Exceptional and Unforeseen Events

As mentioned earlier, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) bears the responsibility for approving all Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions for Exceptional and Unforeseen Events. Typically, provinces and territories submit these exemptions based on the criteria outlines in their respective foreign worker agreements or annexes. In most cases, the criteria for Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions for Exceptional and Unforeseen Events often remains standard in all foreign worker agreements and annexes. However, the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions are event-based. As such, they will vary from one jurisdiction to another.

Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions for Exceptional and Unforeseen Events enable provinces and territories to recommend Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions that existing Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions or work permit exemptions do not otherwise cover under the provisions specified in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR).

The authorities have provided a list of existing Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions for foreign nationals seeking entry in Canada. This would enable to provide services in times of emergency, such as natural disasters. This list comprises:

  • Emergency Repairs – Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) Exemption Code – refer to Appendix F and,
  • Emergency Service Providers – Work Permit and Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) Exemption Under R186 (t) – refer to Appendix G

Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) would need to approve Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions relating to Exceptional and Unforeseen Events. Once approved, the province or territory would need to provide the applicant with the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption support letters. These support letters would contain the following details:

  • The name and date of birth of the individual selected for the specific job
  • The details of the employer (including the place of work) and,
  • The duration of the employment

Situations could occur where existing work permit exemptions under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) do not cover certain foreign nationals. In this scenario, the foreign nationals would need to attach a copy of the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption support letters to their work permit applications.

The Procedure for Work Permit Processing

It is worth highlighting that Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exempt work permits required in relation to Exceptional and Unforeseen Events will be time sensitive in nature. As such, officers would need to process these work permit applications on a priority basis. In addition, they would need to consider the following aspects when they process the work permits for these applicants.

  • The Duration: Officers would need to note that the duration of these work permits must not exceed 120 days
  • The Extensions: Officers have the authority to provide work permit extensions under Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemptions on a case-by-case basis. However, officers would need to note that they would require fresh Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption support letters from the concerned province or territory.
  • The Fees: The employer would need to submit the offer of employment. In addition, the employer will need to pay the relevant employer compliance fee as well. For more details, refer to Appendix E.
  • The Field Remarks and System Notes: Officers would need to indicate “Canada – [insert province or territory annex or agreement] – Exceptional and Unforeseen Events”.

Note:

  • Situations could arise where officers come across foreign nationals who are seeking to enter Canada under a provincial or territorial agreement pursuant to Section R204 (c)
  • Officers would need to note that these individuals would need to meet all the other requirements prescribed under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA)

Foreign Worker Protection

The authorities will be providing information to the process concerning the issuance of work permits in cases where there is an issue surrounding foreign worker protection. 

Source: CIC

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International Mobility Program – Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) Exempt Work Permit Renewals and Extensions for Certain Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) Holders Currently in Quebec

Quebec’s ministère de l’Immigration, de la Diversité et de l’Inclusion (MIDI) implemented certain provisions on June 01, 2012. These provisions enabled some work permit holders present in Quebec to submit an application to renew or extend their work authorisations in Canada, without the employer having to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) / Service Canada (SC) and ministère de l’Immigration, de la Diversité et de l’Inclusion (MIDI).

The Background

All provinces and territories (PTs) in Canada have signed immigration agreements with Canada except Nunavut and Quebec. These agreements enable them to nominate foreign nationals who intend to establish themselves permanently in a province or territory (PT) through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP).

Officers might not deal with situations that do not have such an agreement. In this scenario, R205 (a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) enables officers to issue Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)-exempt work permits to certain individuals for whose jobs the authorities issued the work permits would create or maintain significant social, cultural or economic benefits or opportunities for Canadian citizens or permanent residents.

Quebec selects its foreign nationals under the following programs:

  • Programme régulier des travailleurs qualifiés (PRTQ) and,
  •  Programme de l’expérience québécoise (PEQ)

Quebec would like some of its selected foreign nationals to obtain extended work authorisations with the current employers or renewed with new employers without having to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). This is especially so for foreign nationals who:

  • Have a valid work permit and,
  • Currently reside in the province of Quebec

The Current Process

The Agreements Section outlines current policy guidelines for the issuance of Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)-exempt work permits for foreign nationals selected by a province that does not have a Federal-Provincial Nomination Agreement.

Certain elements under the heading ‘2. Foreign Worker Nominated by a Province or Territory (PNP)’ will apply to designated Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) holders in Quebec for this process. These elements specify that:

  • Officers can issue work permits to applicants without obtaining a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). However, they would do so only if the individual:
      • Has been nominated by a province or territory for permanent residence and,
      • Is employed or has a job offer from an employer based in that province
    • To apply this provision, the applicant would need to include a letter from the provincial or territorial government along with the application for the work permit
      • This letter would typically contain a confirmation that the province has nominated the foreign national for permanent residence
  • The duration of the work permit would need to be equivalent to the duration of the job offer
  • The legislative authority for the exemption is R205 (a) for provinces and territories (PTs) without nominee agreements

The Additional Conditions Applicable for Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) Holders in Quebec

Applicants holding a Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) under the Quebec Skilled Worker Class and currently residing in Quebec would need to fall under one of the following categories. They would need to:

  • Be seeking an extension of their work permits for their current employers
  • Be seeking to renew their current work authorisations with new employers in the province of Quebec
  • Be foreign students with post-graduation work permits  and job offers in the province of Quebec or,
  • Be work permit holders through participation in one of the following programs under the International Experience Canada (IEC) program
    • Working holiday
    • 18-month Young Professionals co-op
    • Co-op (i.e. internship)

In addition, they would also need to seek an extension for their work permits with the current employer. Alternatively, they would need to seek a renewal of their work authorisations with a new employer in Quebec.

