Can I start working for my employer right away once they submit the LMIA and work permit application? Wait time is about 3 months, but that is a huge barrier to getting employers to hire me... What kinds of options are there? Can my employer just have me start working for no pay and then pay me later when the LMIA goes through? What else?
The LMIA application takes 3 months but my employer needs me NOW
- Thread starter happilyfreckled
- Start date
No - you certainly cannot start working now. You cannot start working until you have an approved work permit (which won't happen until after the LMIA is approved).
Working for no pay or being paid later is illegal and will put your future in Canada in jeopardy.
There are no other options. You have to wait for the LMIA to be approved AND for your work permit to be approved before you can start working.
Working for no pay or being paid later is illegal and will put your future in Canada in jeopardy.
There are no other options. You have to wait for the LMIA to be approved AND for your work permit to be approved before you can start working.
If I leave the country and begin working as a contractor from a virtual office, that would work, right?
Yes - you would have to remain outside of Canada until the work permit is approved.happilyfreckled said:
The immigration department is disabling companies to hire the workers they need at the time that they need them. A 3 month wait period is quite long -- especially when you add a month or two at the beginning to submit the LMIA itself. I find it really tough to believe that the immigration department doesn't have a way for companies to begin getting the help they need while waiting for the long-term LMIA work visa to process. What am I missing here?
There's nothing you're missing. The LMIA process is structured to give priority / preference to Canadian seeking work and to make it difficult for companies to hire foreign workers.happilyfreckled said:
Okay, what if I enroll in full-time school? Then I could get an open work permit while I'm a student and I could start working for my employer while the LMIA/work visa application is processing for 6 months, right?
You would qualify for an off campus work permit if your course is full time and meets the off campus work permit requirements. This work permit would allow you to work up to 20 hours per week (not full time) and you would need to remain in school full time in order to continue to be allowed to work legally. It's too late to obtain a study permit for the fall semester. So the earliest you could secure a study permit is for the January term.happilyfreckled said:
Okay, great, so that company which hires me part-time could start going through the LMIA process and we could wait out the 6-month work permit processing time WHILE I am already working for them. Right?
As scylla said, you are too late to apply for fall term, so January term is the earliest you could apply for. Even if the study permit is approved before then, you would not be allowed to start working until you actually started your studies in January.happilyfreckled said:
You could - but two warnings:happilyfreckled said:
(1) Too late for a September start. The earliest this would be possible is January 2017.
(2) Doing this increases your chances of the work permit being refused. CIC may feel you abused the student visa process by using it for the purpose of starting work with your employer early - and could deny your work permit. I would forget about the study permit and wait for the LMIA supported work permit.
How do you guys know so much about all of this stuff? Are you immigration lawyers?
Today, a friend told me I CAN begin working for my employer during the waiting period for the work visa. He said I can do this by going through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) with the intention of getting an LMIA.
Today, a friend told me I CAN begin working for my employer during the waiting period for the work visa. He said I can do this by going through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) with the intention of getting an LMIA.
Your friend has no idea what he is talking about. What he is suggesting is illegal work. If you want a future in Canada, you need to avoid working illegally and follow the rules.happilyfreckled said:
Tell your friend to point out exactly where on the CIC web site this specific rule is quoted. (Hint: It doesn't exist. So he's not going to be able to find it.)
well employ an immigration lawyer then if the advice on here from posters some of whom have posted answers in thousands is of no use to you. If you are found to be doing anything illegal you stand the risk of being excluded from the country for years and can forget PR.happilyfreckled said:
So dont listen to the friend consult a professional if the feedback on this forum doesnt match what you want hear or at least get the friend to share the CIC link stating the facts.
Ultimately it is still going to take months for any approval process whether it is this scheme your friend is suggesting or the actual LMIA. You would not be able to just get off the plane and start work.Just for info here are details of the official TFWP http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/employers/temp-foreign-worker-program.asp not as straight forward