Work permit exemptions
Under the Global Skills Strategy (GSS), 2 types of temporary foreign workers don’t need a work permit for short term work:
- highly skilled workers
- researchers
Highly skilled workers
These workers must meet both of these requirements:
- Their job is classified under Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) category 0 or 1 in the National Occupational Classification (NOC).
- They will work for only one of the following short periods of time:
- up to 15 consecutive days once every 6 months
- up to 30 consecutive days once every 12 months
Researchers
These workers must meet both of these requirements:
- They will perform research at a Canadian, publicly funded, degree-granting institution or its affiliated research institution.
- They will work for 1 period of 120 days in Canada once every 12 months.
Before coming to Canada
Eligible workers may still need to apply for a visa or an electronic travel authorization to come to Canada.
Find out if your worker or researcher needs a visa to travel to Canada.
When the worker arrives in Canada
If they’re eligible under this exemption, the worker doesn’t need a work permit to start working.
However
- when they arrive in Canada, the worker must prove they’re eligible for the exemption
- the worker will get a visitor record if the border services officer is convinced that the worker is eligible