Foreign Worker Program in Canada

Only citizens and permanent residents of Canada are entitled to work in Canada without any special document. Each year about 90,000 persons come into Canada to work in a temporary resident capacity.

The Temporary Foreign Worker program (TFW) allows employers to hire foreign
workers to meet their human resource needs when Canadian workers are not readily
available.
The Program is jointly administered by Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and
Human Resources and Social Development Canada/Service Canada (HRSDC/SC), and
operates under the authority of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and
Regulations (IRPA).

HRSDC/SC’s role with respect to the entry into Canada of temporary foreign workers is
to provide employers and CIC with a Labour Market Opinion (LMO) which describes the
impact the entry of a temporary foreign worker would have on the Canadian labour
market. HRSDC/SC assesses employer requests against set criteria such as recruitment efforts for Canadian workers and confirms that wages and working conditions are consistent with those prevailing in Canada for the occupation. If HRSDC/SC confirms that there are not enough Canadian citizens or permanent residents available to fill the jobs, a positive LMO is issued. The foreign national can then proceed and apply to CIC for a work permit.

Employers will still be required to first advertise for Canadian workers to ensure that
Canadians and permanent residents are given the opportunity to apply for available
positions. However, employers will only need to advertise on the Job Bank, Canada’s
national job website for at least seven days, or conduct similar recruitment activities.
For certain low-skilled occupations, employers have to satisfy both conditions.
An employer seeking to hire a temporary foreign worker for an occupation which
appears on a regional occupations list is still required to obtain an LMO from
HRSDC/SC and will still need to satisfy all other Foreign Worker Program criteria (e.g.
wages and working conditions) in order to receive a positive LMO (i.e. confirmation).

Skilled Worker Immigrant Class

Canada Federal Skilled Worker (Professional) immigration applications are assessed on six factors.
These selection factors are designed to indicate which applicants are likely to become economically established upon immigration to Canada. Each Canada Federal Skilled Worker (Professional) immigration selection factor is allotted a maximum number of points, and applicants must attain at least 67 points in order to qualify for a Canada Immigration (Permanent Resident) Visa.
The selection factors may be summarized as follows:
Education: Applicants are awarded up to 25 points.Language Skills: Applicants are awarded up to 24 points.Experience: Applicants are awarded up to 21 points.Age: Applicants are awarded up to 10 points.Arranged Employment: Applicants are awarded up to 10 points.Adaptability: Applicants are awarded up to 10 points.
Whatever the number of points awarded, Canadian Immigration Visa Officers always have the discretion to accept or refuse an application based on a substituted evaluation. In addition to scoring at least 67 points, successful applicants must show that they have enough money to support themselves and their dependants after arrival in Canada. Applicants and their dependants must also undergo medical examinations and security clearances as part of the Canadian immigration application process.
Number of family members Funds required
1 10,168
2 12,659
3 15,563
4 18,895
5 21,431
6 24,170
7 + 26,910