There is a new open work permit introduced by the Canadian government for those immigrants who have chosen the Temporary Residency to Permanent Residency pathway. This was announced by the IRCC and is available for those candidates who have submitted an application to the TR to PR pathway and are waiting for the results to be declared.
This pathway requires the candidates to maintain their temporary resident status till the immigration authorities have made a final decision on their permanent residency application. This new work permit opens up options for those essential workers and graduate international students who have submitted an application for this pathway and have gained a work permit that may expire before they receive the results of their application.
The permit has begun welcoming applications from eligible candidates from 26th July 2021 and the permits issued will remain valid till 31st December 2022. If you want to get an extension on your work permit before the current work permit expires, you will be required to maintain your temporary resident status. You should also have to be legally eligible to work without a work visa in Canada through the same conditions as the original work permit while the application for the new work visa is under processing.
The spouse, dependent child or common-law partner of an applicant of the TR to PR pathway can also submit an application to poly for this new open work permit if they are already living in Canada. You must be aware if you qualify for an extension of your status under another existing program or through temporary measures that have been introduced due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Know your options and choose the best one among them for you.
The Open Work Permit Eligibility Requirements
To be able to apply for this work permit, you must fulfill the following requirements:
- You should have applied to any one of the streams available in the TR to PR pathway.
- The work permit you have currently should be about to expire in the next 4 months.
- You should have the status of a temporary resident, a maintained status or you should be eligible for a restoration of your status when you apply for this pathway.
- You need to have a physical presence in Canada when you are submitting your application for this new open work permit.
These criteria need to be fulfilled in addition to the criteria mentioned below.
- Residency
You should be residing in Canada.
- Application for the TR to PR path
You should have submitted an application for one of the streams under the TR to PR pathways. You should also have the following :
- IRCC should have sent you an email as a confirmation of your submission of a PR application for migrating as a worker who has Canadian work experience or as a worker fluent in French who has Canada work experience in essential occupations or you could be a graduate from a Canadian education institution with post-secondary level education.
- You should have received a letter from the Client Support Centre when you put in a request for an alternative format of application.
- Authorized to work
When you submit an application for Canadian permanent residency, you will have the authorization to work with one of the following:
- A work permit that is valid.
- Authorized to work with a work visa.
- Authorized to work through a public policy.
- Language requirements
When you submitted an application for permanent residency, you would have been required to fulfill the language skills required for that stream. You should have had the valid results from a language test from an authorized organization when you submitted the application.
- Immigration status
When you are submitting your application for the newly opened work permit:
- You should have a temporary resident status that is valid.
- You should have applied for an extension on your status or have maintained your status.
- You should fulfill the requirements for restoring your status.
Family Members In Canada
If you meet the following eligibility criteria, you can apply for an open work permit.
- You should be a spouse, a dependent child or a common-law partner of the person who is the principal applicant.
- You should be 18+ in terms of age.
- You should be residing physically in Canada.
- You should have made a submission of your application form online.
- The person who is the principal applicant should meet the eligibility for the open work permit through a public policy.
- The principal applicant should have included you as a family member who will be accompanying them to Canada in their PR application.
If you are the holder of a valid work permit, you will be able to apply within 4 months before the expiration of your current work visa. The same time limit applies to the accompanying family members. If you have a maintained status or are eligible for a restoration of your status or if you are the spouse or common-law partner of the principal applicant you can apply anytime.
Steps To Apply
You are required to submit an online application for this program, applying at the port of entry into Canada is not allowed. The principal applicant’s family members who are accompanying must apply together.
Step 1:
Ensure that you have gathered everything you will need to apply as well as submit an online application form. This includes a camera or a scanner for creating electronic copies of the documents that you will have to submit, all the necessary travel documents and accompanying documents, as well as a valid credit or debit card.
Step 2:
The next step would be paying the required fee. If you are exempted from having to pay a holding fee of $100, then do not pay it. A $155 fee is required as a work permit processing fee. The open work permit holder fee need not be paid by you, but the processing fee needs to be paid before you submit your online application. After the payment is complete, keep the receipt because you will have to upload an electronic copy of it to your online application.
Step 3:
Next, you have to create your online account, this is needed to submit your application online. The account will be useful when you are submitting the forms for your application or when you need to check the status of your application.
Step 4:
Next, you need to check your document checklist. You will answer some questions and based on that you will be sent a personalized document checklist. So answer these questions correctly.
Step 5:
Next, you need to read all the provided instructions carefully and fill out the required forms. After you receive your document checklist, you will have to fill the application forms and submit all the required supporting documents. You will also receive a guide on what is the correct and appropriate way to fill out the forms.
