the CanadaVisa Team - 08 July, 2015
Citizen and Immigration Canada released a bulletin today outlining the changes made to the assessment criteria for work permit applications for intra-company transferees (ICTs).
The new assessment criteria will now include a more thorough and extensive definition of “specialized knowledge.” Applicants must now possess a high degree of both proprietary knowledge and advanced expertise in their field. Advanced expertise refers to knowledge and abilities that are specific to a particular field, and unusual in the Canadian labour market.
Additionally, selected applicants with the “specialized knowledge” described above must be paid in a manner befitting of their level of expertise. Minimum wage for ICTs will thus be assessed according to prevailing wage levels for each specific occupation. The mandatory wage policy will not affect NAFTA professionals.
The changes to the assessment criteria come as a result of the changes 2012-2013 Economic Action Plan, in which the government outlined its objective to better align the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) with labour market demands.
