Canadian Work Permit: LMIA, IMP, IEC, and Open Permits Explained

TL;DR — A Canadian work permit lets a foreign national work for a Canadian employer for a defined period. There are two main streams: the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) — which requires a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) — and the International Mobility Program (IMP), which is LMIA-exempt. Open work permits — including the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP), spousal open work permits, and International Experience Canada (IEC) Working Holiday — are not tied to a specific employer.

Two main streams

Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) — LMIA-based

Under the TFWP, a Canadian employer first applies to Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). The LMIA confirms that hiring a foreign worker will not negatively affect the Canadian labour market — typically requiring evidence that the employer recruited Canadians and permanent residents first.

LMIA-based work permits are employer-specific: the permit is issued for a specific employer, occupation, location, and duration. Workers cannot change employers without applying for a new work permit (although a 2020 policy lets some affected workers expedite a new permit application).

LMIA streams include:

• High-Wage stream (jobs paying at or above the median provincial wage).
• Low-Wage stream (jobs paying below the median wage; subject to caps and stricter scrutiny).
• Global Talent Stream (priority occupations such as software engineers — 2-week processing service standard).
• Agricultural streams including the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) and the Agricultural Stream.
• In-Home Caregiver streams (now under the Home Care Worker Immigration Pilots — application intake paused as of 2025).

LMIA fees are paid by the employer ($1,000 per position).

International Mobility Program (IMP) — LMIA-exempt

The IMP covers categories where Canada has determined LMIAs are not required because of broader public-policy or trade-agreement reasons. Categories include:

• CUSMA (formerly NAFTA) Professionals — for U.S. and Mexican citizens in 60+ listed professions.
• GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) — for service providers under WTO commitments.
• CETA (Canada-EU Trade Agreement) — for European Union professionals.
• CPTPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) — for nationals of partner countries.
• Intra-Company Transferees — managers, executives, and specialized-knowledge workers transferring to a Canadian branch of their multinational employer.
• Significant-benefit work permits — including the C10/C11 categories for entrepreneurs, performers, and others whose work provides Canada with significant cultural, social, or economic benefit.
• Reciprocal-employment work permits — including spouses of certain workers and students.
• Bridging Open Work Permits (BOWP) — for Express Entry / PNP / CEC / FSW applicants whose permanent-residence application is in process.

IMP work permits are issued under specific LMIA-exemption codes (A, C, R, T) recorded on the permit.

Open work permits

An open work permit allows the holder to work for any Canadian employer (with limited restrictions, e.g., no work in adult-services occupations or in certain medical settings without medical exam). Categories include:

• Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) — for graduates of eligible Canadian DLI programs. Duration matches program length, up to 3 years. Subject to 2024 field-of-study and public-college restrictions.
• Spousal open work permit — for the spouse of a Canadian skilled worker (TEER 0/1 only since January 21, 2025), or for the spouse of an international student (master's, doctoral, or professional-program students only since January 21, 2025).
• Working Holiday under International Experience Canada (IEC) — for citizens of partner countries aged 18 to 30 or 35 (depending on country). Two main streams besides Working Holiday are Young Professionals and International Co-op Internship.
• Vulnerable-worker open work permit — for workers experiencing abuse on an employer-specific permit.
• Refugee-claimant work permit — issued to those with a positive eligibility decision pending refugee determination.

How to apply

Step 1 — Determine eligibility category

The right work-permit category depends on the worker's nationality, occupation, employer, and existing immigration status. For LMIA-based applications, the employer must first obtain a positive LMIA. For IMP, the employer submits an Offer of Employment via the Employer Portal and pays a CAD $230 employer-compliance fee.

Step 2 — Apply for the work permit

Most applicants apply online through the IRCC Portal. The fee is CAD $155 (CAD $100 for an open work permit holder fee on top, where applicable). Biometrics fee CAD $85 individual / CAD $170 family.

Applicants outside Canada apply to the visa office serving their country of residence. Applicants in Canada with valid status (study permit, visitor, etc.) apply through the in-Canada channel for a work permit. U.S. citizens and citizens of certain other countries can also apply at the port of entry in some cases.

Step 3 — Documents required

• Valid passport.
• Letter of approval from the employer (LMIA confirmation letter or IMP Offer of Employment number).
• Proof of qualification for the role (degree certificate, license, work-history letters).
• Police certificates, if requested.
• Medical exam, if required.
• Two photos meeting IRCC specifications.
• Country-specific documents per visa office instructions.

Step 4 — Biometrics

Workers between 14 and 79 must provide biometrics at a VAC. Biometrics validity is 10 years.

Recent policy changes (2024–2026)

• Open work permit eligibility for family members of temporary residents (January 21, 2025): Spousal open work permits are now restricted to spouses of TEER 0/1 skilled workers and spouses of master's/doctoral/professional-program students. Family of low-skilled workers and undergraduate students are no longer eligible (with limited exceptions for sectors with labour shortages).
• PGWP field-of-study requirement (November 2024): Public-college PGWP applicants must have graduated from a program tied to long-term occupations in shortage.
• Job-offer points removed from Express Entry CRS (December 2024): A valid LMIA-based job offer no longer adds 50 or 200 CRS points; provincial nomination remains the only large CRS bonus (+600).
• Flagpoling ended (December 2024): Foreign nationals can no longer apply for a work or study permit at a port of entry by briefly leaving and re-entering Canada ("flagpoling"). Most applicants must apply online.
• Home-care-worker pilots paused: Application intake to the Home Care Worker Immigration Pilots paused in 2025 pending program redesign.
• Wage-threshold and TFWP-cap changes: ESDC has raised the prevailing-wage threshold for the Low-Wage stream and tightened proportion caps for low-wage workers per employer.

Key facts at a glance

• Work permit application fee: CAD $155.
• Open work permit holder fee: CAD $100 (additional, for open permits).
• Biometrics fee: CAD $85 individual / CAD $170 family.
• Employer-compliance fee (IMP): CAD $230.
• LMIA fee (TFWP): CAD $1,000 per position (paid by employer).
• Maximum permit duration: case-dependent; typically 1–4 years.
• PGWP duration: matches program length, max 3 years.
• IEC age range: 18–30 or 18–35 depending on country.

Source attribution

This article rewrites public information published by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada at https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/work-canada/permit.html. The original Government of Canada content is licensed under the Open Government Licence — Canada.

Verify on canada.ca

Work-permit categories and fees change frequently — always verify on the official source: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/work-canada/permit.html.

IRCC.com is an independent news and information aggregator. We are not affiliated with the Government of Canada and do not provide immigration services or advice. For personalized help, contact a CICC-licensed RCIC or a Canadian immigration lawyer.