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Significant Investment Projects – Provincial agreements [R204(c) – T13]: Agreements and arrangements – International Mobility Program

This section contains policy, procedures and guidance used by IRCC staff. It is posted on the department’s website as a courtesy to stakeholders.

In these instructions “officer” refers to employees of both Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the Canada Border Service Agency.

The instructions on this page should be reviewed in conjunction with

In this situation, “province” legally refers to provinces and territories. Therefore, in these instructions, when “province” is used, it refers to both provinces and territories.

“Significant investment project” means a new endeavour in an existing firm’s operations or the entrance of a firm that is beginning operations into a province that will result in a substantial improvement to the provincial labour market or economy, without displacing jobs for Canadians.

IRCC is responsible for assessing proposals from the provinces under the Significant Investment Projects section outlined in their respective foreign worker agreement or its annex. While the criteria for LMIA exemptions for significant investment projects are standard in all foreign worker agreements and their annexes, specific LMIA exemptions are project-based and, as such, will vary from one jurisdiction to another.

On this page

Documentary evidence

Regardless of the significant investment project, the applicant is eligible if they provide the following documents with their work permit application:

Note: Foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada under a provincial or territorial agreement pursuant to paragraph 204(c) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) are required to meet all requirements under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the IRPR.

Specific projects

Microsoft Vancouver (also known as Microsoft Canada Excellence Centre) – British Columbia foreign workers annex

Microsoft Vancouver is a development and training facility opened in Vancouver by the Microsoft Canada Development Centre (Microsoft Canada) in August 2014. Microsoft Vancouver is responsible for the execution of strategically important development projects and therefore represents a significant expansion of Microsoft’s global development footprint. It represents a significant investment by Microsoft in Vancouver that provides new regional job opportunities.

Most foreign nationals working or intending to work at Microsoft Vancouver are subject to the rules of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, including the requirement to obtain an LMIA.

International trainees and core staff who support the global training program at Microsoft Vancouver are LMIA-exempt under the authority of the foreign worker annex of the Canada-British Columbia Immigration Agreement on the basis that

Microsoft international trainees (global rotational staff)

Microsoft Vancouver serves as an international training place for new Canadian and international Microsoft hires who require preparation prior to starting their jobs in various Microsoft facilities around the world. Because they are participating in Microsoft training activities only, international trainees are not entering the Canadian labour market or competing with Canadian workers. The work undertaken by these trainees serves only to enhance their knowledge for their future employment and is not considered to be work that a Canadian could otherwise do.

The Government of British Columbia will issue a signed letter of support to approved employees requesting that IRCC issue a 24-month work permit pursuant to paragraph R204(c).

Note: Although Microsoft’s rotational program generally lasts 18 months, a 24-month work permit may be issued so that the employee may continue to perform rotational program job duties until they are transitioned by Microsoft into a new position elsewhere.

Rotational staff are not eligible for a work permit extension.

Microsoft core staff

Core staff positions are essential to the training of the global rotational employees. The training of new global recruits is a fundamental activity of Microsoft Vancouver and a key driver for its establishment in Vancouver. Without a thriving and sustainable core workforce at the centre, the global rotational employee program could not exist, as there would be little or no development projects on which the rotational employees would be able to gain the necessary experience. Microsoft Canada sponsors some foreign national employees for permanent residence, making them part of the Canadian workforce, ideally well before the expiry of their 36-month work permit. Microsoft Canada and British Columbia are required to demonstrate a meaningful plan to transition foreign nationals recruited for core positions to permanent residence.

To be eligible, applicants must

Core staff applications must be accompanied by 2 letters: one from Microsoft Canada and one from the Government of British Columbia.

Core staff are eligible to apply for a work permit extension if they have submitted an application for permanent residence that has been not yet been finalized by the Government of Canada, or if an Express Entry profile has been established.

lululemon athletica global headquarters, store support centres and Centre of Training Excellence – British Columbia foreign workers annex

A partnership has been established between lululemon athletica (lululemon) and the governments of British Columbia and Canada to grow its presence in Vancouver by bringing in high-skilled workers to its headquarters, creating a lululemon Centre of Training Excellence and expanding its store support centres. Under the Significant Investment Project (SIP) mechanism, lululemon will hire and attract experts both locally and abroad, who will enable lululemon’s growth within British Columbia, resulting in an overall increase in hires.

The Government of British Columbia will issue a letter of support to approved employees requesting that IRCC issue a 36-month work permit pursuant to paragraph R204(c).

To be eligible under the Significant Investment LMIA-exemption, applicants must have

Work permit issuance in the Global Case Management System

On the Application screen for employer-specific work permits, enter the information below.

Field Selection or input
Case type 52– Employer-specific LMIA-exempt applications
  • The Case type field must indicate “52” if there is an offer of employment in the Employer Portal. No other case type will allow the correct linkage in the system. Entering a case type other than “52” will result in incorrect accounting, requiring manual corrections to be made and making inspection activities more difficult.
  • Case type “20” can only be used if an alternate submission has been approved, meaning there is a note on the Client screen. This case type should not be used as a workaround.
Province of destination British Columbia
Exemption code T13
  • This code will auto-populate when the work permit is properly matched with the offer of employment.
  • Officers must manually enter this code if an alternate submission is approved.
NOC The occupation should be in a TEER 0,1, 2 or 3 category of the National Occupational Classification code.
  • The code will auto-populate when the work permit is properly matched with the offer of employment.
  • Officers must manually enter this code if an alternate submission is approved.
Intended occupation Job title
  • The job title will auto-populate when the work permit is properly matched with the offer of employment.
  • Officers must manually enter this code if an alternate submission is approved.
Employer lululemon athletica or Microsoft
  • The business operating name will auto-populate when the work permit is properly matched with the offer of employment.
  • Officers must manually enter the name from the IMM 5802 if an alternate submission is approved.
User Remarks
(Mandatory)

Enter “Canada- BC – Significant Investment Project”.

Extensions: Work permit extensions under the Significant Investment Projects LMIA exemption may be permitted according to terms agreed to by IRCC and the respective jurisdiction. A new LMIA exemption work permit support letter from the province is required.

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