Relatives of foreign workers will be eligible for permits

As of today, January 30, family members of some temporary foreign workers (TFWs) will be eligible for work permits.

Immigration Minister Sean Fraser said he will temporarily extend work permits to family members of top applicants in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and the International Mobility Program (IMP). The move will help Canada combat chronic labor shortages.

Under the new policy, eligibility for a work permit is extended to those who meet the following criteria:

Is a spouse, common-law partner or dependent child of a work permit holder who:

Is working in a job in any Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities (TEER) category (0 to 5), or; Is the principal applicant and holds an open work permit (example: postgraduate work permit holders at all skill levels).

Is a spouse, domestic partner, or dependent child of an economic class permanent residence applicant who holds a work permit.

Until the measure went into effect today, work permits were only available to spouses and family members of principal applicants in high-skilled occupations. By temporarily issuing work permits to spouses, dependents and domestic partners of TFWs, the government hopes to alleviate some of the stress on workers by improving financial stability and making it easier for families to stay together and integrate their communities.

Between January and October 2022, Canada issued more than 645,000 work permits. This is almost four times more than the 163,000 issued during the same period in 2021.