VISITOR TO WORK POLICY ENDS
Immigration law
07 Nov
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has recently discontinued a temporary policy that allowed individuals visiting Canada to apply for work permits from within the country.
This policy change is so immediate, it’s practically doing the cha-cha with your plans. Visitors who were previously eligible to apply for a work permit while in Canada will now need to pivot, as this option is no longer available.
So, if you were counting on this pathway to go from sightseeing to job-seeking, you might need to update your itinerary and your job search strategy. The new immigration regulations are here, and they’re clearly not taking a vacation…..
In August 2020, IRCC implemented the policy to assist visitors who couldn't leave Canada due to travel restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. This policy allowed visitors to apply for a work permit without having to exit the country.
Additionally, the policy let foreign nationals who had a work permit in the past year and then switched to "visitor" status keep working legally in Canada. It was like giving them a backstage pass to continue performing their job while they waited for the official encore because who wants to sit idle in the crowd when you can keep rocking out on stage?
This was possible while they were in the process of applying for a new work permit. Essentially, it meant that individuals who had already established themselves in the Canadian workforce and found themselves unable to leave due to the pandemic could still contribute to the economy and support themselves during the application process for their new work permit.
This provision aimed to keep the show on the road for both workers and employers, ensuring that amidst the COVID-19 chaos, nobody had to swap their job for a puzzle and a staycation. It helped maintain some semblance of normalcy for those stuck in the pandemic’s unexpected encore.
Although the temporary policy was originally scheduled to end on February 28, 2025, IRCC is terminating it early as part of broader efforts to adjust the number of temporary residents in Canada and maintain the integrity of the immigration system.
Additionally, IRCC discovered that some folks were using the policy like a magic trick to convince foreign nationals to work in Canada without the proper paperwork. It seems some people thought they could pull a fast one. Turns out, you can’t just conjure up a work permit with a sleight of hand.
IRCC will keep processing applications that were submitted before August 28, 2024, under the old policy guidelines. This means that if you managed to get your application in before that date, it will still be reviewed and handled according to the rules that were in place at the time of submission. It’s like having a coupon for a sale that ended yesterday-if you got it in before the deadline, you could still use it.
This approach ensures that individuals who acted promptly and followed the rules during the policy's validity will not be disadvantaged by the sudden policy change.
Additionally, by regulating and reducing the number of temporary residents, the department aims to keep the immigration system as smooth as a well-oiled machine rather than turning it into a chaotic episode of "Who Wants to Be a Temporary Resident?"
The goal is to prevent the system from getting overloaded and ensure that only those with legitimate needs and qualifications get a ticket to the Canadian experience. After all, it’s about making sure there’s room for everyone who truly needs it, and not just a long line of people hoping to win the lottery of temporary residency.
For instance, last year, 700 Indian international students arrived in Canada with acceptance letters from schools that were supposed to be approved. However, it turned out that these letters were fake, and the institutions were not actually authorized to admit students.
Many of these students were blissfully unaware that their acceptance letters were as fake as a dollar bill from a toy store. They genuinely thought they were on the right track, only to find themselves in Canada with a bit of an immigration mix-up. It’s like showing up to a party only to realize it’s the wrong address and everyone’s already eating your favorite cake without you.
To fix this, IRCC now requires schools to check and confirm all acceptance letters within 10 days of getting an application from an international student. Plus, Canada has set a limit on how many international students it will accept over the next two years.
IRCC has also decided to put a cap on how many foreign workers employers in Canada can hire through the TFWP. Only 10% of their total workforce can be from outside. And for those in the Low-Wage stream, the maximum stay is now one year instead of two. It's like giving everyone a shorter lunch break-just enough time to get things done but not too long to start feeling like you're overstaying your welcome.
Immigration has become a big topic in Canada, with many announcements this year about managing and lowering the number of temporary residents. This week, Minister Miller also said he plans to look at changing the number of people allowed to become permanent residents in the future.