HUMA - Ensuring Labour Mobility - Extension of Work Permits

Key messages

• Temporary workers play an important role in sectors that are vital for Canadians during this unprecedented public health crisis, including agriculture, agri-food and health care industries.
• This Government recognizes many workers in Canada with employer-specific work permits have lost their jobs this spring. Some have left Canada but others are unable to leave due to international travel restrictions, the reduction in flights available, or the health situation in their home country.
• We are working on a process that will allow more temporary workers to switch jobs which will be announced in the near future.
• We are also encouraging people with a work permit to apply online before their current permit expires to allow them to continue working under implied status until their new application can be processed.

Supplementary messages

• The Department will process requests under the Public Policy in the following manner: if the associated work permit application is complete, the work permit will be issued, and if the application is incomplete, a letter will be sent confirming eligibility under the public policy.
• This assessment will be completed within approximately 10 business days, as compared with the normal service standard of 120 days.
• Temporary foreign workers (and international students) who are in Canada and whose temporary resident status will soon expire are being advised to apply online to extend their status before it expires.
  • This allows them to maintain their temporary resident status in Canada while their extension is processed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. By doing so, their period of authorized stay as a temporary resident is extended by operation of law.
  • In addition to maintaining their temporary resident status, they are authorized to continue to work (or study) while their application for renewal of their work (or study permit) is processed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. They cannot change employers until the new work permit is received.
  • Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has consistently emphasized this in interactions with stakeholders and parliamentarians.

Supporting facts and figures

• The volume of work permit extensions processed in March 2020 is consistent with previous years. However, the output in April (up to April 27) is significantly higher than the same periods in 2018 and 2019. This is the result of prioritizing work permit extensions to facilitate labour mobility.
• Work permit application intake was down in the month of April, however on a year-to-date basis, 2020 intake remains consistent with that seen in 2019. Overall, work permit applications in Canada has increased from 74,166 in 2018 to 97,312 in 2020.

Background

• A number of temporary residents in Canada with valid work authorization, including international students and spouses of students and skilled workers, already hold work permits that allow them to change employers quickly and easily, without having to inform the Department. In 2019, close to 70% of all work permits issued were open work permits that allow a foreign worker to change employers at any time.
• Moreover, all workers in Canada have legal options to apply to extend their stay in Canada should their employer choose to extend their employment, or if they find a new job. Through mid-April, approximately 91,000 such applications had been received this year— a 7% increase over 2019 intake. The majority of these workers are allowed to continue to work while their application is processed. However, some work permit holders are not allowed to start working in a different job or for a new employer until they both apply for and receive a new work permit. 
• Prior to the pandemic, the process of issuing a work permit for foreign workers changing jobs or work permit conditions took between 90 (for e-applications) and 140 days (for paper-based applications) for most occupations, although the Department strives for 30 day expedited processing for workers in agriculture and seafood processing. While the Department continues to prioritize the processing of work permit requests, an accurate estimate for processing times for these files at present is not available due to fluctuating processing resources during the pandemic period.