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Spouses or common-law partners of study permit holders – [R205(c)(ii) – C42] – Canadian interest – International Mobility Program (IMP)

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

Effective immediately, most foreign nationals inside of Canada are no longer eligible to apply for a work permit at a port of entry.

The following work permit applications are exempt from the above restrictions and may still be accepted for processing at a port of entry:

  • Applicants who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States of America
  • Professionals and Technicians under Free Trade Agreements (FTAs)
    1. Professional under the free trade agreement with the United States of America and Mexico (T36);
    2. Professional under the free trade agreement with Chile (F22);
    3. Contractual service suppliers or independent professionals under the free trade agreement with South Korea (F32);
    4. Professional under the free trade agreement with Panama (F42);
    5. Professional or technician under the free trade agreement with Colombia (F12);
    6. Professional or technician under the free trade agreement with Peru (F52).
  • Spouses or common-law partners of applicants under FTAs with South Korea (F32), Panama (F42), and Colombia (F12).
  • Truck Drivers- who are required to depart Canada for the purpose of their employment and prior to their departure from Canada held a work permit or maintained status as a result of a pending application for work permit renewal. This does not include truck drivers operating solely within Canada.
  • Applicants with Pre-Scheduled CBSA Appointments

Important: Only spouses or common-law partners of study permit holders are eligible for an open work permit. Their dependent children are not eligible to apply for an open work permit under this category (C42).

Note: As of January 21, 2025, only spouses of principal foreign nationals in doctorate programs, certain eligible programs or professional programs, and master’s programs of 16 months or longer are eligible for an open work permit. In-Canada spouses of students may seek open work permit renewals, under the criteria that existed when their current work permit was processed, only if they are requesting a permit duration that aligns with the study authorization that the principal foreign national received to complete their current program.

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

The instructions on this page should be reviewed in conjunction with the following:

This International Mobility Program work permit category is intended for spouses and common-law partners who are not, themselves, already study permit holders actively engaged in full-time studies. The reason for allowing spouses to enter Canada and work is to increase the competitiveness of Canada’s academic institutions or economy.

The spouse must have sufficient funds to support themselves and any accompanying dependants separate from the funds used to support the principal foreign national’s study permit application.

In these instructions, the term “spouse” refers to either a common-law partner or a married spouse.

On this page

Eligibility

To be considered a dependent spouse, the applicant for an open work permit must be in a genuine relationship with a principal foreign national in one of the situations listed below.

Initial applications

Applications submitted before March 19, 2024

For the applicant to be eligible under administrative code C42, the principal foreign national must meet all of the following requirements:

Applicants who are in Canada at the time of submission must

Applications submitted between March 19, 2024, and April 29, 2024

For the applicant to be eligible under administrative code C42, the principal foreign national must meet all of the following requirements:

For the purposes of assessing eligibility, the following definitions apply:

Graduate programs are defined as programs leading to master’s and doctorate degrees granted by universities or polytechnic institutions.

The professional degree programs are the following:

Applicants who are in Canada at the time of submission must

Applications submitted between April 30, 2024, and January 20, 2025

For the applicant to be eligible under administrative code C42, the principal foreign national must meet all of the following requirements:

For the purposes of assessing eligibility, the following definitions apply:

Graduate programs are defined as programs leading to master’s and doctorate degrees.

The professional degree programs are the following:

Applicants who are in Canada at the time of submission must

Applications submitted on or after January 21, 2025

For the applicant to be eligible under administrative code C42, the principal foreign national must meet all of the following requirements:

For the purposes of assessing eligibility, the following definitions apply:

Graduate programs are defined as programs leading to master’s and doctorate degrees.

The professional degree programs are the following:

Applicants who are in Canada at the time of submission must

Extension applications

If the applicant applied to extend their open work permit before January 21, 2025

Applicants applying for an extension of their open work permit may be eligible under this stream. In such cases, the principal foreign national must continue to meet the requirements of their initial application.

If the applicant has applied to extend their open work permit on or after January 21, 2025

For the applicant to be eligible to extend their open work permit under administrative code C42, the principal foreign national must meet all of the following requirements

In limited circumstances, spouses of principal foreign nationals studying in the following programs may apply for a work permit renewal under the criteria that were in place when they received their current work permit. This applies to spouses of principal foreign nationals studying in

The spouse must be residing in Canada and be requesting an open work permit renewal for a duration that aligns with, and does not exceed, the principal foreign national’s existing study authorization.

Example 1:

Example 2:

Note: If the principal foreign national applies for a study permit for a new level or program of study, the spouse of the principal foreign national, noted above, is not eligible to extend their work permit under administrative code C42.

Those who do not meet the new eligibility criteria or qualify for an extension can apply for a new work permit from within Canada under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program or another stream of the International Mobility Program, if eligible.

Documentary evidence

With the application for an open work permit, officers should be satisfied that they have the following documentary evidence to make an assessment.

All applications must have the following documentation:

Additional documentation is required as per the specific dates below

Applications submitted before March 19, 2024

If the principal foreign national is enrolled in a private post-secondary program or at an institution other than those listed above, the spouse is not eligible for a spousal open work permit.

Applications submitted between March 19, 2024, and April 29, 2024

Applications submitted between April 30, 2024, and January 20, 2025

Applications submitted on or after January 21, 2025

Note: The proof of the master’s program must clearly indicate the duration of the program.

Note: Spouses of principal foreign nationals participating in the FMCSP are exempt from the requirement to demonstrate that they will leave Canada after their temporary stay in accordance with sections R179, R200 and R216. See Temporary residents: Dual intent for additional details.

Extensions

If the applicant is applying to extend their C42 open work permit before January 21, 2025

Applicants applying for an extension in this work permit category must provide documentary evidence to support the extension according to the requirements for their initial application.

