Canadian embassies get thousands of applicants every year who are looking to get open work permits for Canada. About 2 lakh foreign workers move to Canada with temporary work permits every year. These permits, also called work visas, allow non-Canadians to work in Canada without having to go through multiple assessments to relocate. As a foreigner looking to get a visa to work in Canada, you must have an employment offer from an officially recognised employer in Canada along with a Labour Market Opinion that the Human Resources and Skill Development Canada (HRSDC) grants you. A labour market opinion is a document that confirms your status and the status of the position you are looking to fill.

Canadian Visas in the New Normal

If you are looking to relocate during or after the global pandemic, applications for work permits are still being accepted. However, if you wish to enter Canada by land or air, you must fit into one of the following categories:

• A temporary foreign worker with a valid work permit or with an approved but not yet issued work permit.
• IEC participant with a work permit that has not been activated yet, with a valid job offer.
• IEC participant with an activated work permit, but temporarily living outside the country.
• Passed all health assessments done while entering Canada by air. (People showing any signs of COVID-19 are not being allowed to enter the country. Your health will be checked for 14 days post-arrival. Make sure you have a quarantine plan in place for this period.)
• The only people exempt from the quarantine rules are essential service providers such as truckers and transporters who cross the border regularly and ensure a consistent flow of goods.

Open Work Permit For Canada - Applications Wanted

If someone tells you that jobs are not available in Canada, no matter if it’s skilled or not, you should know that that is not true. But handling the entire application process on your own can be daunting. Visa consultants like Croyez can help you with the immigration process by following a few systematic steps, from meeting work permit requirements to answering any questions you might have. If you meet the eligibility criteria for your specific category, there are countless opportunities you can take advantage of. Before you start applying or making payments, you must be clear about the entire process from start to finish. Work visas are temporary and are different from immigration visas. Most of the time, Canadian work visas are available only to applicants holding a current job offer from a Canadian employer who is officially permitted to employ a foreign national. This employer needs to cooperate with you, the future employee, to finish the process because a positive Labour Market Opinion is needed to get a work visa. Here are the key steps that are followed by visa consultants to help you get open work permits for Canada: Step 1: They will first check if you need a passport or a temporary residence visa for your work visa. Either of these documents is needed only for some potential employees. It is always a good idea to reach out to your consultant and get your passport and applications in order early in the process so that you can get additional visas if needed. Step 2: A good consultant will tell you all the requirements in advance when you’re applying for a work visa because requirements change depending on the job title or position you are looking to fill. Jobs commonly require a written offer letter, a positive labour market opinion, and proof of your work experience. Jobs that don’t need a positive labour market opinion normally require your passport and proof of your immigration status from your country of origin. Some cases also require medical or criminal background checks. Step 3: You can get a temporary work visa application from Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration website or the Canadian embassy in your country. Immigration consultants can guide and direct you to fill out the application and collect any additional paperwork you might require for the position you’re applying for. If you don’t fill out your paperwork and information accurately, it might cause a delay or cancellation of your application. Your consultants help to avoid that. Step 4: Once you have completed all the steps, your consultant guides you on how you can submit your application and paperwork. You can do so either in person or via email to the visa officer handling your application process. Consultants also tell you about your processing fee beforehand. Different offices and visa types come with different costs. They hand in your application with the right fee amount, along with anything else that might be required. Incomplete applications will be returned, causing further delays, so make sure you go through them thoroughly and don’t miss anything. Step 5: The time taken to process a work visa can vary, subject to your country of origin and specific visa office. Your consultant will confirm the application processing timeline as you hand in your paperwork and check once again that you have filled in everything accurately. Step 6: Processing your visa application might take a while. During that time, certain changes might take place; you could get a new number, new address, etc. Keep your consultant updated on these changes if any, who will, in turn, keep your visa officer informed. If the change is found out by the visa office at a later stage, it could significantly slow down the application process.

Tips to Keep in Mind While Applying

• Choose a job role that foreign workers are eligible to apply for.
• Choose a credible visa consultancy office to help you along each step
• Have proof of your job skill qualifications. This includes references to past employers, education certifications, and the like.
• Have proof of sufficient funds to live in the country and take care of the people depending on you.
• Make sure your documents are all in English or French. If they aren’t, get them translated.
• A criminal record or proof of you being a threat to national security will hamper your chances of getting an approved visa.

While choosing a company or visa office to help with your application, make sure the consultant is registered with the Canadian government and aligned with the ICCRC (Immigration Consultant of Canada Regulatory Council). This ensures you will get the best possible help for your open work permit for Canada.