Your gateway to Canada

VISITORS CAN NOW APPLY FOR A WORK PERMIT FROM INSIDE CANADA WITHOUT HAVING TO LEAVE

Immigration Newsweek

By Atty. Henry Moyal

1. I’m a visitor in Canada and have a job offer from a Canadian employer. I cannot leave Canada due to Covid. How can I get my work permit?
2. New rules were just published that benefit new. Usually, a visitor in Canada must obtain their initial work permit from outside Canada. Effective immediately, due to Covid, visitors in Canada with a job offer are able to apply for an employer-specific work permit and receive the permit without having to leave the country.

To be eligible, applicants must

• have valid status in Canada as a visitor on August 24, 2020 and remain in Canada (applicants who arrive in Canada as visitors after August 24, 2020, are not eligible

• have a job offer

• submit an application for an employer-specific work permit that is supported by a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) or an LMIA-exempt offer of employment, no later than March 31, 2021

1. I’m a live in caregiver in Barrie and work overtime most weekends. When I asked my employer to pay for the extra hours they refused. I also want to spend weekends at my sister’s home in Toronto but my employer demands that I stay in the home as I am a live in. How can I explain to my employer that he is breaking the rules?

1. The live in requirement is no longer permitted as the laws have changed. You should explain to the employer that the law in Ontario requires them to pay you 1.5x your hourly wage after 44 hours. That is the law. In reality, forcing the law against your employer may put a strain on your relationship resulting in you being fired. While the employer cannot fire you for knowing the law, they will just find an excuse to let you go. It is clear that you are being abused as the employer is committing several violations. It is for this exact reason that Canada Immigration has started the Vulnerable Worker program. In the past, caregivers and worker like you would just suffer for fear that you will not become a permanent resident. The good news is that the vulnerable work permit is an open work permit that will allow you to find a new employer and gain legal employment towards permanent residence.

1. I’ve been working in Canada in several jobs after graduating from Seneca College. I do not have one year of work experience with one employer. I do have over one year of experience but with three separate employers of four months each. Is that acceptable to apply for permanent residence?

1. It depends on the type of work and the program you are applying under. As well, you should keep in mind that work experience is only one factor of many. Assuming you meet the other criteria, you can accumulate 12 months of work experience with several employers only under the Canadian Experience Class program. As well, the work experience must be a skilled position under NOC O, A or B.

Attorney Henry Moyal is a certified and licensed immigration lawyer in Toronto, Ontario.
The above article is general advice only and is not intended to act as a legal document.
Send questions to Attorney Moyal by email canada@moyal.com or call 416 733 3193