Update: | Increase to the minimum hourly salary required for an LMIA to be eligible for the High-Wage LMIA Stream |
In Force: | November 8, 2024 |
Update: | Service Canada will no longer accept attestations from professional accountants and lawyers to prove business legitimacy |
In Force: | October 28, 2024 |
On October 21, 2024, Employment Development and Service Canada (ESDC) announced changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). They forecast that these changes will result in 34,000 positions moving from the high-wage to the low-wage LMIA stream, and that they will likely result in as many as 20,000 fewer eligible positions for LMIAs.
As of November 8, 2024, in order to qualify for the high-wage Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) stream and not be subject to the new September 26, 2024, limitations on the low-wage LMIA stream, employers will have to pay 20% or more than the median hourly wage for the province or territory where they are located.
Employers are still required pay a salary that is at or above the median prevailing wage for the occupation where the position is located. If the salary is above the provincial/territorial median hourly wage plus 20%, then the position is subject to the high-wage LMIA stream requirements. If the salary is below the provincial/territorial median hourly wage plus 20%, then the position is subject to the low-wage LMIA stream requirements.
Employer should be aware that the prevailing wage for each occupation is usually updated annually in November. Employers who wish to remain eligible for high-wage LMIAs and LMIAs in most cities in Canada, will need to ensure that the salary they are offering is at or above the provincial/territorial median hourly wage. They will also have to ensure that the salary they are offering is at or above the prevailing wage for the occupation in the location where the foreign worker will be working. Employers will have to ensure that the wage they advertise for the position is at or above the median prevailing wage. If an employer is already advertising the position, this may mean having to extend advertising to ensure that the position is posted for at least 30 days at the required salary level.
If an employer is paying less than the provincial/territorial median wage + 20%, then the changes to the low-wage LMIA stream that were introduced on September 26, 2024, will apply. This includes the refusal to process low-wage LMIAs in cities (census metropolitan areas) with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher. LMIAs in support of permanent residence and a work permit have the same requirements as those in the high-wage and low-wage LMIA streams. LMIAs in support of only permanent residence and not a work permit will not be subject to the refusal to process in cities with unemployment rates of 6% or higher.
We continue to wait for the details of the upcoming changes to the eligibility of open work permits for spouses of temporary foreign workers. These changes were announced on September 18, 2024, but only limited details are known thus far. The September 18, 2024, announcement stated that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada would be "limiting work permit eligibility later this year to spouses of foreign workers in management or professional occupations or in sectors with labor shortages—under Canada’s work permit programs (TFWP and IMP)."
New High-Wage vs. Low-Wage Threshold - Median Hourly Wage + %20
Note that the wage figures are subject to change by the government without prior notice. Employers must always check the up-to-date figures before posting LMIA job listings and/or filing an LMIA application. The provincial median wage data is usually updated each April. The prevailing wage per occupation is usually updated each November.
Median hourly wages by province or territory | Median hourly wages by province or territory + 20% | |
Province/territory | Median hourly wages as of April 2, 2024 | Required minimum wage to be considered high-wage for the high-wage LMIA stream |
Alberta | $29.50 | $35.40 |
British Columbia | $28.85 | $34.62 |
Manitoba | $25.00 | $30.00 |
New Brunswick | $24.04 | $28.85 |
Newfoundland and Labrador | $26.00 | $31.20 |
Northwest Territories | $39.24 | $47.09 |
Nova Scotia | $24.00 | $28.80 |
Nunavut | $35.00 | $42.00 |
Ontario | $28.39 | $34.07 |
Prince Edward Island | $24.00 | $28.80 |
Quebec | $27.47 | $32.96 |
Saskatchewan | $27.00 | $32.40 |
Yukon | $36.00 | $43.20 |
High-Wage LMIA Requirements | Low-Wage LMIA Requirements | |
Wage | At or above the median provincial/territorial wage + 20% and at or above the median prevailing wage for the occupation | Below the median provincial/territorial wage + 20% and at or above the median prevailing wage for the occupation |
Duration of work permit | Work permit duration of up to 3 years | Work permit duration of a maximum of 1 year |
Refusal to Process | Not Applicable | Refusal to process low-wage LMIAs from census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher. Exemptions to the refusal to process will be granted for positions in seasonal (less than 270 days) and non-seasonal jobs in primary agriculture, food processing and fish processing (NAICS 311), construction (NAICS 23), healthcare (NAICS 622 and 623) and positions in support of only permanent residency (not a work permit). |
Cap on number of foreign workers employed by an employer | Not Applicable | A reduction on the cap of low-wage temporary foreign workers to 10% of an employer's work force at a specific work location.
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Transportation | Not Applicable | Employer must pay round-trip transportation costs for TFWs to arrive at their work location in Canada |
Housing | Not Applicable | Employer must provide or ensure that suitable and affordable housing is available to the TFW |
Health Insurance | Employer must obtain and pay for private health insurance that covers emergency medical care for any period when the TFW isn't covered by the provincial or territorial health insurance system | Employer must obtain and pay for private health insurance that covers emergency medical care for any period when the TFW isn't covered by the provincial or territorial health insurance system |
Advertising | Employer must conduct at least 3 recruitment activities. Employer must advertise on the Government of Canada Job Bank and conduct at least 2 additional methods of recruitment consistent with the occupation, 1 of which must be national in scope. | Employer must conduct at least 3 recruitment activities. Employer must advertise on the Government of Canada Job Bank and conduct at least 2 additional methods of recruitment consistent with the occupation and that target a different underrepresented group such as Indigenous peoples; vulnerable youth; persons with disabilities; newcomers to Canada; and asylum seekers with valid work permits. |
Job Match | Invite all those who match with 4 or more stars in the Job Bank to apply | Invite all those who match with 2 or more stars in the Job Bank to apply |
Read our blog on Changes to Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program Effective September 2024 (Low-Wage Positions)
News Release: Minister Boissonnault announces further Temporary Foreign Worker Program reforms to better protect the Canadian labour market and workers - October 21, 2024

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