The government of CANADA announces 2 year period starting January 2023 for extending work permits to spouses, working-age dependents, and common-law partners – 9th December 2022

The government of CANADA announces 2 year period starting January 2023 for extending work permits to spouses, working-age dependents, and common-law partners

Contents News/Article Date:   9th December 2022

Relating to which Act:   Canadian Human Rights Act, Labour & Employment Laws, the Civil Code of Quebec, Canada’s Constitution Act, Canada Occupational Safety and health regulations, Canada Labour Code

Type:   Canada’s Import Update Reports  

Pertains to    International Students in Canada, common partners, grandparents, working-age dependents

Relevance of this news: Karma Global Tech Management LLC has now gone offshore to countries like Canada, the US, the UK, and the UAE offering exemplary services like payroll, temp staffing, onboarding, and HR services.  It has made a lot of inroads in Canada as far as payroll services are concerned. 

There is now news that Canada has now removed limits on the working hours of international students just to give you some insights into the labour employment laws in Canada which we are familiar with and connected with the payroll processing that we do for global clients in Canada.

Minimum employment rights under Canada Labour Law

1. Working hours
2. Right to disconnect
3. Benefits
4. Pay
5. Holidays and vacation
6. Sick leave

In this instance, the government of Canada has announced that for a two-year period starting January 2023, Canada will extend work permit eligibility to spouses, common-law partners, and working-age dependents of temporary workers of all skill levels

Subject: Government of CANADA announces 2-year period starting January 2023 of extending work permits to spouses, working age dependents and common-law partners

For greater details, appended below is the complete news item

At a Glance

• The government of Canada has announced that for a two-year period starting January 2023, Canada will extend work permit eligibility to spouses, common-law partners, and working-age dependents of temporary workers of all skill levels.
• Currently, only spouses are eligible for a work permit if the principal applicant is working in an occupation the government considers high-skilled.
• It is anticipated that the measure will result in family members of over 200,000 foreign workers being able to work in Canada, helping the country address pressing labour shortages.

The situation

The government of Canada has announced that for a two-year period starting January 2023, Canada will extend work permit eligibility to spouses, common-law partners, and working-age dependents of temporary workers of all skill levels. Currently, only spouses are eligible for a work permit if the principal applicant is working in an occupation the government considers highly skilled.

A closer look

The government will be implementing the measure in three phases:

• Phase 1 will enable family members of foreign workers entering Canada through the high-wage stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program or the International Mobility Program to apply for an open work permit in Canada. Open work permits allow foreign nationals to work independently or for any employer in Canada.
• Phase 2 aims to expand the benefit to the family members of workers from the low-wage stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. This would include families of workers in the health care, trades, and hospitality industries, among others.
• Phase 3 will include consultations with agricultural partners and stakeholders to assess the operational feasibility of expanding the benefit to family members of agricultural workers.

Impact

Allowing additional family members of foreign workers to work while in Canada should make the country a more desirable destination for foreign nationals seeking to relocate with their families while providing employers with a wider pool of workers to address labour shortages. According to the government, the measure will grant 200,000 foreign workers’ family members the right to work in Canada.

Background

The fast pace of Canada’s post-COVID-19 economic recovery has made it difficult for employers to find the workers they need. As a result, and especially in 2022, the government has prioritized and encouraged addressing labour shortages and talent attraction through immigration as a central part of Canada’s economic recovery.

In the past two months alone, there have been improvements in the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program; an increase in the validity of work and residence authorization under Provincial Nominee Programs; a new francophone immigration action plan in Nova Scotia; extension of invitations to apply under the Parents and Grandparents program; and work authorization improvements for student permit holders among other initiatives.

These initiatives show the government’s determination to continue trying to attract foreign nationals, while it deals with a significant backlog of visa applications that have created longer than normal visa processing times.

Looking ahead

Immigration continues to play a vital role in addressing Canada’s labour shortages and the government will likely continue to implement policies aimed at attracting foreign nationals to help employers with their staffing needs. The recently-announced Immigration Levels Plan for 2023 – 2025 is evidence of the government’s ongoing commitment to encourage immigration into Canada to fill critical labour market shortages.

More details will be given later as the government implements all phases of the family work permit program.