Open work permits under the Home Child Care Provider Pilot or Home Support Worker Pilot – Work experience completed [R205(a) – A75] – International Mobility Program

These instructions apply to IRCC employees. Since applicants cannot submit their applications at a port of entry, the instructions do not apply to border services officers.

This page provides instructions on the issuance of open work permits under the Home Child Care Provider Pilot (HCCPP) and the Home Support Worker Pilot (HSWP).

Qualifying foreign nationals currently in Canada who meet program eligibility requirements under the HCCPP or HSWP, including 24 months of work experience, may be eligible to apply for an open work permit to cover the gap between the expiry of their current work permit and the final decision on their application for permanent residence.

The instructions on this page should be reviewed in conjunction with  

• Open work permit – General processing and issuance
• Conditions and validity period on work permits

On this page

• Applicant categories
• Eligibility
• Receipt of work permit applications
• Processing applications
  • Work permit issuance in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)
  • Fees
  • Renewals
• Spouse or common-law partner and dependants
  • Work permit issuance in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)
  • Fees

Applicant categories

Applicants under the pilots are divided into 2 categories, depending on whether or not they have the eligible Canadian work experience when they first submit their permanent residence application:

• Category A is defined as a group of applicants (outside or inside Canada) who have from 0 to 23 months of eligible Canadian work experience at the time they apply for permanent residence.
  • Category A applicants may not submit an unrestricted open work permit application until they have provided proof (Schedule 19b) they have met the work experience requirement and received an approval in principle letter from IRCC.
• Category B is defined as a group of applicants who have already completed the 24 months of eligible Canadian work experience under either National Occupational Classification (NOC 2016) 4411 / (NOC 2021) 44100 or (NOC 2016) 4412 / (NOC 2021) 44101 (combined experience under the 2 different occupations is not counted) on the date the permanent residence application under 1 of the pilots is made.
  • Category B applicants are not eligible for an occupation-restricted open work permit.

Eligibility

To be eligible for an open work permit, foreign nationals must meet all the following criteria:

• be currently in Canada and intend to reside in a province or territory other than Quebec
• meet one of the following criteria at the time of submission:
  • have a valid work permit
  • be on maintained status with authority to work under paragraph 186(u) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR)
  • be eligible for restoration and have held a valid work permit prior to losing their status
• be the principal applicant on an application for permanent residence under either the HCCPP or the HSWP
• have received a positive eligibility decision (approval in principle) on their application for permanent residence after completing 24 months of qualifying work experience

Foreign nationals in the following situations are not eligible to apply for an open work permit under this labour market impact assessment (LMIA) exemption code:

• dependants of caregivers outside of Canada
• applicants who are outside of Canada when they submit their application for permanent residence and a work permit
• applicants submitting their application at a port of entry 

Receipt of work permit applications

Applications for permanent residence under one of the pilots are assessed first. Only once all the requirements are met, including Canadian work experience, do applicants become eligible for an unrestricted, open work permit. How pilot applicants provide proof of their work experience depends on their category:

• Category A: Applicants complete 24 months of qualifying experience after receiving the occupation-restricted work permit, then submit Schedule 19b – Home Child Care Provider or Home Support Worker – Work Experience [IMM 5910] (PDF, 2.26 MB) with evidence of qualifying work experience.
• Category B: Applicants submit Schedule 19b – Home Child Care Provider or Home Support Worker – Work Experience [IMM 5910] (PDF, 2.26 MB) and evidence of work experience with their application for permanent residence.

If the officer is satisfied that the applicant has met the 24-month work experience requirement under the pilot, an approval in principle letter will be issued.

The applicant can then submit an unrestricted, open work permit application and include proof of the positive eligibility decision (approval in principle letter).

The application should be submitted online unless the applicant is exempt from the requirement to submit an in-Canada application online.

Processing applications

Upon receipt of the work permit application, the processing office confirms the following:

• the applicant is the principal applicant in an application for permanent residence under one of the pilots
• the application for permanent residence has passed stage 1 approval, including the Canadian work experience requirement
  • The 24-month Canadian work experience requirement is considered to be met once the status of the “Work Experience” field in the Global Case Management System (GCMS) is set to “Met”.
• the applicant is physically in Canada
• the applicant currently holds a valid work permit, is on maintained status with authority to work without a permit or is eligible for restoration of status as a worker
• the applicant has paid the required fees, including the restoration fee if required
• the applicant meets all other immigration requirements

Work permit issuance in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)

Under the “Application" screen, officers should enter the following information in the specified fields:

Fees

The applicant is required to pay the work permit processing fee and the open work permit holder fee.

Any other applicable fees, such as the restoration fee, must also be included with the application.

Renewals

Subsequent requests from applicants to extend their stay on an unrestricted open work permit should be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Spouse or common-law partner and dependants

Under the authority of paragraph R205(a), accompanying spouses, common-law partners and adult dependants already in Canada are eligible for an open work permit if the principal applicant was issued an open work permit.

They must also meet one of the following criteria:

• have valid temporary resident status as a visitor, student or worker
• be on maintained status as a visitor, student or worker
• be eligible for restoration of status
  • Restoration of status must happen before they can submit the work permit application in Canada under section R199.

Work permit issuance in the Global Case Management System (GCMS)

Under the “Application” screen, officers should enter the following information in the specified fields:

Fees

The applicant is required to pay the work permit processing fee and the open work permit holder fee.

Any other fees, such as restoration fees, must also be paid with the application.