The purpose of a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is to determine whether a employment of a foreign worker will have a positive or neutral impact on the Canadian labor market. It is a document that an employer in Canada may need to obtain before hiring a foreign worker. A positive LMIA demonstrates that there is a need for a foreign worker to fill the job and that no Canadian worker or permanent resident is available to do the job.
The assessment aims to protect Canada’s domestic job marketplace and ensure that the arrival of the foreign worker will not hurt workers in Canada. It also requires employers to give priority consideration to Canadian residents and citizens over foreign nationals. The LMIA application process varies depending on the wage of the person being hired, and employers must meet specific criteria, including providing evidence of their need to hire a foreign worker and their efforts to recruit Canadians.
The LMIA application process varies depending on the wage of the person being hired, and employers must meet specific criteria, including providing evidence of their need to hire a foreign worker and their efforts to recruit Canadians. The processing time for LMIA work permit applications is between 10 days and 2 months, and the success rate of LMIA applications is between 60% and 85%.
A Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is valid to support a temporary foreign worker’s (TFW) work permit application to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for a maximum period of 12 months after it is issued. The LMIA expiry date is the date by which the TFW must have applied for a work permit. If the TFW has not applied by that date, the LMIA is no longer valid, and employers must apply for a new LMIA if they still wish to hire a TFW. After a positive LMIA is issued, a temporary foreign worker has six months to use it to apply for a work permit. No extensions will be given. If the six-month period expires and the foreign worker does not submit a work permit application, a new LMIA application is required.
Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) can also be renewed. However, the LMIA is valid to support a temporary foreign worker’s work permit application for a maximum period of 12 months after it is issued. If the temporary foreign worker has not applied for a work permit by the LMIA expiry date, the LMIA is no longer valid, and the employer must apply for a new LMIA if they still wish to hire the foreign worker.
Citations:
[1] https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/services/foreign-workers/lmia-expiry.html
[2] https://ircc.canada.ca/english/helpcentre/answer.asp?qnum=163
