Canada employer-specific work permit and LMIA

You need a job offer from an employer that is not on the list of non-compliant employers and must meet the general requirements for work permit applicants. Before you apply, the employer must find out whether the job needs an LMIA, obtain one if needed, and give you the LMIA letter and Annex A. For LMIA-exempt jobs, the employer submits an offer of employment through the Employer Portal and pays the CAD 230 compliance fee, and you use the offer number in your application.

Employment and Social Development Canada assesses whether hiring a foreign worker will have a positive or neutral effect on the labour market. Employers pay CAD 1,000 per position, which they cannot recover from the worker, and must meet recruitment, wage and working condition rules. Provinces such as British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia also require employer registration first. Highly skilled tech roles can use the Global Talent Stream for 10-business-day LMIA processing.

The permit lists the employer, location and occupation, numbered conditions and remarks, and you must comply with all of them. To change employer or job you generally need a new work permit. Extensions must be applied for before expiry; if you apply in time you can keep working under the same conditions while waiting.

Spouses or common-law partners of workers in TEER 0 or 1 occupations, or in listed high-skilled TEER 2 and 3 occupations, may get open work permits, generally if the worker’s permit is valid for at least 16 months after the spouse applies; other rules apply to workers on a pathway to permanent residence. Dependent children can come as visitors or students. The open work permit costs CAD 155 plus the CAD 100 open work permit holder fee.