The authorities might consider qualifying foreign nationals currently in Canada for issuing a work permit. This work permit would serve to bridge the gap between the expiry of their current work permit and the final decision on their permanent resident application. However, these individuals would need to meet the relevant program eligibility requirements.

In addition, these individuals would need to submit an application for permanent residence under one of the following classes:

• The Federal Skilled Worker Class (FSWC)
• The Canadian Experience Class (CEC)
• The Federal Skilled Trades Class (FSTC)
• The caring for children class or the caring for people with high medical needs class or,
• The Provincial Nominee Class (PNC)
• This class excludes nominees identified by the nominating province or territory as having employment restrictions imposed as conditions of the nomination

Some qualifying foreign nationals in Canada might receive a positive eligibility decision under one of the above-mentioned economic classes. As a result, they would need to await a final decision on their application. In this scenario, they could find themselves in situations where the validity of their current temporary work permit is due to expire.

An open work permit enables a foreign national to work for any employer in Canada. This would enables such as those mentioned in the earlier paragraph with better flexibility for integrating and navigating the Canadian labour market. This is especially so given that:

• The authorities have already found them eligible for permanent residence in an economic program and,
• They are currently working in the Canadian labour market

It is worth noting that the nominating province or territory could impose employment restrictions on successful nominees. The likelihood of this happening remains valid until the person becomes a permanent resident. It is especially applicable for certain employer-driven streams in the Provincial Nominee Class (PNC).

In case the authorities impose certain employment restrictions on these individuals, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will not issue an open work permit to the foreign national under the bridging open work permit Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption.

 Source: Citizenship and Immigration