Breaking News: Canada Ends Visitor To Work Permit Policy Effective August 28

Canada ends visitor to work permit policy effective today, 28th of August 2024. In a significant shift in policy, Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has totally ended the public policy which allowed visitors to apply for work permit and work in Canada.

The IRCC has ended this policy effective August 28th. The policy was a temporary one which would have expired on 28th February 2025. With about 6 months to the expiration date, the policy has been scrapped.

Effective today, August 28th 2024, the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has terminated the temporarily public policy which allowed temporary foreign nationals to apply for work permit with Canada.

However, applications for work permits which were submitted before August 28th will be processed under the now-defunct policy. The non-defunct policy allows a prohibited or scrapped policy to be proceeded under certain conditions.

The temporary public policy was introduced in August 2020 as a response to the novel COVID-19 pandemic. This policy has been a supporter for most foreign nationals in Canada, with a visit visa.

The IRCC introduced this policy mainly to tackle the issues that erupted from the COVID-19 pandemic. The policy allowed foreign nationals on a visit visa to apply for a work permit within Canada.

To ensure the integrity and the genuineness of the immigration system, the IRCC decided to end the policy to allow more foreign nationals from misusing the policy. The policy was terminated six months before the end date. Additionally, the press release which was seen stated the intentions of some citizens using the policy to deceive foreign nationals into working without the right authorization.

Since the beginning of COVID-19, the population of temporary residents have risen greatly and this has become an issue for the IRCC. The Canadian government’s goal is to maintain a fair and balanced immigration system.

The sudden termination of the temporary public policy is likely to cause a major disruption for visitors in Canada currently planning on applying for a work permit. Foreign nationals on the visit visa who did not apply for a work permit before the termination would have to look for other alternatives if they still want to work.

Additionally, an option for these victims is to leave the county and reapply from other countries, or using other immigration pathways to gain a work visa. This sudden termination was done at the time when there is a rise in temporary residents in the nation. As of 2023, over 800,000 international students moved to Canada with more than 400,000 being temporary workers.

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