Immigration Minister Marc Miller and Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault unveiled significant changes to Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) at a joint press conference.
The TFWP, designed to fill labor market gaps with foreign workers, required businesses to submit a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) demonstrating a lack of qualified Canadians or permanent residents for the role. During the pandemic, temporary measures were introduced to alleviate labor market pressures, including an extended LMIA validity period of 12 months.
However, with the current economic landscape shifting and job vacancies closing the unemployment gap, Minister Boissonnault has highlighted the necessity to roll back these measures. Effective May 1st, 2024, the LMIA validity period will revert to 6 months, except for employers under the Recognised Employer Pilot program.
Additionally, the cap on low-wage TFWP workers, set at 20% of a Canadian business’ workforce, saw a temporary increase to 30% for select sectors in 2022. From May 1st, 2024, only the construction and healthcare sectors will retain this higher cap, while exemptions for the agriculture sector and seasonal employers remain unchanged.
Minister Miller emphasized the broader context of these changes within Canada’s immigration system, which has seen a surge in temporary residents, now comprising 6.2% of the population. The government aims to reduce this to 5% over the next three years, ensuring a well-managed and sustainable immigration system aligned with the country’s needs.
These modifications underscore Canada’s commitment to balancing labor market demands with the integrity and sustainability of its immigration framework.
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