How to Get a Canada Work Visa: Eligibility, Documents, and Fees

To get a Canada work visa, you apply to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) for a work permit that matches your situation, provide biometrics, and pick up the physical permit from an immigration officer when you arrive at a Canadian port of entry. Canada doesn’t issue a document called a “work visa” as such; the authorization to work is a work permit, and if you’re from a country whose citizens need a visitor visa or an Electronic Travel Authorization, IRCC issues that alongside the permit at no extra charge.1Government of Canada. Should I Apply for an eTA or a Visa When I Apply for a Work Permit The steps below walk through the decision points in the order you’ll hit them.

Do You Need a Work Permit at All

The default rule: if you’re a foreign national and you want to work in Canada, you need a permit.2Government of Canada. Work Permit – Canada.ca A handful of categories are exempt under specific conditions: business visitors attending meetings or conferences, foreign diplomats and government officials, performing artists, athletes competing in events, news reporters covering stories, and emergency service providers.3Government of Canada. Work Without a Permit List International students with a valid study permit can also work off-campus in many cases without a separate work permit. If none of those exemptions apply, keep reading.

Figure Out Which Permit You Need

This is the decision that shapes everything else in your application. Canada issues two broad kinds of work permits, and within them, two funding tracks.

Open vs. Employer-Specific

An open work permit lets you work for almost any employer in Canada. Your employer doesn’t need a Labour Market Impact Assessment or a job offer submitted through the IRCC employer portal.4Government of Canada. What Is an Open Work Permit But open permits go only to specific groups, not to anyone who asks:

  • International graduates from eligible Canadian institutions who qualify for a Post-Graduation Work Permit.
  • Spouses or common-law partners of certain foreign workers or international students.
  • People waiting on a permanent residence decision through the spouse or common-law partner in Canada class.
  • Workers on an employer-specific permit who are being abused or at risk of abuse in their job.
  • Refugee claimants and Convention refugees.
5Government of Canada. Who Can Apply for an Open Work Permit

An employer-specific work permit ties you to one employer, one job, and one location. Before you can apply, your employer has to give you either a copy of a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment or an offer of employment number from the IRCC employer portal (this number starts with “A” followed by seven digits).6Government of Canada. Guide 5487 – Applying for a Work Permit Outside Canada Changing employers or jobs later means a new permit.

LMIA-Based vs. LMIA-Exempt

A Labour Market Impact Assessment is a document your Canadian employer gets from Employment and Social Development Canada confirming there’s a genuine need to hire a foreign worker because no Canadian citizen or permanent resident is available. Your employer applies for it and pays a CAD $230 compliance fee.7Government of Canada. Pay Your Application Fees Online If the LMIA comes back positive, you include a copy with your work permit application.

Many work permits skip the LMIA. These fall under the International Mobility Program, which covers situations where Canada benefits economically, culturally, or through reciprocal agreements.8Government of Canada. Who You Can Hire Under the International Mobility Program LMIA-exempt streams include the International Experience Canada program for youth from countries with a mobility agreement, intra-company transfers, Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) professionals and traders, Post-Graduation Work Permits, and French-speaking workers outside Quebec.

If you’re a recent graduate of an eligible Canadian program of at least eight months, you have 180 days from completing your studies to apply for a Post-Graduation Work Permit, and language and field-of-study rules apply.9Government of Canada. Post-Graduation Work Permit – Who Can Apply If your spouse holds a Canadian work permit, spousal open work permit rules changed on January 21, 2025 and now depend on the principal applicant’s occupation level and whether they’re on a pathway to permanent residence.10Government of Canada. Open Work Permits for Family Members of Foreign Workers Both cases have detail worth checking on the IRCC eligibility pages before you apply.

Baseline Eligibility Requirements

Whatever category you fall under, IRCC expects every applicant to meet the same baseline:11Government of Canada. Work Permit – Who Can Apply

  • You’ll leave Canada when your permit expires.
  • You have enough money to support yourself (and any family with you) during your stay and for the trip home.
  • You have a clean criminal record; police clearance certificates may be requested from countries where you’ve lived.
  • You’re in good health, and you’ll take a medical exam if one is required.
  • You don’t pose a security risk.

The medical exam trips people up. If your job involves protecting public health (health care, childcare, or similar roles), you need an immigration medical exam no matter where you’re from or how long you’re staying.12Government of Canada. Find Out if You Need a Medical Exam for Your Temporary Resident Application For other occupations, whether the exam is required depends on your country of residence and the length of your stay. IRCC has an online tool that tells you whether your combination triggers it.