If the applicant is applying to extend their C42 open work permit on or after January 21, 2025

The spouse of the principal foreign national in a master’ program of less than 16 months, or in a college and undergraduate program must provide proof of the principal foreign national’s study permit and enrolment, such as one of the following:

The applicant must be residing in Canada and requesting a renewal duration that is the same length as the principal foreign national’s existing study authorization. They must provide proof of an updated passport or updated biometrics, whichever expiry resulted in shortened initial work permit validity.

The spouse of a principal foreign national studying in a master’s program of 16 months or longer, a doctorate program, a professional degree-granting program, or other eligible program applying for an extension in this work permit category must provide documentary evidence to support the extension of the principal foreign national’s enrolment in one of the following:

The applicant must provide one of the following documents as proof:

Note: The proof of the master’s program must clearly indicate the duration of the program.

Application assessment

Officers should be satisfied that the principal foreign national continues to comply with the study permit conditions, including those under section R220.1. Should officers have any concerns, they may wish to request additional information from the applicant to ensure that the eligibility requirements of the work permit category (administrative code C42) are met, or they may undertake an assessment to ensure the material documents provided in the spousal open work permit application are bona fide.

Foreign nationals who are eligible for processing under administrative code C42 are subject to all other eligibility and admissibility requirements (including section A39) under the IRPA and the IRPR.

Officers must be satisfied that all eligibility requirements are met at the time of the decision on the spousal work permit application.

If officers have any concerns as to the genuineness of the documents provided, they may wish to undertake an assessment to ensure this material information is genuine and does not reflect a misrepresentation of facts to appear eligible for the permit.

Principal foreign nationals

The principal foreign national is the first foreign national of the couple who obtained a study or work permit or was deemed authorized to work under the provisions of section R186, other than under paragraphs R186(v) or (w).

In assessing eligibility for a spousal open work permit, the principal foreign national continues to remain the principal in the couple.

The principal foreign national cannot obtain a spousal open work permit under the work permit categories provided under the administrative codes C41, C42, C47 or C49 based on the dependent spouse’s spousal open work permit and Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) category.

For example, if the principal foreign national is a study permit holder and the dependent spouse obtains an open work permit under administrative code C42 for spouses of study permit holders, the study permit holder cannot quit their studies and obtain a work permit in the C41 spousal category on the basis of their spouse’s C42 open work permit and employment.

Genuine relationship

In accordance with section R4, a foreign national shall not be considered a spouse or a common-law partner of a person if the marriage or common-law partnership either

If officers have concerns as to the genuineness of the relationship, to be procedurally fair, they should request further documentation or information to confirm that the relationship between the dependent spouse and the principal foreign national is genuine and is not a relationship of convenience. Procedural fairness means giving the applicant the opportunity to respond to the concerns of the officer prior to any decision.

If the officer believes that the applicant has misrepresented themselves, the officer should follow the instructions for proceeding with a determination.

Final decision

Approval

The work permit will be issued under the authority of subparagraph R205(c)(ii).

In GCMS, under the “Application” screen, officers should enter the information below in the specified fields.

Field Selection or input
Case type 20
Province of destination

Unknown
Exemption code

C42: Spouse or common-law partner of a full-time student
Employer Open
Intended occupation Open
Special program codes

SPGradC42
Description: Spouse or common-law partner of a student in a master’s program of longer than 16 months or a doctorate program

SPPilC42
Description: Spouse or common-law partner of an international student who holds a valid study permit and is participating in one of the eligible programs administered by a province or territory

SPProC42
Description: Spouses or common-law partners of students in professional programs

Note: Officers will need to manually enter the applicable code for applications submitted by representatives, as this is not triggered in the Authorized Paid Representative Portal.
National Occupational Classification (NOC)

99999
Do not use other synthetic NOC codes.
Duration

Initial applications

The open work permit may be issued for a period that ends no later than the validity of the principal foreign national’s study permit or the expiry of the applicant’s passport or biometrics, whichever comes first.

Extension applications

The spouse of a principal foreign national may receive an extension on a current study authorization or a new study permit application if the principal foreign national is enrolled in

  • a master’s program of 16 months or longer, or
  • a doctorate program, or
  • a professional program
    or
  • participating in one of the eligible programs

All other college or undergraduate studies are permitted only administrative extensions to the principal foreign national’s existing study authorization or the applicant’s passport or biometric expiry, whichever comes first.

If the principal foreign national is authorized to study without a permit under section R189 at the time the spouse’s work permit application is submitted, the spousal application should be placed on hold until the principal foreign national’s study permit extension application is finalized.
Conditions Officers should ensure that instructions provided in Medical conditions to be imposed for open employers but occupation-restricted work permits are followed.
Fees

Work permit processing fee: $155

Open work permit holder fee: $100

Biometric fee (if applicable): $85
Biometrics

Work permit applicants are required to provide their biometrics.

The regular biometric exemptions apply (for example, under 14 years or 1 in 10 rule).

Refusals

If an officer is not satisfied that all the requirements of section R200, including the assessment under subparagraph R205(c)(ii), are met, they must record their reasons and outline the rationale underlying the decision as well as the facts and elements considered in a case note.

Refusal reasons should clearly indicate which criteria or what requirements of section R200 were not met and explain how the conclusion was reached. For assistance, officers can follow the steps in Decision-making: Standard of review and process for making a reasonable decision.

For example, if the applicant does not have sufficient funds to support themselves, the officer can indicate that paragraph R200(1)(b) is not met, as they are not satisfied that the applicant would be able to support themselves during their stay and pay for their departure from Canada given that an open work permit does not guarantee employment in Canada during the period of authorized stay. Therefore, they are not satisfied that the applicant will leave Canada at the end of their authorized stay.

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