5 Tips For Hiring Foreign Workers With An LMIA In Canada

It might appear difficult and frightening to hire international labor, but it doesn't have to be! Make sure your company is eligible for the Low-Skill Labor Market Impact Assessment before hiring anyone who isn't a Canadian citizen or permanent resident (LMIA). If so, employing international labor should be considerably simpler if you follow these procedures!

  Canada Immigration   Nov 5, 2022   0   1155  Add to Reading List
5 Tips For Hiring Foreign Workers With An LMIA In Canada

There are several procedures you must take if you want to employ foreign workers in Canada. Prior to recruiting foreign employees, it's crucial to remember that an LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment) permission is required. After receiving approval, you may begin the recruiting process with these five advice for employing foreign employees with an LMIA in Canada. Approval contains a number of conditions and limits that must be satisfied.

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In most cases, employers are required to get government approval before hiring foreign workers now called a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) formerly known as a Labour Market Opinion (LMO). An LMIA is issued in cases where a Canadian employer is unable to fill the position with a local Canadian worker. The main means of demonstrating this is through advertising the jobs in Canada and making efforts to hire Canadians, proving that the applicants are not qualified for the position offered.

Employment and Social Development Canada will approve the LMIA if an employer applies. A valid LMIA, or "confirmation letter," verifies the requirement for a foreign worker. The potential employee can apply for a work permit with a job offer letter, contract, LMIA copy, and number when the business gets it.

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New Rules for LMIA Canada 2022

Recently there have been slight changes to the LMIA process in 2021! Under the new LMIA system job positions are to be divided into just two categories: high-wage and low-wage. Jobs are considered high wage if the salary meets or exceeds the median wage in the province where the job will be performed, and low-wage if the salary is below the median.

The application fee for LMIA requests is now $1000 per worker, an increase from the $275 per worker fee for LMOs.

The new rules for LMIA in Canada will be coming into effect in 2022. Until then, there are a few things you can do to prepare your business for the change.
1) Determine whether you will need an LMIA for your business or project.
2) If so, meet with immigration experts to determine which workers may require a work permit and how many work permits might be required.
3) Consider if any other staff need an LMIA.

1) Familiarize Yourself With The LMIA Process

Three primary procedures make up the employment of a foreign worker in Canada: first, the business must submit an application for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). Second, the company must make a job offer with a specified start date and compensation. Third, before the start date specified in the LMIA application, the employer must execute an employment contract with the prospective employee and present it to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). Additionally, employers must give any checklist items that need a document and guarantee that it is filled out entirely and precisely.
The final stage is for IRCC to determine whether or not all parties involved satisfied the requirements outlined in IRCC's policy. If so, the IRCC will approve the LMIA application and issue an approval letter, which must be shown to border services officers as proof of authority to work in Canada while crossing the border.

2) Know What Documentation You Need

Before employing a foreign worker in Canada, there are a few things you should be aware of. Employers first need to submit an LMIA application to the Minister of Employment and Social Development (ESDC). Second, the government charges a cost to get an LMIA. Third, if the prevailing wage determined by ESDC is greater than the Canadian minimum wage, firms must pay it. Fourth, companies are required to offer suitable working conditions and pay that complies with regional norms.

3) Post The Job On The Government Of Canada Job Bank

The Government of Canada has a job bank that's specifically for jobs in the Government of Canada. And it also includes information on how to hire foreign workers with an LMIA.
1) Create a profile and save it. 2) Click Add A Job. 3) Complete the fields, including how many hours you want them to work. 4) Add how much you're willing to pay per hour. 5) Click Submit.

4) Use A Recruitment Agency That specializes in foreign workers

A recruiting service that specializes in hiring foreign employees might be useful if you're wanting to hire international workers in Canada with an LMIA. They may help with the formalities and paper work involved in recruiting a foreign worker. It is advisable to seek aid from these organizations since they have knowledge of circumstances like this. If you are unable to do so on your own or through other channels, you may also discover suitable employees using our service.

5) Follow Up With Potential Candidates

You might be wondering, how to hire foreign workers with an LMIA in Canada? Here are 5 tips for hiring foreign workers with an LMIA:
1. Get a Labour Market Impact Assessment
2. Determine their salary and what benefits they will get
3. Offer accommodations if needed
4. Be willing to offer part-time work or temporary work if needed
5. Assign them a mentor in your company that can help them integrate into the company culture and ensure their success. It’s important that you do not overwhelm the new employee so give them just enough work to keep busy until they have time to learn on the job.

LMIA Requirements

When hiring high-wage foreign workers, a transition plan is an important requirement for all Canadian employers seeking to employ a temporary foreign worker(s) at a wage that is equal to or above the provincial/territorial median hourly wage. 

The Transition Plan is a Schedule C form to the Application for an LMIA. The Transition Plan represents commitments that an employer has agreed to undertake specific to the occupation and work location for which they are seeking TFWs.

Employing Low-Wage Employees

For requesting an LMIA, a Transition Plan is not required when recruiting low-wage workers. Low-wage workers are subject to a limitation that restricts the amount of employees a firm may hire, unlike high-wage workers.

Employers in Canada with more than 10 workers will only be allowed a maximum of 10% of low-wage temporary foreign workers. To give Canadian companies time to switch to a Canadian workforce, this cap will be gradually implemented over the following two years.

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How to Hire if an LMIA is Required

You can recruit temporary foreign workers under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) to meet labor and skill shortages. You should give a copy of the confirmation letter and instruct each temporary foreign worker to apply for a work visa when the LMIA has been approved.

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How to Hire if You Don’t Need an LMIA

The International Mobility Program (IMP) lets you hire temporary foreign workers without an LMIA. If you hire an employee through this program you will need to

  • pay an employer compliance fee
  • submit an offer of employment form through the Employer Portal

Processing Time for LMIA

In 2021, there were a lot of LMIA applications sent to Canada, which might lead to longer processing periods and potential delays, especially with the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

To assist you in estimating how long it will take to examine your application, the following table provides recent processing times for each LMIA stream:

Application Type Avg. Processing Time
Global Talent Stream* 8 business days
Agricultural Stream 13 business days
Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program 7 business days
Permanent Residence Stream 17 business days
In-Home Caregivers 13 business days
High-Wage Stream 33 business days
Low-Wage Stream 29 business days

The 10-business-day service requirement for the Global Talent Stream and applications that are eligible for expedited service is anticipated to be satisfied 80% of the time. The first business day following the receipt of the application is when the service standard date begins.

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When LMIA is Approved, What Is the Next Step?

You should send a copy of this letter and Annex A to the foreign worker when your LMIA application is granted. The foreign employee can then apply for a work permit after that! Depending on where a work permit application was submitted, processing dates may vary.

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To apply for a work permit, a worker needs

  • a job offer letter
  • a contract
  • a copy of the LMIA
  • the LMIA number

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Final Thought

1. Before employing anybody who wishes to work in Canada, you must confirm that they are eligible for an LMIA.
2. You must take into account all of the expenses related to recruiting a foreign worker, including the wages they will get, the taxes they will incur, and the insurance premiums they will incur for your company. 3. It's crucial to comprehend why and how this may be shown if you wish to recruit a foreign worker because you think they will be more valuable than their Canadian equivalents. 4. Keep in mind that, depending on the sort of employment being offered and the nation where the applicant resides, different forms of work permits may have different criteria or limits on them if an applicant is eligible for one type but not another.