Visitors can continue applying for work permits inside Canada
Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Mar, 2023 11:50 AM
Toronto, March 2 (IANS) Foreign nationals who are in Canada as visitors and who receive a valid job offer will be able to apply for and receive a work permit without having to leave the country, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced.
The move, an extension of a Covid-era temporary public policy that was set to expire today, has now been extended by two years, until February 28, 2025.
Visitors applying under this public policy who held a work permit within the last 12 months will also continue to be able to request interim work authorization to begin working for their new employer more quickly.
Prior to this temporary policy change, those applying to work in Canada would typically need to apply for their initial work permit before they came to Canada.
If they were already in Canada with visitor status when they were approved for a work permit, they would need to leave the country to be issued their work permit.
With this policy in place, leaving Canada isn't necessary.
Those looking to benefit from this temporary public policy must have valid status in Canada as a visitor on the day they apply, and have a job offer that is supported by a labour market impact assessment (LMIA) or an LMIA-exempt offer of employment.
An LMIA is an application that an employer makes to Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) to evaluate if hiring foreign workers will have a positive, neutral or negative impact on the Canadian economy.
If ESDC deems the impact is negative, the employer will not be eligible to hire foreign nationals, according to CIC News.
Under the policy, applicants must also submit an application for an employer-specific work permit no later than February 28, 2025.
IRCC said that continuing this policy makes visitors an option for employers in Canada, many of whom are facing significant labour shortages during a period of economic expansion.
There was an overall decrease in the number of vacancies to 848,000 from over one million, according to Statistics Canada data from December 2022.
However, key sectors like healthcare, food and social assistance still need more employees to fill in-demand positions.
A massive four-day manhunt came to an end north of Saskatoon Wednesday as RCMP took into custody Myles Sanderson, a suspect in a deadly mass stabbing rampage. Sanderson was found near the town of Rosthern, Sask., RCMP said, after officers responded to a report of a stolen white Chevrolet Avalanche being driven by a man armed with a knife.
The deal comes after a massive Rogers Communications Inc. service disruption on July 8 that affected millions of Canadians. In the days after the outage, Champagne directed the CEOs of Rogers and other telecom companies to develop a backup plan to prevent a similar scenario, giving them 60 days to do so.
Horgan says inflation is driving up the costs of groceries, gas and other goods and services, and the next support measures will offer families a cushion during challenging times. About 85 per cent of people in B.C. are expected to benefit from the increase in the Climate Action Tax Credit payment, estimated to be worth up to $1,500 a year for a family of four.
Chilliwack RCMP arrested two 18 year old men in connection to this incident. One man has been released without charge while the other has been released on an undertaking to appear in court on September 27th.
Though each bus had passengers on board, no victims ever came forward and there were no reported injuries. In most cases the damage wasn’t noticed by the bus drivers until after they had finished their shifts.
After the caller provided a description of her surroundings patrol officers arrived on scene and confirmed she was being held inside an apartment unit on Hospital Street against her will. The victim attempted to climb over a balcony, however she was pulled back inside by the suspect.
