To effectively handle its labor shortages, Canada made some radical changes on the 4th of April 2022 to its the regulations around the temporary foreign worker program (TFWP) making it simpler for Canadian companies to hire foreigners on a short-term basis.
According to an official press release by Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough, following are 5 of the most significant changes made to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and how they will affect you as an international candidate looking for jobs in Canada:
1.Job Tenure for High-Wage and Global Talent Stream candidates
Employees in the High-Wage and Global Talent Stream will have their job tenure increased from the current 2 years to 3.
In 2021, the temporary foreign worker program authorized LMIA applications for 5,000 Global Talent Stream and 23,000 High-Wage Stream positions, collectively accounting for nearly 21% of the LMIA jobs authorized in the year.
Impact: International candidates wanting to work in Canada through the High-Wage and Global Talent Stream will have more Canada immigration pathways to pursue Canadian PR.
2. Validity period of Labor Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs)
The LMIAs are documents required of employers to submit to the Canadian government as proof that there are no qualified or interested Canadian citizens or permanent residence to take up a particular job hence the need to hire a foreign worker hence will not have an unfavorable impact on the workforce.
As per the new regulation, LMIAs will now be legally valid for a period of one and half years, up from nine months previously and for six months before the pandemic.
Impact: International candidates have a higher chance of landing a job in Canada before the LMIA expires
3. The Seasonal Cap Exemption
The Seasonal Cap Exemption, which has been in service since 2015, is regulation with limits the number of low-wage positions that employers in seasonal industries, such as fish and seafood processing, can fill through the TFW Program.
As per the new TFW regulation, the Seasonal Cap Exemption is now permanent, and the maximum duration of these positions will be increased from 180 days to 270 days per year.
Impact: You can now work for a longer period.
4. Hiring through the TFW Program for low-wage positions
For seven sectors with demonstrated labour shortages in Canada, that is:
- Hospitals,
- Nursing,
- Construction,
- Residential care facilities,
- Food manufacturing,
- Furniture manufacturing,
- and Accommodation,
employers will be allowed to hire up to 30% of their workforce through the TFW Program for low-wage positions for one year. All other employers will be allowed to hire up to 20% of their workforce through the TFW Program for low-wage positions until further notice, an increase from the former 10% cap for many employers.
Impact: More job openings in these seven sectors available to foreign workers.
5. Automatic rejection of LMIAs applications some sectors
The current policy that automatically rejects LMIA applications for low-wage occupations in the Accommodation and Food Services and Retail Trade sectors in regions with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher came to an end effective April 30th 2022.
Until the next notification, all other companies will be able to hire up to 20% of their workforce under the TFW Program for low-wage professions, an increase of 20% compared to the previous 10% quota for many employers.
According to Canadian Data, the below industries had the most job openings in November 2021:
| Industry | No. of jobs available |
| Manufacturing | 81,775 |
| Retail trade | 103,990 |
| Healthcare and social assistance | 119,590 |
| Accommodation and food services | 130,070 |
