The easiest way to immigrate to Canada as a French speaker is through the Mobilité Francophone stream which is a part of the International Mobility Program that enables you to get a Canadian work permit in 2 weeks.
The International Mobility Program is the umbrella program under which the Mobilité Francophone falls under.
The International Mobility Program lets Canadian employers hire a temporary worker without a Labour Market Impact Assessment (lLMIA).
The Mobilité Francophone stream allows foreign workers to immigrate to Canada in as little as 15 days because Canadian work permits under this Canada immigration program are Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exempt for French speakers.
You must however meet all the following eligibility requirements to qualify for immigration to Canada through Mobilité Francophone stream:
- be bilingual or French speaker. If required, you must get a Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) level 7 or higher in the Test d’évaluation de français (TEF)
- intend to live and work outside of Quebec;
- have a valid job offer in a managerial, professional and technical/skilled trades (NOC skill level 0, A or B) position.
- your Canadian employer must submit an offer of employment through the Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) Employer Portal. In the portal, the employer shares information about the business, the candidate and the job. The employer must also pay the 230$ Employer compliance fees.
- The employer will receive an offer of employment number which he must transmit to you as the candidate. Use the offer of employment number to complete your work permit application.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada will examine your application and inform you of their decision. If the decision is positive, you will receive a Port of Entry (POE) Letter of Introduction via your MyCIC account if the application was submitted on-line or by email if the application is submitted via a VAC.
You will show this letter to officials when arriving in Canada to get the work permit. If you are already in Canada by the time you receive the Letter of Introduction, you must leave Canada and re-enter in order to present the Letter of Introduction at a port of entry.
For visa-exempt candidates, an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) will be issued at the same time as the Letter of Introduction.
For immigration purposes, the main job groups are:
- Skill Type 0 (zero): management jobs, such as:
- restaurant managers
- mine managers
- shore captains (fishing)
- Skill Level A: professional jobs that usually call for a degree from a university, such as:
- doctors
- dentists
- architects
- Skill Level B: technical jobs and skilled trades that usually call for a college diploma or training as an apprentice, such as:
- chefs
- plumbers
- electricians
Where to find jobs in Canada that qualify for immigration to Canada under the Mobilité Francophone stream
- Take part in Destination Canada Forum Mobilité
Destination Canada is a live online recruitment event that targets foreign French-speaking and bilingual candidates seeking work opportunities in Canada (outside Quebec).
Attendance is free but by invitation only based on the needs of the Canadian labour market and the job postings on the Destination Canada website.
To participate, you need to register first to be invited the live online event.
Subscribe to the Destination Canada newsletter for information on all their activities.
2. Check for job postings on the Government of Canada job bank website
The largest francophone communities outside Quebec are in Eastern Ontario and New Brunswick, so it makes sense to start your job search in these areas of Canada sorting by location.
Make sure to filter out jobs in Quebec as this Canadian immigration stream only targets francophone or bilingual foreign workers to work in managerial, professional and technical/skilled trades (NOC skill level 0, A or B) positions. Under provinces and territories, select all except Quebec
Filter by:
- language at work: French, and French and English
- job source: verified jobs,
- hours of work: full time,
- intended applicants: Canadians and international candidates,
3. Check for job postings in other websites
Here we are talking about job websites for candidates seeking jobs in Canada e.g. indeed.com, Linkedin.com, etc. Just make sure to sort by jobs requiring French and job location must be outside of Quebec.
- If in France, register at Pôle emploi.
Pôle Emploi website is a French governmental agency which registers unemployed people, helps them find jobs and provides them with financial aid. The agency was created in 2008, resulting from the merger between the ANPE and the ASSEDIC.
