Labour Market Impact Assessment

Canada is famous for its openness to immigration and its strong social support policies for citizens and permanent residents.  In other words, once you arrive in Canada, the work environment and family-friendly policies will make you want to stay.  Anyone who doesn’t mind the cold is welcome to settle in Canada and bring their close family members.  Canada offers many pathways to immigration, both at the federal level and the provincial level.  When you apply through any of these streams, you can expect a long wait time, during which time you are constantly worrying about whether you will be invited to finalize your application and whether IRCC will accept it.  If you are applying for a temporary work permit, after which time you may or may not decide to seek permanent residency status, one of the documents you must submit is a labour market impact assessment (LMIA).  For questions about applying for a temporary work permit or permanent residency, contact a Mississauga Canadian immigration lawyer.

Who’s Afraid of LMIA?

Most applications for temporary work permits require an LMIA.  The trouble is that the applicant does not get to decide the content of the LMIA.  An LMIA is a letter from Employment and Social Development Canada to your prospective employer stating whether the employer is justified in hiring a foreign worker.  A positive LMIA, also known as an LMIA confirmation, says that it is not possible for the employer to fill the position by hiring a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and therefore your employer has the right to hire you; it means that your application can proceed.  A negative LMIA is the opposite; it says that the employer can and should hire a Canadian citizen or permanent resident for the job and does not have permission to hire you.

Who’s Exempt From LMIA?

You do not need an LMIA if you enter Canada as a temporary foreign worker, pursuant to international agreements such as the Canada United States Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), the successor to NAFTA.  Canada has similar agreements with the European Union, Chile, Colombia, and South Korea.  You also do not need an LMIA if you wish to work in Canada through the International Mobility Program.  The International Mobility Program is open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents of the United States, and citizens of all visa-exempt countries.  Visa-exempt countries are the ones where you can enter Canada without a visa if you travel by land or by ship, but you need an electronic travel document in order to take an international flight to Canada.  The visa-exempt countries include all of the member states of the European Union, plus more than 20 other countries in Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, East Asia, and the Caribbean.

Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP About Applying for a Work Permit

A Canadian immigration lawyer can help you determine whether you need an LMIA or whether the negative LMIA you received was unfair.  Contact Zagazeta Garcia LLP in Mississauga, Ontario to discuss your case.

Source:

ircc.canada.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=163