Changes to the TFWP: 2024 and 2023

 

During the pandemic Canada implemented several temporary measures to ease labour shortages. In 2024, the government announced they are pulling back many of those temporary measures as labour market conditions change.

Three major changes were announced in 2024:

1. Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) are valid for six months (decreased from 12 months) to ensure accurate labour market needs.

2. A maximum of 20% (decreased from 30%) of an employer’s total workforce can come through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) low-wage stream.

3. Employers must explore every option before applying for a LMIA.

There were three changes announced in 2023 that are still applicable:

1. Beginning January 2024, employers must review Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) wages annually to ensure they reflect increases to prevailing wage rates.

2. The creation of the Recognized Employer Pilot (REP) program.

3. The LMIA Online Portal is now the primary method for applying for LMIAs.

 

Six-month validity for LMIAs

The length of time a LMIA is valid determines how much time an employer has to hire a TFW and apply for their work permit once they have received a positive LMIA.

During the pandemic, the validity of LMIAs had been extended to 18 months. In 2023, this was reduced to 12 months, and now to six months.

This change does not apply to employers who are part of the REP.

 

Reduction to percentage of workforce who can be low-wage TFWs

In 2022 the government of Canada created the Workforce Solution Road Map to address high levels of job vacancies. One of the measures introduced at that time was an increase in the proportion of low-wage TFWs employers can hire. This allowed seven sectors to hire low-wage TFWs as up to 30% of their workforce. The 2024 changes have reduced that cap to 20% of an employer’s total workforce.

There are some exemptions to this reduction to 20%:

  • Construction

  • Hospitals, and nursing and residential care facilities

  • On-farm primary agriculture positions

  • Positions for which the employer is submitting an application to support a TFW’s permanent residence under the Express Entry program

  • Highly mobile (jobs that require regularly crossing inter-jurisdictional boundaries) or truly temporary positions (jobs that last 120 calendar days or less, and won’t be filled after the TFW leaves the country)

  • Seasonal work, such as fish and seafood processing or tourism positions, that experience fluctuations in demand. TFWs in this stream have a maximum employment duration of 270 days

 

Asylum seekers included in pre-LMIA efforts to recruit

Before applying for an LMIA, an employer must attempt to employ Canadian citizens and permanent residents. With the 2024 changes, employers must also try to employ asylum seekers with work permits before applying for an LMIA.

Before applying for a LMIA the employer must meet these minimum recruitment efforts:

  • Advertise on the Government of Canada’s Job Bank, and

  • Conduct at least two additional methods of recruitment consistent with the occupation the employer is seeing to fill. Each of these methods must target a different underrepresented group. These groups include:

-   indigenous people

-  vulnerable youth

-  newcomers

-  persons with disabilities

-  asylum seekers with valid work permits

Minimum advertising requirements are suspended for employers looking to hire TFWs in primary agriculture. This suspension is effective from January 2022 until June 30, 2025.

 

Annual wage review

As of January 1, 2024, employers must annually review TFW wages to ensure they reflect the prevailing wage rates in their industry. A wage review is required at the start of a TFW’s period of employment regardless of the wage indicated on the LMIA application.

When a wage review is done, the updated wage will either be higher than before, or the same. The updated wage cannot go below the wage indicated in the positive LMIA, even if the prevailing wage decreases.

Employers can check prevailing wage based on the Canada Job Bank posted wages. For employers in Quebec, they have their own wage table.

Employers who don’t update wages accordingly may be subject to sanctions, such as monetary penalties, or a ban from the program.

 

Recognized Employer Pilot (REP)

The REP was launched in 2023 as a three-year pilot program with two phases. This program is for employers who regularly access the TFWP, and who meet the highest standards for working and living conditions and worker protection.

Employers in the REP have access to certain benefits, which include:

·        LMIA validity of up to 36 months

·        streamlined applications for LMIAs for additional workers

·        Job Bank designation to show their recognized status

Phase One started in September 2023. During this Phase, the government is accepting applications for employers in several industries wishing to join the REP program. Phase One occupations include livestock labourers, harvesting labourers and nursery and greenhouse labourers.

Phase Two started in January 2024. Phase Two includes applications for more occupations, such as engineering managers, physiotherapists, cooks, carpenters and more.

For a full list of Phase One and Two occupations see here.

Applications for both phases end September 16, 2024. The REP program is scheduled to conclude September 31, 2026.

REP employers will still have access to 36 months validity for their LMIAs, despite the 2024 reduction to 6 month LMIAs for the TFWP.

For more information about the REP, see here.

 

LMIA Online Portal

As of April 2023, the TFWP has transitioned to using the LMIA Online Portal as the primary method to apply for LMIAs.