Backgrounder: Canada Summer Jobs 2025

Program overview

The Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) program is part of the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS), a horizontal Government of Canada initiative delivered in partnership by 12 federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations. The YESS supports youth (aged 15 to 30), especially those facing barriers to employment, to receive the employment supports, skills training and work experience they need to successfully transition into the labour market.

The CSJ program, delivered by Employment and Social Development Canada, provides wage subsidies to support employers from not-for-profit organizations and the public sector, as well as private sector organizations with 50 or fewer full-time employees, to offer quality summer work experiences for youth aged 15 to 30. CSJ provides youth with opportunities to develop and improve new and existing skills. For some young people, CSJ is a first job experience that will help inform their future education, training and career choices. The program is responsive to national and local priorities as well as labour market needs.  

Through CSJ, projects that support youth who face barriers to employment are a priority. This includes youth with disabilities, Indigenous youth, Black and racialized youth, 2SLGBTQI+ youth, and youth in rural, remote, or official language minority communities. By providing young people with equitable opportunities to develop their skills, CSJ can help them succeed in the job market.

CSJ-funded jobs are full-time (30 to 40 hours per week), with a duration of 6 to 16 weeks, with the average job duration being 8 weeks and 35 hours per week.

CSJ 2025 youth hiring period

The hiring period for CSJ 2025 runs from April 21, 2025, until July 21, 2025, with jobs running until August 30, 2025. Up to 76,000 jobs that matter to young people and to our communities will be posted on the Job Bank website and mobile app, and will be updated on a regular basis. Young people are encouraged to keep checking for updates on jobs available in their communities.

Eligibility criteria

Youth participants

Eligible participants must:

• be between 15 and 30 years of age (inclusive) at the start of employment;
• be Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or persons to whom refugee protection has been conferred under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act; and
• have a valid Social Insurance Number at the start of employment and be legally entitled to work according to the relevant provincial or territorial legislation and regulations.

International students are not eligible for the CSJ program.

The employer application period is now closed for CSJ 2025. Employers interested in applying for CSJ funding next year are encouraged to open an account on the secure Grants and Contributions Online Services portal so they are prepared for next year’s call for applications.

Ineligible employers, projects and job activities

Ineligible Canadian employers include members of the House of Commons and the Senate or members of their immediate family, federal government departments and agencies and provincial departments and agencies.

Projects and job activities are ineligible if they:

• have activities that take place outside of Canada, including youth teleworking outside of Canada;
• include activities that contribute to the provision of a personal service to the employer;
• involve partisan political activities;
• involve fundraising activities to cover salary costs for the youth participant;
• restrict access to programs, services or employment, or otherwise discriminate, contrary to applicable laws, on the basis of prohibited grounds, including sex, genetic characteristics, religion, race, national or ethnic origin, colour, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression;
• advocate intolerance, discrimination or prejudice; or
• actively work to undermine or restrict a woman’s access to sexual and reproductive health services.