Before Canadian employers can hire a temporary foreign worker, they will need LMIA from ESDC (Employment and Social Development Canada), which is issued if ESDC is satisfied that there is no Canadian citizen or permanent resident available to do the job. When the LMIA is granted, the Canadian employer needs to provide a copy of the LMIA approval letter, and a detailed job offer letter to the foreign worker. The foreign worker will need those documents to be able to apply for a work permit. Finally, the foreign worker can submit an application for a work permit to IRCC. Foreign workers may need to obtain a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) to travel to Canada, which depends upon the country of citizenship.
LMIA processing times are unpredictable, it may take from a couple of weeks to a few months.
These kind of work permits are employer specific (‘closed’) and are granted for a specific job in Canada. Meaning, a foreign worker may only work for the employer specified on the work permit. Furthermore, if the foreign worker wants to work for a different employer and does not yet have permanent resident status, the foreign worker must apply for and receive a new work permit prior to changing employers or their position in Canada and their new employer needs to obtain an LMIA for the job position.
Once in Canada on a temporary work permit, a foreign worker may qualify for Canadian permanent residence under the following: –
- Canadian Experience Class (CEC),
- Skilled Worker category, or
- one of the Provincial Nominee Programs
NOTE: For Quebec: If the Canadian employer is hiring for a position located in the province of Quebec, the foreign worker will need to obtain a Certificat d’acceptation du Québec (CAQ) in order to work temporarily in Quebec. The CAQ application will have to be submitted to Quebec’s Ministère de l’Immigration, Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI) at the same time as the LMIA is submitted to ESDC.