On June 20, 2014, Ministers Jason Kenney and Chris Alexander held a press conference to introduce the International Mobility Program (IMP). The IMP includes all streams of work permit applications that are exempt from the requirement to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) because they are deemed to provide a competitive advantage to Canada or reciprocal benefits to Canadians. These work permit streams previously fell under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). Here is what every Canadian employer needs to know about the new IMP:
- Employers hiring through the IMP will now have to submit the job offer and other relevant information to Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) before the temporary foreign worker (TFW) may apply for a work permit. The mechanism for this has yet to be announced.
- A compliance system mirroring that which is in place under the TFWP will be introduced, along with stiff penalties for employers who are found to be in violation of the rules.
- A $230 compliance fee will be introduced to cover the costs associated with the compliance system, payable by employers in cases of work permits that are employer specific and LMIA-exempt.
- A $100 privilege fee will be charged to TFWs applying for non-employer specific work permits (also known as open work permits), payable at the same time as the $155 work permit application fee.
- The threshold for determining whether specialized knowledge exists for the purposes of the intra-company transferee category has been raised.
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