Swedish working holiday visa expires Jan 2 2016

[kristen1234]

My fiancee's working holiday visa expires Jan 2 2016 and we are putting together the application for common law sponsorship inland, from what I understand we should submit an open work permit application along with the spousal sponsorship, but since the work permit can take up to 4 months (if not more) to come back, can he continue working in the meantime after his visa expires?

His boss is going to let him go in January if we don't come up with some evidence that he can keep working... thought about applying for an extension on his working holiday visa but I don't think you can do that unless you start that visa from scratch again?

Is our best plan of action to get the spousal application in with the work permit asap? Any other options for extending a work permit with a working holiday visa? I can't get through to CIC on the phone as usual.

On the website under work permits it says:

• "If you are applying for another work permit you must remain in Canada and meet the conditions of your original work permit"
  • "If you are applying for an extension before your work permit expires, you can keep working under the same condition of the current work permit until CIC makes a decision on your application"
    
    So I assume that means he can't continue working since the open work permit is a different one than his working holiday visa? Can we apply for an extension on work permit with form IMM5710? Also his visa was supposed to be for one year, but they gave him two years at the border the first time for some reason, which was nice but that may have used up the Swedish extension on his working holiday visa...
    
    its so confusing and I need to get this application submitted in the next week I'm so stressed! Sorry for all the questions but if anyone knows about this that would be great!
    

 

[scylla]

Working holiday visas are a special class of work permit that cannot be extended and don't benefit from implied status. He must stop working as soon as his IEC expires and won't be able to start working again until the OWP is approved. He cannot legally work between the time his IEC expires and his open work permit is approved.

The only alternatives would be to apply for a brand new IEC (not possible since the program is currently closed and won't reopen in time). Or for the employer to obtain an approved LMIA so that he can apply for a closed work permit (most likely not feasible due to the long LMIA processing times). For the second option to work, he would need to have the new closed work permit in hand before his working holiday visa expires.

 

[kristen1234]

Thanks for the detailed response, his work won't do the LMIA form we tried that awhile back. Unfortunate but thank you for confirming, I appreciate it.