Canada Work Permits – Immigration Lawyer Vancouver, Canada

BlogFinally…Canada spreads out the welcome mat for foreign trained doctors!

17 February 2026by Catherine Sas, K.C.

As the first lawyer in a family of doctors - specifically family physicians - I have always been perplexed at the failure of our federal, provincial and territorial governments to come together to offer a solution to allow foreign trained doctors to integrate into the Canadian health care system as immigrants and ultimately as practitioners in their field. When I first started practice, (over 35 years ago) the rationale was that our provincial governments spent a lot of money educating our Canadian medical students and that any places at the employment table should be reserved for our own medical graduates and not others. It took less than a decade from starting my practice for federal, provincial and territorial governments, as well as the corresponding regulatory bodies, to realize that this restrictive approach was actually limiting the supply of doctors that Canada needed overall. It is no secret that the wheels of government turn slowly and finally on December 8, 2025, our federal government introduced an immigration program to be delivered in conjunction with the provinces and territories through the Provincial Nominee Programs (PNPs) to facilitate permanent residence for doctors already working in Canada. Let’s examine how this new program is supposed to work.

BlogExpectation Overload: Employers now subject to more scrutiny when hiring foreign workers under Labour Market Impact Assessments

14 October 2025by Victor Ing

In September 2025, Service Canada introduced a new rule applicable to employers who wish to hire foreign workers through Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) stream. The rule requires employers to use the “Direct Apply” feature on the Canadian Job Bank – a previously optional feature that allows job seekers to digitally submit their resumes to a hiring employer on the Canadian Job Bank platform, rather than only through traditional methods such as email or mail. Employers who do not use the Direct Apply feature can expect to receive a negative LMIA result, so read on to find out more about this new requirement.

BlogTimes-Up! My post graduation work permit is about to expire: what are my options for Canadian permanent residence?

27 May 2025by Preet Gill

For many international students in Canada the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) is their perceived route to Canadian permanent residence (PR). The PGWP was first introduced in 2005 and allows graduates from eligible Designated Learning Institutions (DLIs) the opportunity to obtain an open work permit, and to gain Canadian work experience. Historically, international students have obtained PGWPs to gain Canadian work experience and then transition from temporary status to PR. However, currently many international students in Canada find themselves in a position where they do not qualify for permanent residence by the time their PGWP expires.

BlogHome Care Worker Programs Reopening: Are you prepared?

18 March 2025by Preet Gill

As Canada’s population continues to grow, evolve and age, the demand for skilled home care workers has never been higher. Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), has demonstrated through their programs over the years that caregivers play an essential role in Canada to support vulnerable populations, including children, seniors and individuals with disabilities. Home care workers also enable families to continue working while ensuring that their loved ones are well cared for. The previous Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot programs ended on June 17, 2024 and were based on the amount of qualifying work experience an applicant had.

BlogOpportunity Knocks for Prospective Immigrants in Canada’s Construction Sector.

11 March 2025by Catherine Sas, K.C.

This past Friday, March 7, 2025, brought some welcome news for prospective immigrants in Canada’s construction sector. Recognizing the need for a stronger construction worker labour force, Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada ( IRCC), Marc Miller, announced steps to strengthen the opportunities for foreign construction workers in Canada including the creation of an industry advisory council, expansion of a pilot project to enable out-of-status workers to be legally employed and for apprentices in the trades to study without authorization enabling them to obtain their official trade certification in Canada. These steps have been introduced to both increase the pool of construction workers in Canada and to boost housing construction for the benefit of Canadians and the Canadian economy.

Blog How do I get a work visa for Canada?How do I immigrate to Canada?Work Permits Working in CanadaUkrainians in Canada, It’s Your Last Chance! Don’t Miss the Opportunity to Stay in Canada Longer!

24 February 2025by

In 2022, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Canadian government introduced a special program for Ukrainians — the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET). This program allowed Ukrainians to find safety in Canada and to also obtain a 3-year open work permit.

Blog Work Permits Working in CanadaEmployer Alert! Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program is under attack – again!

13 August 2024by Catherine Sas, K.C.

For many years, if not decades, Canada has had a love-hate relationship with our foreign worker program. We routinely swing back and forth from facilitating foreign workers to come to Canada to fill labour shortages to restricting the ability of employers to bring temporary labour to the country. At present, we seem to be, once again, at the restrictive and limiting swing of the pendulum. Employers need to know what they are facing in this ever-changing and compliance based environment that is the current norm.

Blog Canadian Immigration Programs How do I immigrate to Canada?Studying in Canada Working in CanadaThinking Outside the Box: Developing a Canadian Immigration Strategy

23 April 2024by Catherine Sas, K.C.

Predictability for obtaining permanent residency status in Canada changed dramatically on January 1, 2015 with the introduction of the Express Entry (EE) selection system for permanent residence to Canada. EE introduced a new points based Comprehensive Ranking Score (CRS) measurement for selecting the “best and brightest” applicants. Prospective immigrants need to register a profile which goes into a pool of applicants enabling the government to set a standard for selection and control their intake. This model has been replicated throughout Federal, Provincial and Territorial selection systems. Intake control is central to output management and has become the norm for immigration selection.

How do I get a work visa for Canada?How do I immigrate to Canada?Working in CanadaImmigration levels stay the course but workers to be sped up!

8 November 2016by Catherine Sas, K.C.

Last week was full of announcements on the Immigration front for the Liberal government. On Monday, October 31, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Minister John McCallum, tabled his annual report to Parliament setting immigration levels for the year ahead. The next day, Minister of Finance Bill Morneau introduced his Global Skills Strategy to make it easier and faster for companies to bring foreign workers to Canada. Let's see what the future holds!

Blog Canada Immigration Lawyers Canadian Immigration Programs How do I get a work visa for Canada?Owner/Operators Filling the Gap in Business Immigration Programs

1 June 2016by Victor Ing

It has been over two years since June 2014 when the federal government permanently shut down the federal immigrant investor pathway to Canadian permanent residence. Under the former program, foreign investors and entrepreneurs could obtain permanent residence in exchange for a one-time lump sum investment to Canada. The program was finally scrapped over widespread criticism that it was not generating long-term benefits for Canadians and because many viewed the program as a way for immigrants to buy their way to Canadian citizenship. Unsurprisingly, the new immigration Minister, the Honourable John McCallum, has already publicly stated that there are no current plans to restart or reinvent the troubled program.

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