LMIA Exempt Work Permit
More often than not, a Foreign national is required to have a positive LMIA from an employer to apply for a work-permit to be allowed to work in Canada, but there are certain scenarios where the requirement of an LMIA can be waived off.
All the streams of work-permit applications that are LMIA exempt, fall under the banner of International Mobility Program (IMP). Launched in 2014 this program allows employers to hire a foreign worker without an LMIA but does not exempt them from the requirement of submitting a job-offer to IRCC
The following streams are some of the few most common LMIA exempt categories:
Canada is signatory to a number of trade-agreements with various countries to keep the economy flourishing. To facilitate easy movement of workers under these agreements the requirement of obtaining an LMIA is waived off. One the most important Free Trade Agreement is
NAFTA (North America Free Trade Agreement) signed between Canada, America and Mexico. NAFTA covers the following categories of foreign workers:
- Business visitors-: Citizens of U.S.A & Mexico who wish to engage in business activities like manufacturing, researching, after-sale services etc. Since Business-visitors are restricted form entering Canadian labour market and their primary source of remuneration remains outside Canada, they are exempted from the requirement of LMIA as well as a Work-permit. They need to apply for a Visitor-record.
- Professionals -: If you are a citizen of U.S.A or Mexico and have pre-arranged employment with a Canadian Employer and your occupation falls under the list of occupations/professions covered under NAFTA, you are eligible to apply under this stream. Professionals under this stream can not be self-employed.
- Intra-company transferees (NAFTA) -: If you are employed at a United States or Mexico organization that has a parent, branch, subsidiary company in Canada and you occupy a managerial or executive role, you may qualify under this stream. The applicant has to be continuously employed in a similar position outside Canada for at least one year in the previous three-year period.
To be eligible to apply and get a positive response for the application, the applicant has to satisfy the immigration officer that their work in Canada will result in a significant cultural, economical and social benefit to the country. Multinational companies may transfer their Senior executives, managers and other employees with specialised knowledge to their Canadian branches to improve the functioning and management of the organisation, which in turn will result in transferring of knowledge and specialisation to the Canadian labour market.
To be eligible to apply under this stream the applicant must be employed by the multinational business at a senior management or an executive position or have specialised knowledge and must be at the same position (full-time) for at least 1 year in the last 3 years before applying.
If you are 18-35 years old and are a citizen of a country that is signatory to a bilateral youth mobility program with Canada, you may be eligible to apply for an Open work -permit under one of the following three streams of IEC-:
- Working Holiday: As the name suggests, if you want a temporary paid employment to take care of the expenses for your travel to Canada, this stream might be an option for you. If the application under this stream is approved, the applicant is issued an Open Work-permit and can work for any employer anywhere in Canada.
- Young Professionals: Designed for applicants who want to gain valuable overseas (Canadian) work experience to enhance their professional development. The applicants must have a qualifying job offer from the employer and have to work for the same employer at the same location for the duration of their stay. If approved, the applicants are issued an employer-specific Work -permit. The job must fall under NOC O, A or B.
- International Co-op Internship: If you are registered at a post-secondary institution and need a work placement or internship to complete your studies, applying under this stream may be a option for you. Applicants are issued an employer-specific work permit and they must work for the same employer in the same location during their stay in Canada.
To encourage French speaking skilled workers to immigrate to Canada and who wish to live outside the Province of Quebec, the federal government regularly, in-coordination with, Francophone minority communities holds Francophone immigration promotional events. Skilled worker selected from these events may apply for a LMIA exempt work-permit. Skilled workers applying under this stream must be qualified to work in managerial, professional, technical or skilled trades occupations (NOC 0, A or B). Although the employer is exempted from the requirement of obtaining an LMIA but has to still submit a qualifying job-offer.
Spouses and children of skilled foreign workers with a job under NOC O, A or B and who hold a valid work-permit may apply for a wok-permit without the need of obtaining an LMIA first. The dependents can work for any employer since they are issued an Open Work-permit.
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