Work permits are typically applied for at Canadian visa offices outside of Canada, or in some cases at the airport or other port of entry coming into Canada. In most cases, it is a prerequisite to obtain a job offer from a Canadian company and to have that job offer approved by the Canadian Human Resources Department before a work permit will be issued by the immigration authorities in Canada.

The process of obtaining a Canada work permit usually begins with obtaining employment in Canada. Once employment has been found our firm can assist in the application process for a temporary Canadian work permit visa.

NOTE that our law firm does not assist in finding job offers, we assist with the process of obtaining a work permit for those who already have an existing job offer.

Work Permit Applications – The Regular Process

A job offer must in most cases be approved by the Canadian Human Resources Department before the work permit application can be made. The process of having the job offer approved requires that the employer demonstrate to the Human Resources Department why they could not find a Canadian to fill the job position. For example, the employer could show that they advertised in the newspaper to try to fill the position but were unable to find any Canadian who was qualified for the position. These requirements may be relaxed where the occupation is listed as being an “Occupation Under Pressure” recognizing there is a skill shortage in that occupation. In this regard, it should be noted that the foreign worker program is geared toward high skilled occupations where there is a shortage of Canadians to fill the needs of the labour market. While it is possible to obtain approval for low-skilled job offers, the requirements placed on the employer to justify hiring a low skilled foreign worker are more onerous.

Once a job offer is approved by the Human Resources Department an application for the actual Work Permit visa can be made to Immigration Canada. As with other temporary residence applications the immigration authorities will assess the applicant to determine if they are qualified and otherwise admissible to Canada before issuing the work permit.

Work Permits that do not require Human Resources approval

It is sometimes possible to obtain the work permit without first having to obtain approval by the Human Resources department. Types of work permits which are exempt from prior validation include work permits for entrepreneurs and intra-company transferees, and other persons whose employment will bring a significant benefit to Canada.

In addition, there is a special exemption for foreign students who have completed a course of study in Canada. These students can apply for an open work permit enabling them to work for any employer willing to offer them a position.

NAFTA Work Permits, etc.

In addition, some categories of workers from certain countries do not require prior human resources department approval in order to obtain a Canada work permit. Citizens of the United States and Mexico may apply for work permits under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) if they are professionals, business visitors, intra-company transferees, or traders or investors. Citizens of countries that are signatories to other treaties such as the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) may also be able to benefit from this type of Human Resources approval-exempt work permit.

Live-in Caregivers

The Live-in Caregiver category is a type of work permit application for persons who have an offer of employment as a caregiver with a Canadian who is willing to let the caregiver live in his or her home. Persons employed in this capacity will usually be taking care of small children, elderly persons, or disabled persons on behalf of the Canadian employer. To qualify under this category the caregiver must have completed at least 12 years of education, be able to speak English or French well enough to communicate in an unsupervised setting, and have either completed at least a six-month training program related to care giving, or have at least one year of full-time experience as a caregiver. After working for two years in Canada, a caregiver may apply for permanent residence and may include their family members in this application.

Toronto lawyer Matthew Jeffery can assist you in the application process for a temporary Canada work permit visa.

If you are interested in applying for a work permit, please Contact Us for further information.