Many foreign nationals prefer to gain Canadian work experience in order to earn more money or apply for permanent residence in the future. 

This page will illustrate what a work permit to Canada is and the process of obtaining one.

Section 8(1) of the Regulations states that a foreign national may not study in Canada without first obtaining a work permit. While a work permit authorizes a foreign national to work in Canada, it is not a visa. In order to enter and remain in Canada, a foreign national needs a temporary resident visa or Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), unless exempt. Temporary resident visas and eTAs are typically issued with your work permit and expire at the same time.

Your work permit is your authorization to work for an employer legally. There are only a few exceptions to needing a work permit in Canada, which will be discussed in another section.

Your work permit will specify which employer you are authorized to work for and for how long you are authorized to stay in Canada.

In order to be issued a work permit before entering Canada, the foreign national must satisfy the officer that they will leave Canada by the end of the period authorized for their stay [R200]. For an employer-specific work permit, they must not participate in any unauthorized work with another employer. Additionally, the job offer must be genuine and the officer has to be satisfied that the foreign national is able to perform the work. These are just a few of the conditions. For more information, visit the Government of Canada website or book a consultation.

Some people may be eligible for an unrestricted open work permit for Canada. An open work permit allows a foreign national to work for any employer, as opposed to an employer-specific work permit which only allows the foreign national to work for one employer.

Open work permits may be granted to refugee claimants in Canada, people who hold a temporary resident permit, humanitarian reasons for international students that hold a study permit and need to work to support themselves.

This is not an exhaustive list of all the people who may be eligible for an open work permit. For more information visit Canada.ca.

Other foreign nationals may be allowed to get an occupation-specific work permit. Caregivers who are applying under the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or Home Support Worker Pilot are eligible to receive an occupation-specific work permit. This allows them to work for any employer of the same occupation for the duration of their work permit for Canada.

A Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) is given to recent graduates of a Canadian education institution. Once an international student, who holds a valid study permit, completes their studies, they can apply for a PGWP within 180 days.

A PGWP is an LMIA-exempt open work permit which allows recent graduates to remain in Canada and find employment. This open work permit for Canada is especially important for international students who would like to gain Canadian work experience in order to apply for permanent residence in the future such as through the Canadian Experience Class or a Provincial Nominee Program.

A PGWP may be valid for up to three years depending on the length of your studies. It is only issued to students who studied full time in a designated learning institution for a PGWP-eligible program. The minimum duration of your program of study must be at least 8 months. For more information, visit the IRCC website.

Foreign nationals will typically need to apply for a work permit before entering Canada, unless otherwise exempted by the Regulations. The two main types of work permits are employer-specific and open work permits. The former only allows the foreign national to work for the employer specified on the permit, while the latter allows the foreign national to work for any employer, with some exceptions.

In order to protect the Canadian labour market, the employer typically needs to apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) issued by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) which confirms that the foreign national will have a net neutral or net positive affect on the Canadian labour market. A list of LMIA-exempt occupations can be found here: LMIA exemption codes. Essentially, it is to confirm that a Canadian citizen or permanent resident is unable to fill this job position. For more information of LMIAs, visit the following link: Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)

The basic requirements for a foreign national to be issued a work permit are:

(See IRCC website for more information)

Once you have acquired a positive LMIA (if needed), you can submit your application for a work permit for Canada. An officer will check to make sure the foreign national meet all the requirements and conditions of being issued a work permit and that they are not inadmissible.

You can check the processing time for a work permit application based on the type and your nationality here: Check processing times.

A work permit for Canada allows you to gain meaningful work experience which could then make you eligible for permanent residence. A foreign national who acquired at least one year of work experience in Canada for a NOC 2021 TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 category occupation may be eligible to apply for permanent residence under Express Entry or a Provincial Nominee Program.

Not only is becoming a permanent resident important, many employers highly favour Canadian work experience. What this means is that employers will often prefer to hire someone who has work experience in Canada over someone who does not, even if the latter person has more experience overall. Many newcomers face this issue where they become permanent residents of Canada, yet cannot find a job they are interested in due to not having Canadian work experience. Gaining work experience with a work permit for Canada can help significantly reduce this risk.

Not everyone who wishes to work in Canada requires a work permit. The following people are allowed to work in Canada without a work permit:

For more information on Express Entry applications, visit the Government of Canada website or book a consultation.

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