Refusal to process a Labour Market Impact Assessment application

There are certain conditions that may justify why we cannot process a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application. These conditions include:

• Regulatory authority
• Public policy considerations in ministerial instructions

Regulatory authority

We do not have the authority to process applications from ineligible employers for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) who:

• regularly offer services in the sex industry (striptease, erotic dance, escort services or erotic massage)
• are on the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ineligibility list which includes employers who:
  • have been found non-compliant as result of an employer compliance review
  • have been banned from the TFWP because non-compliance was discovered during an inspection
  • are in default of payment of an administrative monetary penalty

Ministerial instructions

As a result of public policy considerations as determined in Ministerial instructions, Service Canada may refuse to process an LMIA application for:

• positions above the cap on the proportion of low-wage positions
• low-wage positions in census metropolitan areas (CMA) with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher
• in-home caregiver positions where there is a live-in requirement
• any position if you have had a LMIA revoked in the past 2 years
• from September 3, 2024, to March 3, 2025, certain low-wage positions in the economic region of Montréal

Positions above the cap on the proportion of low-wage positions

Low-wage positions above the 10% cap

LMIA applications won’t be processed if the proportion of low-wage positions is above the 10% of the total workforce at a given work location.

Low-wage positions above the 20% cap

For the sectors, subsectors and occupations below, LMIA applications won’t be processed if the proportion of low-wage positions is above the 20% of the total workforce at a given work location:

• NAICS 23 – Positions in construction
• NAICS 311 – Positions in food manufacturing
• NAICS 622 – Positions in hospitals
• NAICS 623 – Positions in nursing and residential care facilities
• specific in-home caregiver positions under:
  • NOC 31301 – Registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse
  • NOC 32101 – Licensed practical nurse
  • NOC 44100 – Home childcare providers
  • NOC 44101 – Attendant for persons with disabilities, home support worker, live-in caregiver, personal care attendant
  • ESDC and IRCC are evaluating the impact of the inclusion in future measures

Low-wage positions in CMAs with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher

Certain LMIA applications submitted as of September 26, 2024, won't be processed. Those with:

• a wage below the provincial or territorial wage threshold, and
• a work location in a CMA with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher at the time of LMIA submission

LMIA applications exempted from this refusal to process measure

Applications submitted to fill certain occupations in the following sectors and subsectors will continue to be eligible for processing:

• occupations under primary agriculture
• NAICS 23 – Positions in construction
• NAICS 311 – Positions in food manufacturing
• NAICS 622 – Positions in hospitals
• NAICS 623 – Positions in nursing and residential care facilities
• specific in-home caregiver positions under:
  • NOC 31301 – Registered nurse or registered psychiatric nurse
  • NOC 32101 – Licensed practical nurse
  • NOC 44100 – Home childcare providers
  • NOC 44101 – Attendant for persons with disabilities, home support worker, live-in caregiver, personal care attendant
  • ESDC and IRCC are evaluating the impact of the inclusion in future measures
• positions in support of permanent residency only (no application for work permit)

The occupation classification code is determined by the National Occupational Classification (NOC).

The classification code for the sectors is determined by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Canada.

How to determine if a work location is in a CMA with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher

Before submitting an LMIA application, determine whether any of the low-wage positions are located in CMAs by following the steps below. If any of these positions are located in a CMA, you must then check the CMA’s unemployment rate using the table provided. If any of the work locations fall within a CMA with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher, your application won’t be processed.

1. Enter the complete postal code of the work location at Census of population
2. On the Geography search results page, refer to the “Census metropolitan area / Census agglomeration” geographic level. If this level isn’t listed in the search results, your application will remain eligible for processing. If the result under this geographic level is:
   • Census agglomeration: Your LMIA application will remain eligible for processing
   • Census metropolitan area: Find the unemployment rate of the CMA by referring to the table below. If the unemployment rate is 6% or higher, the application won’t be processed

Unemployment rates applicable for this refusal to process measure

Some CMAs aren’t listed in the unemployment rate table below. If the CMA isn’t listed, the LMIA application will continue to be eligible for processing.

