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.
Champagne made the announcement on Monday after a meeting with executives of the major telecom companies. The aim of the meeting was to “demand they take immediate action to improve the resiliency and reliability of our networks,” he said.
Three Saanich officers and three from the Victoria Police Department, all members of the emergency response team, were injured in the gunfight with 22-year-old twin brothers, Mathew and Isaac Auchterlonie from Duncan, B.C., outside a Bank of Montreal.
The country's 13 premiers began two days of meetings in Victoria on Monday with the primary topic of health-care funding as Canada eases out of a pandemic with a severe shortage of doctors, nurses and other health workers.
A bystander called 9-1-1 around 8:30 a.m. to report a man had been stabbed near Smithe and Homer Street. When VPD officers arrived moments later, they discovered a 29-year-old victim suffering grave injuries. The man was taken to hospital, but he died a short time later.
One officer responded and located two motorcycles believed to be related to the complaint travelling north on 188 Street, performed a U-Turn and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The motorcycles did not stop and the officer discontinued attempts to conduct the traffic stop.
The office of François-Philippe Champagne says he plans to meet with Tony Staffieri and other telecom leaders to discuss the importance of improving Canada's networks.
