Foreign workers and overseas students who want to bring their spouses or partners to Canada will now face further challenges. Canada has modified open work permit eligibility for family members of foreign workers and international students. Only the spouses of specific foreign workers and students are eligible to apply for a family OWP from January 21, 2025.
Spouses of international students enrolled in master’s programs lasting 16 months or more, doctoral programs, or other professional and qualifying programs will be the only ones eligible for family open work permits.
With the exception of those on the ineligible list, you can work for any employer in Canada with an open work visa, which is not job-specific. Your open work permit may contain restrictions. Your work permit will specify your restrictions if you have a restricted open work permit.
Additionally, spouses of foreign workers working in TEER 0 or 1 jobs or certain TEER 2 or 3 occupations in industries with labor shortages or associated with government goals will not be eligible for family OWPs. Jobs in the natural and applied sciences, construction, healthcare, education, sports, and the military are among them. In 2025, the complete list will be accessible on January 21.
Training, Education, Experience, and Responsibilities (TEER) categories 0, 1, 2, and 3 of the National Occupational Classification (NOC) are regarded as high-skilled occupations.
The foreign worker must also have at least 16 months remaining on their work permit when their spouse files for the OWP. Dependent children of foreign workers will no longer be eligible. The open work permits that were permitted by the previous measures and have not yet expired will remain in force.
Family members (spouses and dependent children) may seek to renew their work permit in Canada if the principal applicant’s work permit was granted too short or if students may require additional time to finish their degree.
They must, however, apply per the same requirements as the present work permit, and the renewal’s requested period must coincide with the principal applicant’s current study or work permit.
Family members can now apply for any kind of work permit under Canada’s work permit programs if they are no longer eligible for a family OWP.
The Canadian government stated in December 2024 that work permits would no longer be granted at ports of entry. Both the first work permit and the extension must be applied for online. You will no longer be able to work when you return to Canada if you left as a worker on maintained status. This implies that until your application is accepted, you are unable to work.
The way open work permits for family members of work permit holders in high- or low-skilled occupations are processed was modified in April 2024. If the applicant claimed in their application to be related to a worker, the officer only needed to note the relevant category code based on the evidence of the principal applicant’s skill level that was provided in their application.
IRCC officials were not allowed to reject applications because the applicant’s code in their documentary evidence or the labor market impact assessment (LMIA) exemption code was inaccurate.