The unemployment rate table is updated every 3 months. The next update will take place on January 10, 2025.

Table: Unemployment rates by CMA and period

Census metropolitan area	Unemployment rate (%) for applications submitted from September 26 to October 10, 2024	Unemployment rate (%) for applications submitted from October 11, 2024, to January 9, 2025
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador	7.2	6.6
Halifax, Nova Scotia	6.1	5.7
Moncton, New Brunswick	5.8	5.2
Saint John, New Brunswick	6.8	5.7
Saguenay, Quebec	3.6	3.4
Québec, Quebec	3.9	4.2
Sherbrooke, Quebec	5.3	5.6
Trois-Rivières, Quebec	6.5	6.7
Montréal, Quebec	7.3	6.8
Ottawa-Gatineau, Ontario/Quebec	7.1	6.9
Kingston, Ontario	6.6	6.9
Belleville, Ontario	5.9	3.6
Peterborough, Ontario	5.6	5.2
Oshawa, Ontario	8.5	8.5
Toronto, Ontario	8.6	8.6
Hamilton, Ontario	7.4	6.7
St. Catharines-Niagara, Ontario	7.5	6.9
Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo, Ontario	7.6	8.0
Brantford, Ontario	6.3	6.4
Guelph, Ontario	5.3	5.9
London, Ontario	7.5	7.4
Windsor, Ontario	9.8	9.7
Barrie, Ontario	6.2	5.7
Greater Sudbury, Ontario	6.2	5.6
Thunder Bay, Ontario	3.8	4.4
Winnipeg, Manitoba	6.3	6.6
Regina, Saskatchewan	6.8	6.7
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan	5.5	5.6
Lethbridge, Alberta	5.1	5.2
Calgary, Alberta	7.6	7.5
Edmonton, Alberta	8.5	8.7
Kelowna, British Columbia	5.2	4.9
Abbotsford-Mission, British Columbia	6.7	6.5
Vancouver, British Columbia	6.2	6.5
Victoria, British Columbia	3.5	3.9

• Last updated: October 11, 2024
• Source: Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey

In-home caregiver positions with live-in requirements

In-home caregiver positions, where there is a live-in requirement, that:

• are classified under the NAICS as a Private household (NAICS 814)
• are classified under the NOC codes 31301, 32101, 44100 or 44101
• have been advertised and indicated on the LMIA application as being sought to fill positions, where there is a live-in requirement

Exceptions to this refusal to process for in-home caregiver positions

High medical needs clients

If you are seeking to hire an in-home caregiver with a mandatory live-in requirement for high medical needs clients (for example, people with disabilities, seniors, individuals with chronic or terminal illnesses), you must submit either:

• a physician’s note certifying both the medical condition and the need for live-in care
• Schedule H – Medical disability, chronic or terminal illness certificate (EMP5600)

Exceptional circumstances to in-home caregiver positions

You must submit a written rationale for possible exemption for exceptional circumstances as part of the Housing section of the LMIA application form. The rationale must include:

• a clear explanation of why live-in care is required
• how frequently the situation necessitating live-in care occurs
• to what degree you can influence this frequency
• a description of what other options were explored in order to meet the need for care and why they were deemed not viable
• how you will ensure fair working conditions for the in-home caregiver, despite the live-in requirement

Previous revocation

We may refuse to process your LMIA application for any position if you have had an application revoked in the past 2 years for having provided false, misleading or inaccurate information.

Temporary refusal to process LMIA applications for low-wage positions in Montréal

For more information, including the municipalities located in the economic region of Montréal, consult Hiring in the province of Quebec.

Processing fee

You won’t be charged the processing fee if we had to refuse to process your LMIA application or if you’re an ineligible employer. In addition, a letter will be sent to you with the reason why your application was not processed.