LMIA or Labour Market Impact Assessment is a document that Canadian employers may need to get before they can hire a foreign worker. To be able to hire that TFW the employer will need a positive LMIA, which upon review by the Canadian government they determine that the worker will bring about a positive or neutral effect on the Canadian labour market.
More importantly, it must be established that the employer tried their best to find a suitable candidate who were either Canadian citizens or permanent residents, but were unable to do so.
There are two types of LMIA – high wage and low wage – and the process for each differ.
High-Wage Workers
Workers who will be paid at or above the provincial/territorial median wage are considered high wage workers. To hire a high-wage worker, a transition plan must be submitted alongside the LMIA application. The intent of the transition plan is to ensure the employer has steps in place to reduce their reliance on foreign workers and that they are using this program as an absolute last resort to fulfill their labour shortage. Employers are required to give Canadians first priority when looking to hire employees for their company.
Visit Job Bank to find out the median wage for the position you are looking to fill: https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/search-wages
Low-Wage Workers
Workers who will be paid below the provincial/territorial median wage are considered low-wage workers.
LMIA application for low-wage workers do not require a transition plan to be submitted, but instead have different guidelines they must follow.
In order to reduce the use of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and ensure Canadians are given first pick, the Canadian government has set a cap on the number of low-wage foreign workers an employer can hire. There is a 10% cap on the number of TFWs in a low-wage position if the employer did not employ one prior to June 20, 2014.
Furthermore, these employers who are looking to hire a low-wage worker must also:
- Pay for the round-trip transportation costs for the foreign worker they choose to hire
- Provide affordable and suitable housing
- Ensure the TFW are covered by private, provincial, or territorial health insurance upon landing in Canada. If it cannot be provided, you must pay for it until the foreign worker is eligible for it
- Ensure the worker is covered from the provincial/territorial workplace safety insurance provider
- Prepare an employment contract that is signed by both you (the employer) and the TFW
Recruitment Efforts
In order to hire a TFW, the employer must first show that they tried finding Canadians or permanent residents for the role they wish to fill. The minimum requirements state that you must conduct a minimum of three different recruitment activities, one of which must be a job posting advertised on the Government of Canada’s Job Bank website.
Other methods of recruitment include:
- General employment websites
- Online classified websites
- Specialized websites specific to the occupation
- Newspapers
- Company website
- Recruitment agencies
The duration of the job advertisements must run for a minimum of 4 consecutive weeks within the 3 months prior to submitting the LMIA application. One of these methods of recruitment activities must be ongoing until the employer receives a positive or negative LMIA.
Employers must also pay a processing fee of $1,000CAD for each LMIA request.