Documents to Gather

The exact list depends on your permit type, but a standard application from outside Canada usually needs:

  • A valid passport or travel document that lets you return to the country that issued it.
  • Two identical photos taken within the last six months, at least 35 mm by 45 mm, on quality photo paper against a white or light background. If you’re giving biometrics, a biometric photo is taken at the collection point, so paper photos aren’t needed then.13Government of Canada. Temporary Resident Visa Application Photograph Specifications
  • Proof of employment: for LMIA-based permits, the positive LMIA copy and your contract; for LMIA-exempt permits, the offer of employment number your employer generates in the IRCC portal.6Government of Canada. Guide 5487 – Applying for a Work Permit Outside Canada
  • Proof of qualifications: trade certificates, educational credentials, or a resume showing relevant experience.
  • Financial proof: bank statements or other evidence you can support yourself.
  • Family documents: marriage and birth certificates if family will accompany you.

Documents in a language other than English or French need certified translations. Uncertified translations aren’t accepted.

Fees

Add up what you’ll owe before you start:14Government of Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Application Fees – Fee List

  • Work permit processing fee: CAD $155 per person, same fee for extensions.
  • Open work permit holder fee: CAD $100 on top of the $155 if you’re applying for an open permit.
  • Biometrics fee: CAD $85 per person, or CAD $170 maximum for a family of two or more applying together.

An employer-specific work permit runs CAD $240 total (processing plus biometrics). An open work permit runs CAD $340 (processing plus the open work permit holder fee plus biometrics). Your employer separately pays the CAD $230 compliance fee when submitting the offer of employment.7Government of Canada. Pay Your Application Fees Online

How to Submit the Application

Most first-time applicants apply from outside Canada through the IRCC secure online portal. You create an account, fill in form IMM 1295, upload your documents, and pay by credit card.15Government of Canada. IRCC Secure Account – Sign In Paper applications through a Visa Application Centre are available in some countries, but online is faster and lets you track status in real time.

You can apply from within Canada only in specific situations: you already hold a valid study or work permit, your spouse or common-law partner does, you qualify for a Post-Graduation Work Permit with a still-valid study permit, you’re a CUSMA professional, or you’ve claimed refugee protection, among a few others.16Government of Canada. Work Permit – How to Apply If none of those fit, you apply from outside the country.

After You Apply

Once IRCC opens your application and confirms it’s complete, you get an acknowledgement of receipt.17Government of Canada. How Can I Check if My Application Has Been Received Shortly after, a Biometrics Instruction Letter arrives telling you where to give fingerprints and a photo.

Processing times vary widely by country and permit type and shift constantly, so check IRCC’s processing time tool for the current estimate on your situation. During processing, IRCC may ask for more documents or an interview. You can monitor status through your online account.

Approval abroad produces a Port of Entry Letter of Introduction. That letter isn’t the work permit. You show it to an immigration officer when you arrive at a Canadian border crossing or airport, and the officer issues the actual permit there. The permit names your employer, your work location, and how long you’re authorized to work.

If Your Application Is Refused

Refusals commonly cite criminal history (a single DUI can be enough), misrepresentation, inability to support yourself financially, medical conditions that could endanger public health or place excessive demand on health services, and security concerns.18Government of Canada. Reasons You May Be Inadmissible to Canada Overstaying or working without authorization on a previous stay also triggers inadmissibility.

You can ask the Federal Court of Canada to review the refusal.19Government of Canada. Apply to the Federal Court of Canada for Judicial Review The deadlines are short: 15 days to file if you’re inside Canada, 60 days if you’re outside. The court checks whether the decision was reasonable and fair; if it finds an error, it sends the case back for a fresh decision. Get legal advice quickly if you plan to go this route.

Keeping Your Status While Working in Canada

If your permit is nearing its expiry and you want to keep working, apply for an extension at least 30 days before it expires.20Government of Canada. Extend or Change the Conditions on Your Work Permit The processing fee is again CAD $155, plus biometrics if yours have expired.

Filing before expiry matters for another reason. If you apply to extend or change your work permit before the current one runs out, you can keep working on your existing permit’s conditions while IRCC processes the new application.21Government of Canada. I Applied for a New Work Permit – Can I Stay in Canada if My Work Permit Expires This is called maintained status: same employer, same conditions, until a decision comes back. If instead you applied for a study permit or visitor record, you must stop working the day your original permit expires.

Miss the deadline and your permit has already lapsed, you have 90 days to apply for restoration of status.22Government of Canada. Restore Your Status and Get a Work Permit To qualify, you must have complied with the conditions of your previous permit, you can’t have worked illegally since it lapsed, and you can’t be a temporary resident permit holder. You cannot work during those 90 days; restoration only gives you the chance to apply for a new permit. Miss that window too and your remaining option is to leave Canada and apply again from outside.