If you plan on using a recruiter or immigration consultant, you must use someone who is licensed by the Government of Saskatchewan under The Foreign Worker Recruitment and Immigration Services Act (FWRISA).
This list identifies all the individuals who are authorized under The Foreign Worker Recruitment and
Immigration Services Act (Act) to provide foreign worker recruiting services to foreign nationals coming
to Saskatchewan.
The list includes licensees, individuals have met all licensing requirements and posted $20,000 in financial security which can be used to compensate individuals who have incurred a financial loss as a result of a violation of the Act by a recruiter or immigration consultant.
There must be a signed contract between you and the recruiter listing all the services to be provided, along with the corresponding fees.
If an immigration consultant is providing immigration services to a foreign worker and recruiting services to you as an employer, the consultant must be licensed as a recruiter and a consultant. In this situation, they must obtain written consent from the employer and the worker. The consultant must also enter separate contracts with the worker and employer, identifying all services and associated fees.
Only use Licensed Immigration Consultants or Licensed Foreign Worker Recruiters. Otherwise, you may incur penalties; or have your Certificate of Registration or SINP Job Approval Form (JAF) refused or Job Approval Letter (JAL) revoked.
You can view lists of Licensed Consultants and Licensed Foreign Worker Recruiters on Immigration Consultant and Foreign Worker Recruiter Licensing and Responsibilities.
Download the Licensed Saskatchewan Immigration Consultants list here.
Download the Licensed of Saskatchewan Employment Recruiters list here
Immigration consultants and foreign worker recruiters in Canada have a number of legal responsibilities.
General Responsibilities
It is illegal to:
- charge foreign workers recruitment fees or costs;
- require foreign workers to reimburse their employers for recruitment costs, including fees paid to recruiters and immigration consultants;
- provide misleading information about the job offered;
- unlawfully take possession of the property of a foreign worker;
- threaten deportation or other action without legal cause;
- contact a foreign worker, or their family or friends, if requested not to do so;
- take advantage of a foreign worker’s fear or lack of knowledge;
- threaten to take action against a foreign worker for making a complaint to a government or law enforcement agency, or by participating in an investigation conducted by these agencies; and
- require a foreign worker you are recruiting to purchase other services, such as immigration consulting.
Violating the FWRISA can result in your licence being revoked, fines up to $50,000 for an individual and $100,000 for a company and, in extreme cases, up to one year in jail for an individual.
Licensees are subject to audit to ensure compliance with the FWRISA and to investigation if complaints are made of possible FWRISA violations.
Record-keeping responsibilities
As a foreign worker recruiter or an immigration consultant, you must prepare the following records and maintain them for at least five years:
- any contract entered into with an employer or a foreign national;
- the name, occupation, wage rate, residential address, phone number, mailing address and email address if available, of every immigrant client served or foreign worker recruited;
- the name, business address, phone number and email address of any employer who received recruitment services from you;
- any expenses incurred by you in assisting foreign nationals with immigration documents or recruiting foreign workers;
- any amount of any money paid to you by a foreign national, the date of the payment and the reason for the payment;
- any amount paid to you by an employer for recruiting a foreign worker, the date of payment and the exact reason of payment;
- copies of all immigration applications to government agencies involving a foreign national client and copies of all decisions received from government agencies respecting these applications;
- copies of all applications to government agencies for an employer seeking approval to hire a foreign worker, and copies of all decisions received from government agencies respecting these applications;
- copies of all correspondence between you and clients you provided immigration services for, in return for payment; and
- copies of all correspondence between you and clients you provide recruitment services for, in return for payment.
The records must be stored at your principal place of business in Saskatchewan. If your principal place of business is outside Saskatchewan, these records must be sent to the Government of Saskatchewan’s immigration branch upon request. A translated copy must accompany any requested record not in English.
These records must be sent to the Government of Saskatchewan if you are audited. A copy translated into English must accompany any required records.
