Hello. I have some questions about the eligibility requirements for a dependent child of a temporary foreign worker to apply for an OWP as explained here: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/work-canada/permit/temporary/open-work-permit-spouses-dependent-children/eligibility.html
I am an international student here in Canada, with my husband on an SOWP and my two 19-year-old sons on study permits. My husband is currently employed as a low-skilled worker. I believe this makes my sons eligible to apply for the OWP but answers online are mixed, so I want to ask here with the information I’ve gathered.
The link I sent references “the principal foreign worker” multiple times and my current understanding is that it refers to the temporary foreign worker with the dependent family member who wants to apply for the OWP. But people online discussing this subject use it interchangeably with the term “principal foreign national,” referring to who between a couple first got a work or study permit, which in the context of my initial student application would be me rather than my husband. So what exactly does the page mean with the principal foreign worker? If the page does mean to use principal foreign national, in my context, does that still refer to me, the international student, or could it refer to the family member who would be referenced in the application (i.e. if my sons apply for the OWP, we would use my husband’s job letter, as he fits the requirements)?
Adding to the confusion is how for the high-skilled workers, there is an exception for eligibility when “You hold a spousal open work permit” (referring again to the principal foreign worker). The fact that this line is not present in the low–skilled workers section leads me to believe that dependents of foreign workers with SOWPs are indeed eligible for the OWP. It is also worth noting that the word “You” is actually emphasized in bold on the page, so I don't think it could have been a mistake. And since there doesn’t seem to be a situation where a person gets an SOWP while also being the principal foreign national, it’s really seeming like the principal foreign worker here doesn’t necessarily have to be the principal foreign national between a couple.
Let me know what you think. If anyone has tried applying for their dependent’s OWP this way, I would really love to hear their experience.
I am an international student here in Canada, with my husband on an SOWP and my two 19-year-old sons on study permits. My husband is currently employed as a low-skilled worker. I believe this makes my sons eligible to apply for the OWP but answers online are mixed, so I want to ask here with the information I’ve gathered.
The link I sent references “the principal foreign worker” multiple times and my current understanding is that it refers to the temporary foreign worker with the dependent family member who wants to apply for the OWP. But people online discussing this subject use it interchangeably with the term “principal foreign national,” referring to who between a couple first got a work or study permit, which in the context of my initial student application would be me rather than my husband. So what exactly does the page mean with the principal foreign worker? If the page does mean to use principal foreign national, in my context, does that still refer to me, the international student, or could it refer to the family member who would be referenced in the application (i.e. if my sons apply for the OWP, we would use my husband’s job letter, as he fits the requirements)?
Adding to the confusion is how for the high-skilled workers, there is an exception for eligibility when “You hold a spousal open work permit” (referring again to the principal foreign worker). The fact that this line is not present in the low–skilled workers section leads me to believe that dependents of foreign workers with SOWPs are indeed eligible for the OWP. It is also worth noting that the word “You” is actually emphasized in bold on the page, so I don't think it could have been a mistake. And since there doesn’t seem to be a situation where a person gets an SOWP while also being the principal foreign national, it’s really seeming like the principal foreign worker here doesn’t necessarily have to be the principal foreign national between a couple.
Let me know what you think. If anyone has tried applying for their dependent’s OWP this way, I would really love to hear their experience.
