Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (“IRCC”) International Mobility Program has a bridging open work permit program for temporary foreign workers currently working in Canada who have submitted permanent residence applications under the Federal Skilled Worker Program (“FSWP“), the Canadian Experience Class (“CEC“), the Provincial Nominee Program (“PNP“), or the Federal Skilled Trades Program (“FSTP“). Bridging open work permits are a huge and positive development for Canadian employers with employees who have filed permanent residence applications under one of Canada’s economic programs. CIC’s introduction of bridging work permits removes a significant issue which many temporary foreign workers previously encountered, namely that they were unable to extend their work permits during CIC’s processing of their permanent resident applications without their employers first having to obtain positive Labour Market Impact Assessments, an uncertain process which often takes months. Eligibility Temporary foreign workers currently working in Canada are eligible to apply for a bridging work permit if they: are a foreign national in Canada; have valid status on a work permit that is due to expire within 4 months; be the principal applicant on an appliation for permanent residence under the FSWP, CEC, PNP or FSTC; received a positive eligibility decision on their permanent residence … Read More