes holders to work for most employers, in most sectors, and nearly anywhere in Canada. Most employment may require a medical test.
The Young Professional Stream
The Young Professionals stream is for people who:
- Possess an employment offer in Canada that counts towards their skill progression.
- During their visit to Canada, they will work for the same employer in the same place.
- Under this class, a new immigrant’s employment must be reimbursed, and they cannot be self-employed.
This stream provides closed work permits. These work permits are bound to a particular employer and demonstrate the employer’s name, the employment term, and the place where the holder can operate (if relevant).
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The International Co-op (Training) Stream
The international Co-op stream is for people who:
- Are students enrolled at a post-secondary school?
- Have an employment offer or work placement in Canada.
- Required to perform this work placement and training to conclude their programs.
- They will work for the same employer in the same place at the time of their visit.
This stream also provides closed work permits. Workers with incomes and labor standards must observe labor rules in the region or territory where the training occurs. Local rules will also specify whether training requires reimbursement.
IEC Provision Of Certainty For People Who Apply
Unlike nearly every other Canadian immigration scheme, International Experience Canada clearly explains to applicants the possibility of getting a work permit through the program.
This is because if all the qualification measures are satisfied and fees reimbursed, getting a work permit or not is hugely an operation of the number of applicants in the IEC pool who have:
- Approved their invitations
- Rejected their invitations
- Not yet answered their invitations
- Allow the invitations to expire
- Revoke their profiles.
Note: New immigrants seeking a work permit via the IEC must first present a profile within the applicant pool. When a profile is selected, applicants will be invited to apply for a work permit, after which they may present a complete application under their selected stream.
Checking Your Chances Of Getting An IEC Work Permit In 2024
The ICRC’s dedicated IEC invitation rounds tool is a valuable resource for those interested in assessing their chances of obtaining an IEC work permit. This tool uses a sophisticated algorithm that takes into account various factors such as your nationality, work permit request, and the number of places allocated to your nation. It then generates a probability rating based on these factors, providing you with a clear indication of your chances of success.
Applicants will be required to attach their nationality and demand a work permit. Depending on the aspects mentioned earlier, the IEC device will then provide a possibility rating ranging from Excellent (80-99%), Very Good (60-79%), Fair (40-59%), Low (20-39%), or Very Low (1-19%).
Furthermore, the device can also indicate applicants:
- The number of places allocated to youth from a partner nation.
- The number of invitations already provided to youth from that nation in the present IEC season is the number of youth from that nation who are already in the IEC pool as applicants.