The Operational Instructions

  • The applicant would need to be a resident of Quebec currently
  • The work permit must be valid for the duration of the job offer and must not exceed two years
    • This time limit would enable the applicant to have sufficient time for submitting an application for permanent residence before the expiry of the work permit
  • Officers would need to issue the work permits under the authority provided by R205 (a) with the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exemption code of C10
  • The application must include copies of the Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) and the job offer to work in Quebec
    • In addition, the Certificat de sélection du Québec (CSQ) would need to indicate one of the following in Section 9 (Catégorie):
      • Travailleurs qualifies
      • PEQ Travailleurs or,
      • PEQ Étudiants
  • Officers would only be able to issue employer-specific work permits i.e. they would not be able to issue open work permits

Officers would need to issue open work permits to spouses or common-law partners who are accompanying the principal applicant and who are currently in Canada. These work permits must be valid for the duration of the work permit of the principal applicant’s work permits. This is regardless of the skill level of the principal applicant’s occupation. The exemption code applicable would be C10.

Source: Citizenship and Immigration

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The Validity of the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Assessment

Prior to issuing the visa to the applicant, officers would need to perform various activities. For instance, they would need to verify that the authorities have not revoked or cancelled the positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). For this, they would need to review the relevant details given in the Global Case Management System (GCMS).

Officers would also need to ensure that no adverse information on the employer has emerged either. For this, they would need to refer to the list of ineligible employers available on the website of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Only after confirming these details should officers issue the visa.

Similarly, visa offices would need to verify the positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) decision relating to an offer of employment. Therefore, officers would need to verify the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) information. For doing so, they would need to ensure that they enter the Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) file number in the field named ‘ESDC File #’ under the Economic Column in the IMM screen.

For obtaining the latest Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) information, the officers would need to click on the ESDC view tab and refresh it by clicking on the ‘Refresh’ button. In some situations, the file number might not be available in the system. In this scenario, the officers would need to search in the SEARCH -> Employment Validation screen by entering the applicant’s name and date of birth information. After this, the officers would also need to review the “ESDC Comments” field. This would enable them to access any information entered by an officer of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) or Service Canada during the assessment.

It is worth noting that officers have the authority to contact employers in all cases. Typically, they would do so only to verify that the offer of permanent (indeterminate) employment continues to remain valid. On occasions, officers might feel the need to confirm certain details about the job offer. They might even feel the need for confirming certain details about the documentation provided to support a recent Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) assessment. To achieve this, the officers would need to review the “ESDC Comments” first.

 

Even after reviewing the “ESDC Comments”, the officers might feel the need to seek additional information. In this situation, they would need to contact Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Doing so would enable them eliminate any duplication of effort between Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). This is particularly so as situations could arise where Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) acquired certain information during their assessment of the employer’s Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application. However, officers might find that the Global Case Management System (GCMS) has no details on this.

 

Even after consulting with Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), situations could arise where officers might feel the need to contact the applicant and / or the employer. This situation might arise when officers require further information or clarification about certain details concerning the job offer. These could typically include addressing any possible concerns about the authenticity of the job offer.

It is worth noting that officers would need to be completely satisfied that the offer of employment continues to remain valid. Officers might come across situations where Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) issued a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) that has since expired even though the application for permanent residence was in process. In this scenario, the officers would still have the authority to issue a permanent resident visa, if required. However, they would first need to be satisfied that the offer of employment is still valid and that Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) has not cancelled the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

Source: Citizenship and Immigration

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Express Entry Program Needs Fine-tuning

Last month saw 779 applicants qualify under Canada’s newly introduced Express Entry immigration program, accounting for 26% of the total 3,000 applicants who entered the draw for the scheme. The successful candidates are said to have achieved 886 points or more out of a maximum of 1,200. A second draw held earlier this month also selected 779 candidates, all of whom had scored 818 points or more.

While Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander is pleased with the numbers, critics of the program are calling for a revision of certain conditions under the program, especially the Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) requirement worth 600 points, which they say is very difficult to acquire. 

Prospective employers are now required to secure a positive LMIA to prove that the foreign applicants they have chosen have skills that are in high demand, and unavailable to them locally. While an LMIA is worth 600 points alone, candidates can score another 600 points through categories like age, education, work experience and language skills. 

Critics have pointed out that the LMIA requirement is unfair because it has become too difficult to secure one as the screening process has been tightened further recently. 

The Express Entry system has a two-step selection process where selected applicants are put in one pool and then the highest scorers are invited to apply for permanent residency. There were about 10,000 applications for the first draw, out of which 3,000 were entered into the pool. According to experts, the pool of applicants should be widened and some people must be exempted from the LMIA requirement. This is especially the case for those who have graduated from study programs in Canada and currently hold postgraduate work permits and those who are here under exempt categories, such as NAFTA professionals and intracompany transferees.  

Under the new system, the government matches employers with prospective candidates through the Canadian job bank, a move that has discomforted several employers who now have to advertise the positions in a job bank to fulfil the LMIA requirement, even after already having made a job offer to a prospect.

Another issue with the system is its apparent lack of transparency, with no explanation being provided on how cut-offs are set.

The selected candidates have 60 days within which they must apply for permanent residency. If they fail to do so, their applications will remain in the pool for another six months for future draws. The government has planned between 15 and 25 draws for this year.

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