Hire a temporary foreign worker in a high-wage position

On this page

• Before you apply
• How to apply
• Make changes to your pending application
• After you apply
• Related links
• Contact us

The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) is intended to be used when you’re facing short-term skills and labour shortages, and only when no Canadians and permanent residents are available.

To hire a temporary foreign worker (TFW), you may need a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to determine if hiring a TFW will have a positive or negative impact on the Canadian labour market.

As an employer, you must comply with the program requirements. These requirements may vary depending on the position you’re requesting. We take the program’s integrity very seriously and we have mechanisms in place to verify employer compliance. Employers who fail to comply with these requirements will be subject to consequences.

To get an LMIA, you must submit an application form and all the necessary supporting documents. Your application will be assessed to validate the legitimacy of the business and the job offers and the impact hiring a TFW would have on the Canadian labour market.

As of April 4, 2022, employers submitting an LMIA application for a high-wage position may request an employment duration of up to 3 years. The employment duration must align with the employer’s reasonable employment needs. The duration may be issued for longer in exceptional circumstances whereby the employer provides an adequate rationale.

High-wage positions include:

• the Global Talent Stream
• the high-wage stream, including caregiver positions
• the agricultural stream, and
• applications to support permanent residency

Before you apply

Hiring TFWs in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Nova Scotia

If you’re hiring TFWs in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Nova Scotia, you must apply for the employer registration certificate with the province first and include a copy of the certificate or proof of exemption with your LMIA application. Your application will be considered incomplete if submitted without the required documentation. Be sure to consider provincial processing times before you submit your LMIA application.

For more information on provincial laws on the employer registration requirement and possible exemptions in the province, visit the following websites:

• British Columbia:
  • Register to hire foreign workers
  • Temporary Foreign Worker Protection Act
• Manitoba:
  • Employer registration information
  • Worker Recruitment and Protection Act
• Saskatchewan:
  • Apply for a certificate of registration
  • Foreign Worker and Recruitment Services Act
• Nova Scotia (effective for LMIAs received as of July 15, 2024):
  • Employer registration: How to register
  • Labour Standards Code

Hiring TFWs in Quebec

For positions in Quebec for an employment period of more than 30 consecutive days:

• LMIA applications must be submitted at the same time to Service Canada and Quebec's Ministère de l'Immigration, de la Francisation et de l'Intégration (MIFI) (French only)
  • failure to do so will prevent your application from being processed and will result in its closure. No refund of the processing fee will be made
• all applications must be submitted to the MIFI in the format required by the provincial government
• the names of the TFWs must be included in the application (for exceptions, visit Applying for an unnamed LMIA)

For more information, consult Hiring in the province of Quebec.

How to apply

Apply using LMIA Online. It’s a reliable and secure portal where you can complete and submit online LMIA applications to Service Canada.

Your LMIA application can be submitted up to 6 months before the expected job start date.

Before signing into LMIA Online

You need a Job Bank for employers account to use LMIA Online. For instructions, consult Before you get started.

Submitting your application using LMIA Online

• Sign into LMIA Online using the same log-in information you use to access your Job Bank for employers account
• Create, fill out and submit your LMIA application from the Employer Dashboard
• Upload any required documents
• Pay the processing fee (if applicable)

If you don’t have access to LMIA Online, head to LMIA Online resources for troubleshooting steps.

Apply now

Make changes to your pending application

If you need to make changes to your application once submitted and before the LMIA decision is made, contact the appropriate Service Canada processing centre or the Employer Contact Centre to modify your application and avoid processing delays.

If you need to change the stream you had originally selected, withdraw your application and reapply under the new stream. Processing fees aren’t refunded and cannot be transferred to your new application.

After you apply

Additional information is available to find out what happens after you apply for LMIA for a low-wage or high-wage position.

Related links

• Hire a temporary foreign worker in a low-wage position
• Get a work permit
• Job Bank
• Work in Canada
• Labour Market Impact Assessment application processing times

Contact us

• Employer Contact Centre