Immigration Blog about US & Canadian Immigration matters.

Hiring a Foreign Worker

Are you a Canadian company looking to hire a foreign worker to work for your company? Before you can hire the foreign worker, you may need to have a Labour Market Impact Assessment – which is a document that allows you to extend an offer of employment to a foreign worker. In this blog, we will provide some useful information about the Labour Market Impact Assessment process, when it is required and how to get one.

What is a Labour Market Impact Assessment

The government of Canada understands Canadian companies may sometimes experience temporary labour or skill shortages. In cases where a Canadian company cannot find qualified Canadian workers to fill these shortages, the company may need to hire a foreign worker. The Labour Market Impact Assessment Process is required to show that hiring the temporary foreign worker will not have a negative impact on the Canadian job market by ensuring that qualified Canadians are not bypassed for a foreign worker.

New Requirement for Canadian Employers for Inviting Applicants

For Canadian employers looking to hire a temporary foreign worker through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), they will now be required to invite candidates who acquire a number of stars in relation to the position. As of August 28, 2017, there will be a new rating system in which employers will be matched with workers registered in the Canadian government’s Job Bank. The Canadian government has named this new feature its Job Match Service. In this article, I will address the new changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and how this ultimately affects Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) applications.

New Job Match Service

The purpose of the new Job Match service is to permit Canadian employers to view anonymous profiles of registered job seekers. The profiles of these job seekers reflect and coordinate with the skills and job requirements that are listed in the employer’s job posting. These matches will essentially be rated under a 5-star system. Therefore, the more stars that the job seeker can accumulate for the intended position, the greater the compatibility with the Canadian employer.

Find out what documents are needed for a LMIA

When applying for a Labour Market Impact Assessment, you may not know exactly what documentation is required of you in order to get a higher chance of a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). A Labour Market Impact Assessment, better known as a LMIA, is a document from Employment and Social Development Canada that permits a Canadian employer to hire a temporary foreign worker. When applying for an LMIA, there are specific documents that are required to submit from the Canadian employer and the employee alike. It is important that all of these documents are submitted with the application prior to hiring the foreign temporary worker. In this article, I will address the important documents needed from the Canadian employer and the foreign temporary worker for an LMIA application.

Documents Needed from the Canadian Employer

Every LMIA application can be different depending on the Canadian employer and the employee they are looking to hire. The below documentation is general, however, the more of these documents that you can submit, the stronger your application will be. It is very important to consider what you are trying to prove to Immigration by providing these specific documents. Therefore, keep this in mind when compiling the appropriate documentation.

Difference Between High-wage and Low-wage Streams

There have been several changes with regards to job offers for high-wage and low-wage streams in the past year. These are two different streams that fall under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). In most cases under the TFW program, Canadian employers must also receive a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). The TFW program essentially allows these Canadian employers to hire foreign national workers to fill intended job positions in Canada, all while ensuring that there are no Canadian or permanent residents that can fill the intended job. In this article, I will address the changes of the median hourly wages and as a result the high-wage stream and low-wage stream.

Responsibilities of the Canadian Employer

In almost all cases of hiring a foreign national worker, Canadian employers must receive a posititve Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) prior to hiring a foreign worker. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) is a useful tool for Canadian employers to hire foreign nationals to fill labour shortages in Canada. The TFWP is administered and run by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

FAQ – Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)

In this article, I will address a few popular questions and answers for Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) in Canada and some important information to consider if you are applying for an Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). A Labour Market Impact Assessment is intended for any Canadian employer who may need a foreign worker to work for their company and needs the approval from the government of Canada prior to hiring them. If you feel as though you would be eligible to apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment, I suggest you read our article on “Labour Market Impact Assessment LMIA” before reading this question and answer article. The intention of this article is meant to clarify any misunderstanding or confusion with regards to Labour Market Impact Assessments in Canada.

Q: What is a Labour Market Impact Assessment? Is it necessary?

A: The Labour Market Impact Assessment is a document provided by Immigration Canada that a Canadian employer may need to obtain prior to hiring a temporary foreign worker. It is not necessary for some circumstances but it can be for others. It is important for employers to investigate and review LMIA exemption codes to see whether or not they need a Labour Market Impact Assessment. With a positive LMIA, this will indicate that there is a need for a foreign worker to fill the intended position and that no Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada can fill the job. A positive LMIA is also referred to as a confirmation letter. After the employer receives a positive LMIA, the temporary foreign worker may then apply for a work permit in Canada. In order to apply for a work permit, the temporary foreign worker will need a valid job offer letter, a contract, a copy of the positive LMIA and the LMIA confirmation number.

Hiring a Foreign Worker to Canada

As an employer looking to hire foreign workers, you may be dealing with a pile of paperwork. In order to bring the foreign worker to Canada, there are various documents and application forms you will need to provide. Prior to completing the paperwork, however, you will need to decide which program and stream your worker qualifies under. There are two streams in which you could apply: either the Low-wage Positions stream or the High-wage Positions stream.

Low-wage and High-wage Stream Differences

Deciding which stream your worker qualifies for requires analyzing the median hourly wages they will be paid, based on province or territory. A list of the median wages by province or territory is available on Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Ensure that you are reviewing the most updated information, as the wages are consistently being updated to match the fluctuating medians. If your worker will be paid below the median hourly wage in your province, then he/she will apply through the Stream for Low-wage Positions. If he/she will be paid equal to or greater than the median hourly wage for your province, then he/she will apply through the Stream for High-wage Positions.

What is the Express Entry Pool?

This is where you will find potential candidates like yourself who have went ahead and created an Express Entry Profile. Once you have created your profile you will need to ensure that you are eligible for one of the economic immigration programs.

What are the programs?

There are 4 programs that will be taken into consideration for you to fall under. They are:

You as a lower-skilled worker can be hired by employer for up to a maximum of 24 months where there is a demonstrable shortage of Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

An employer needs to get Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) once that is approved that can then give the LMIA to you as the foreign worker and then you are to take it to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) to apply for a work permit.