The Canadian government has terminated a temporary policy that allowed visitors to apply for work permits from within the country, effective immediately. The policy, introduced in August 2020, was meant to help visitors stranded due to pandemic-related travel restrictions.
However, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) raised concerns that “bad actors” were exploiting the policy to mislead overseas nationals into working in Canada without authorization. The policy was initially set to expire on February 28, 2025, but was ended early as part of efforts to “recalibrate the number of temporary residents in Canada and preserve the integrity of the immigration system.”
The IRCC will continue to process work permit applications received before August 28, 2024. The policy change comes amid a broader effort to restrict temporary foreign workers, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau imposing further restrictions on the program. The UN has criticized the program for being a “breeding ground for contemporary forms of slavery.”
In 2023, Canada granted over 180,000 temporary foreign work permits, an 88% increase from 2019. The government has announced additional restrictions, including refusing applications from low-wage temporary foreign workers in regions with high unemployment rates and limiting the proportion of temporary foreign workers to 10% of the workforce.
Canada’s population surpassed 40 million for the first time in 2023, driven largely by temporary immigration. The government has introduced several policy changes to curb temporary migration, including a cap on international students announced in January 2024.
The policy changes come ahead of the 45th federal election, scheduled to take place on or before October 20, 2025, where immigration is expected to be a hotly debated topic.
