In December 2006, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration announced that the Government will begin discussions with interested provinces and territories to expand the Off-Campus Work Permit program to include private institutions on a pilot basis.

As a result of the pilot project, foreign students studying at approximately 75 additional institutions could be eligible to apply for off-campus work permits. The program, which allows international students at post-secondary institutions to work off-campus, is currently available only to students at publicly funded universities and colleges.

In order to ensure appropriate controls, the pilot project will apply only to programs and institutions recognized or authorized by the provinces and territories to confer degrees. Provinces and territories interested in participating in the pilot will need to negotiate memoranda of understanding with the private schools in their jurisdiction and monitor the implementation of the program.

The Minister launched the Off-Campus Work Permit program nationally on April 27, 2006. Over 8,300 international students have already benefited from the initiative. Prior to the introduction of this program, these students were restricted to holding jobs on the campus of the educational institution at which they were studying.

The Province of Manitoba and Government of Canada share responsibilities regarding people immigrating to Canada through the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Immigration Program (“Manitoba PNP”). There are two categories of immigrants under the Manitoba PNP. One is skilled workers and the other is business immigrants. This article intends to provide an overview of the Manitoba PNP for business immigrants.

The Manitoba PNP for business immigrants allows the Government of Manitoba to recruit, assess, select and nominate best suited business people from around the world who have the intent and ability to move to Manitoba and establish or purchase a business.

To qualify for the program, applicants must meet the following requirements:

• have a minimum personal net worth of CDN $250,000;

• make a minimum equity investment in Manitoba of CDN $150,000;

• have a minimum of 3 years of business experience in senior management of a successful company;

• have conducted a visit or planning a visit to Manitoba within a few months of applying to explore business opportunities and Manitoba’s quality of life;

• provide documented assessment of business opportunities in Manitoba and general knowledge of the Province;

• provide an outline of their business proposal which can be assessed; and

• if nominated, be able to pay a cash deposit to the Government of Manitoba, in the amount of CDN$75,000, guaranteeing the establishment or purchase of a business in Manitoba. In most cases, the cash deposit will be released when the investment is made and the intended business is undertaken as outlined in the application.

Manitoba will select the applicants who best meet the above qualifications.

If nominated, the applicants will be instructed to:

• Sign a deposit agreement and pay a deposit of CDN$75,000 into a bank account in Manitoba; and

• Submit the original Federal Immigration Forms, processing and Right of Permanent Residency fees to the Business Immigration and Investment Branch.

The Manitoba Department of Labour and Immigration will then forward the package to the appropriate Canadian Visa Office.

Applicants should receive favourable and prompt consideration from Citizenship and Immigration Canada as long as they successfully comply with the medical and criminal checks and are not proven to have intentions of going to a destination other than Manitoba.

Pursuant to a Pilot Project of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (“CIC”) and Service Canada, as of September 1, 2006, employers in the Vancouver and Calgary areas have been able to obtain pre-approved Labour Market Opinion (“LMO”) exemptions rather than sending prospective foreign employees to Canadian Consulates and Ports of Entry for that purpose. The benefit of this is more certainty and efficiency for foreign employees who apply for Work Permits on an LMO exempt basis. Employers in the Montreal area have had this option available to them since 2003.

BACKGROUND

Most non-Canadians are required to apply for and obtain a Work Permit from CIC in order to perform work in Canada. In most cases, an LMO must be obtained by the prospective Canadian employer from Service Canada in order for the prospective foreign employee to be eligible for a Work Permit. An LMO is generally issued when Service Canada is convinced that the Canadian employer has made reasonable, but unsuccessful, efforts to attract qualified Canadians for the job and that the hiring of the foreign worker will not negatively affect the Canadian labour market.

The process of applying for and obtaining an LMO can be lengthy and costly. The employer is normally required to carry out extensive recruitment efforts in Canada and current processing times for an LMO in the Vancouver area are in the 12-week range.

Certain categories of persons and positions are exempt from the need for an LMO, including persons applying under the auspices of an international labour mobility agreement such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”), intra-company transferees, professionals (such as accountants, architects, engineers, dentists and geologists), software workers, persons with specialized knowledge, senior managers, and the like. Prior to September of 2006, foreign workers destined to work for employers in Vancouver and Calgary who thought they were qualified for an LMO exemption would present themselves at a Canadian Consulate or at a Port-of-Entry in order to apply for their Work Permit. The Officers at the Consulate/Port-of-Entry would then be required to assess whether the LMO exemption applied or not, an assessment that calls into play a number of factors that such Officers may not have as much training in or as much time or resources available, as would a representative of Service Canada.

The Officers in the newly-created Temporary Foreign Worker Units in Vancouver and Calgary have been specifically trained to handle LMO exemption requests and can do so in a very efficient manner – our firm recently received a positive response to an LMO exemption request made on behalf of a client in less than 48 hours.

Once an LMO exemption opinion is issued by the Temporary Foreign Worker Unit, the foreign worker can then apply for his or her Work Permit. The worker will still need to prove that they are qualified for the position and meet all of the other requisite criteria. For example, they are not medically inadmissible and there are no security concerns. However, both the prospective worker and employer will be much more confident that the application will not be refused on the basis that an LMO is required.

The Temporary Foreign Worker Units in Vancouver and Calgary are part of a pilot project of CIC. As well as providing LMO exemption opinions, the Temporary Foreign Worker Units offer guidance to employers and human resources service providers seeking to employ foreign workers in Canada, provide advice on Work Permit exemptions, pre-screen supporting documents from employers to streamline the application process of such workers, and provide an opinion for the use of Officers at a Port-of-Entry. Requests for temporary foreign workers who are not exempt from the need for an LMO will still need to first apply for an LMO through Service Canada.

CIC Canada is to be applauded for this initiative to improve the efficiency of the system for Canadian employers who wish to bring in foreign workers who are exempt from the need for an LMO.

UPDATE ON PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS FOR TRAVEL TO THE UNITED STATES

If you would prefer to receive Immigration Lines via email, send your name and email address to webmaster@cwilson.com. You may access back issues of this and other Clark Wilson LLP newsletters on our website at www.cwilson.com.