KEY VOCABULARES
TO UNDERSTAND
Before we get into more details about the major options to immigrate, we strongly recommend you to read this page before moving on. It’ll make a lot more sense to you to understand and distinguish how each pathway is different.
What is LMIA?
Labour Market Impact Assessment, also known as LMIA to call it conveniently, is an assessment conducted by one of federal government’s department called Service Canada. It is majorly distinguished into two different types, which we call “Regular LMIA” and “PR Support LMIA”.
What is Regular LMIA?
Regular LMIA is an LMIA that provides 1 year Work Permit to the foreign national who uses it to get s work permit. It takes about 8 months for assessment to be completed after the application submission. This LMIA is assessed by Service Canada in Edmonton office, which is a capital city of Alberta.
What is PR Support LMIA?
PR Support LMIA is an LMIA that provides 2 years Work Permit to the foreign national who uses it to gets work permit. It takes about 1-2 months for assessment to be completed after the application submission. This LMIA is assessed by Service Canada in New Brunswick office.
What is the Purpose of LMIA?
Service Canada conducts Labour Market Impact Assessment for four main reasons.
- Impact on Canadian Labour Market: To ensure enabling the business to sponsor a foreign national has a positive or neutral impact on Canada labour market.
- Need Assessment: To ensure there’s an actual need for a business to hire and sponsor a foreign worker.
- Due Diligence Check: To ensure the business has completed the due diligence to prioritize hiring a Canadian or Permanent Resident before or during the process of LMIA.
- Capacity Assessment: To ensure the business has enough capacity to hire the foreign worker (ex: financial capacity to pay the foreign worker, or enough number of employees that the sponsored foreign worker will work with).
How to Apply LMIA?
Individuals can apply for LMIA by first posting an advertisement under Canada government-owned website called, Job Bank. This is to give an equal job opportunity to local Canadians and Permanent Residents first before giving it to foreign nationals. Service Canada also requires applicants to post the job positions on more than two under-represented groups such as New Canadian Workers, Aboriginal Careers, Visible Minorities, and more.
Once 1-month is past, then the individual gets the eligibility to submit LMIA application.
Ultimately, a Service Canada officer will call the employer to conduct a phone interview to assess the application.
What is Work Permit?
Work Permit is a valid permit that allows a foreign national to legally work in Canada. Canadian government usually issues a work permit that enables a foreign national to work between 6 months to 3 years.
What is LMIA-based Work Permit?
LMIA-based work permits are work permits that are issued by using valid positive approval of Labour Market Impact Assessment. 1 year work permit is given to individuals who uses Regular LMIA, and 2 years work permit for individuals who uses PR Support LMIA.
What is Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP)?
Post-Graduate Work Permit is an open work permit that can be given to individuals who have completed their studies in one of Designated Learning Centers in Canada. The government issues a 1 year work permit for students who have completed a 8-month/1 year program, and a 3 years work permit for students who have completed a 2-years or more programs.
ESL students or students who have completed programs from non-designated learning centers are not eligible to get a post-graduate work permit.
If you want to check if your school is a Designated Learning Center.
What is Spousal Open Work Permit (SOWP)?
A foreign national who has a valid Study Permit (ESL program not included) from a Designated Learning Center, or who has a valid Work Permit can sponsor their spouse to get an open work permit. The sponsoring foreign national must hold a valid permit that has more than 6 months of validity or expiration date.
What is Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP)?
Bridging Open Work Permit is a work permit that foreign national who meets below eligibilities.
- Has submitted a federal application (meaning they have a provincial nomination).
- Has a work permit that expires within 4 months.
The government of Canada issues 1 year open work permits to the eligible applicants, and the foreign national’s spouse can apply BOWP at the same time.
What are Other Ways to Get Work Permit?
There are other means to get a valid work permit in Canada, or there are some exceptions that enables a foreign national to work legally in Canada without a work permit. For example, International Experience Canada program allows Working Holidays to work legally in Canada by providing a 1 year open work permit.
What is Provincial Nomination Program (PNP)?
Provincial Nomination Program is a permanent residency application program that each province and territory offer in Canada to foreign nationals. There are multiple programs and categories under each Provincial Nomination Program.
What is Express Entry (EE)?
Express Entry is a federal permanent residency application program that invites a qualified immigrants to successfully become a permanent resident in Canada. It is governed based on invitation system where the government invites certain individuals who has on-demand job
skills, or meets the Comprehensive Ranking Score (CRS) point. The applicants must have a CRS point that has higher than a changing threshold points. For instance, the government invited individuals with CRS points that have around 450 points in 2019.
What is Owner/Operator LMIA?
Owner/Operator LMIA is a special LMIA where the foreign national becomes both the owner and the operator of the business. This LMIA’s average processing time in 10 business days, and it is job advertisement exempt, thus enabling applicants to apply for the LMIA application without any delay. The government officer from Service Canada will conduct a phone call interview with the applicant.
What is Provincial Investment Programs?
Not all provinces or territories in Canada offer investment programs. The most popular investment programs are Saskatchewan’s Entrepreneur Stream, Manitoba’s Investment Program, and British Columbia’s Regional Pilot Program.
What is Study Permit?
Study Permit is a permit that allows a foreign nationals to legally study in Canada.
What is Multiple Entry Visa?
Multiple Entry Visa is a visitor visa that only visa-required countries must get to visit, study, or work legally in Canada. People from visa-required countries cannot even enter Canada without a valid multiple-entry visa.
What is the Different between Visa-Required Country and Visa-Exempt Country?
Visa-required countries are countries where the people from that country to apply for visitor application and multiple entry visa to legally visit Canada.
Examples of visa required countries: India, Philippines, China, Vietnam, Russia and more.
Examples of visa exempt countries: Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Britain, and more.
What is National Occupation Classification Code (NOC Code)?
All job positions in Canada are classified with 4 numerical codes called National Occupation Code. Each job title has a particular median wage based on geographical regions and job duties.
NOC 00: Top Management – CEO, CFO, Director, General Manager, etc.
NOC 0: Management – Managers, etc.
NOC A: Professionals – Accountants, Lawyers, Dentists, Consultants, etc.
NOC B: Technical & Supervisors – Food Service Supervisors, Retail Supervisors, Welders, etc.
NOC C & D: Low-Skilled Jobs – Food Counter Attendants, Cashiers, etc.
What are Key Admissibility to Enter Canada?
Having a clean criminal records and medical results are key to become Permanent Residents in Canada. Please complete Free Assessment, so that we can check your admissibility.
What is Canadian Language Benchmark?
Canadian Language Benchmark is a standardized format that checks an applicant’s English skills. This is conducted by taking IELTS General test or CELPIP General test.
How to Calculate Express Entry, Comprehensive Ranking Scores?
Please check the link to calculate your Express Entry points, or complete a Free Assessment to identify your CRS points.
What is the Benefit of Getting NOC 00 LMIA for Express Entry?
NOC 0, A, and B LMIA will give extra 50 CRS points to applicants.
However, NOC 00 LMIA will give extra 200 CRS points to applicants, thus enabling many applicants to be eligible to apply for Express Entry.
What is Common-Law Relationship?
Common-law relationship indicates a foreign national have been living with a Canadian citizen or a Permanent Resident for more than 1 year.
What is Conjugal Relationship?
Conjugal relationship indicates a foreign national could not live with a Canadian citizen or a Permanent Resident due to extreme conditions, thus they had to leave separately.