Hiring foreign workers in Canada

The two ways of hiring foreign workers in Canada

Hiring foreign workers in Canada runs through one of two systems, and knowing which one applies is the first decision, because it sets the timeline, the cost and the paperwork. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program is built around the LMIA and the labour-market test that goes with it, while the International Mobility Program covers the LMIA-exempt routes where an exemption code does that work instead.

Everything else follows from that first decision: whether you advertise, what you pay the government, how long the candidate waits, and what records you keep afterwards. The sections below walk both routes in the order an employer actually meets them, then cover cost, timing, compliance and the link to permanent residence.

Hiring foreign workers in Canada with an LMIA (the TFWP route)

The LMIA route is the default when no exemption applies, and it runs through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program on the back of a positive LMIA work permit application. In broad terms, you advertise the role, meet the recruitment requirements for your stream, pay the processing fee and apply to Employment and Social Development Canada. Once the LMIA is positive, your candidate uses it to apply for their work permit to IRCC, along with biometrics and any medical or police requirements for their country.

A Labour Market Impact Assessment is a document from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) confirming that hiring a foreign worker is justified because no Canadian or permanent resident is readily available. Part of that assessment involves proving your business is genuine and legitimate, so ESDC can see a real operation and a real need for the role, not just paperwork. The LMIA route takes more time and effort than an exemption, but it is the workhorse of Canadian hiring and it opens the door to roles across every NOC TEER category.

Which stream you fall into is decided by the wage you are offering against the median hourly wage for the province or territory. Offer at or above it and you are in the high wage LMIA stream, which brings a transition plan and its own recruitment expectations. Offer below it and you are in the low-wage LMIA stream, which carries additional employer duties. The dividing line moves as wage data is updated, so check the current LMIA wage requirement for Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario or wherever the job sits before you set the salary in the advertisement. The thresholds last moved on 17 July 2026, and the LMIA new rules page sets out that reset alongside the eight-week advertising minimum and the cap changes that came in on 1 April 2026.

For in-demand technology and high-skill positions, the Global Talent Stream offers a faster, streamlined LMIA with a priority service standard in many cases. Category A runs on a referral from a designated partner for unique specialised talent; Category B covers occupations on the Global Talent Occupations List. Both require a Labour Market Benefits Plan setting out what the hire will do for the Canadian labour market, and the Canadian work experience that follows can later support Express Entry and many Provincial Nominee Program streams.

1. 01

   Confirm the NOC and the wage

   We settle the National Occupational Classification code, the TEER category and whether the wage puts you in the high-wage or low-wage stream.

2. 02

   Run compliant recruitment

   Advertising on the national Job Bank plus the additional methods your stream requires, run for the minimum period, with records of every applicant.

3. 03

   Build and file the LMIA

   Business legitimacy evidence, the recruitment report, the transition plan where one applies, the fee and the application to ESDC.

4. 04

   Support the work permit

   Your candidate applies to IRCC with the positive LMIA and the job offer, then attends biometrics and travels once approved.

Hiring foreign workers in Canada without an LMIA (the IMP route)

You can often hire without a labour-market test at all through the International Mobility Program, which lets you skip the LMIA entirely when a recognised exemption applies. Each route has its own exemption code, and an LMIA exempt work permit is usually quicker and lighter, so it is always worth checking before you commit to the full LMIA process.

• Intra-company transfer to Canada (code C12), for executives, managers and specialised-knowledge staff moving within your company to a Canadian office.
• CUSMA work permit, for eligible US and Mexican professionals, transferees, traders and investors.
• CETA permits, for certain European professionals, contractual service suppliers and transferees.
• Francophone Mobility (code C16), for French-speaking workers in roles outside Quebec.
• Open work permits, which some candidates already hold and can use to start without any employer-specific paperwork.

What it costs and how long it takes to hire

The two numbers employers want before hiring foreign workers in Canada are what the hire costs and when the person can start. Neither has a single answer, because both depend on the route, the occupation and where the candidate is applying from. What we can do is set out the components honestly so you can budget and plan the start date around them.

On timing, the honest answer is that the LMIA route is the slower of the two because the advertising period has to run before ESDC even sees the file, and the current LMIA processing time then sits on top of that before your candidate can apply for the permit. LMIA-exempt hires skip both of those stages. Some CUSMA applicants can be processed at a port of entry, while others apply online from outside Canada. We map the realistic sequence for your file rather than quoting a headline figure that may not apply to your case.

Employer obligations when hiring foreign workers in Canada

The responsibilities continue after the permit is issued. You must pay the wage and provide the occupation and conditions set out in the offer, make reasonable efforts to provide a workplace free of abuse, keep the documents that prove all of it, and be ready for a possible inspection. These duties apply under both the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Mobility Program, and an inspection can happen at any point while the worker is employed or afterwards during the retention period.

Getting compliance right protects the business. Non-compliance can lead to administrative monetary penalties, publication on the public list of non-compliant employers, or a ban from the programs, which would affect every future hire, not just the one that went wrong. That is why we build clean documentation into every file: the signed offer, the pay records, the recruitment evidence and the correspondence, kept in an order an inspector can follow.

From a work permit to permanent residence

A temporary hire is often the start of a permanent one. Canadian work experience gained on your payroll counts toward the Canadian Experience Class under Express Entry, and a genuine, ongoing job offer supports employer-driven provincial streams, from the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program to the OINP foreign worker stream. Some employers also come to us the other way round, having found the candidate first: our guide to how to get a job offer in Canada is what we send to candidates who ask which employers can support a hire from abroad.

Planning that far ahead is practical, not theoretical. Sequencing the work permit with the eventual PR application in mind protects you from losing a trained employee at the end of a permit, and it is one of the strongest retention arguments a Canadian employer has. We do not predict outcomes, but we can show you where the routes connect and what the worker would need to keep on file from day one.

How an RCIC helps with hiring foreign workers in Canada

Working under a licensed RCIC (CICC #R706497), we act as your guide from start to finish: assessing the role and its NOC code, recommending the fastest compliant route, and preparing either the LMIA or the LMIA-exempt offer of employment with the evidence behind it. We are not affiliated with any government; our job is to make the hire compliant, well-documented and as fast as the rules allow. We do not advise on Quebec programs, which run under their own separate rules.

1. 01

   Assess the role and candidate

   We confirm whether an LMIA is needed or an exemption applies, and recommend the fastest compliant route.

2. 02

   Prepare the application

   We handle the LMIA and advertising, or the LMIA-exempt offer of employment, with the supporting documents.

3. 03

   Support the work permit

   We coordinate your candidate's permit application and keep your compliance records clean for any inspection.

We coordinate with your candidate's work permit Canada application so the employer side and the worker side line up, and we keep the fees fixed and in writing, with the full schedule on our immigration consultant fees page. Everything is handled online, wherever your business and your candidate happen to be. If you are hiring foreign workers in Canada and want the route mapped before you advertise a single role, tell us about the position and the candidate and we will tell you which system applies, what it will take, and how long it should realistically run.