The employment rate in Canada increased by 62% from July to August of 2019. This is one of the reasons why professionals from neighboring countries look for possible employment opportunities in the country. Although, if you are a non-resident of Canada, you will be required to get a temporary foreign permit to work legally.
Work permits are issued before you come to Canada through the immigration office. In other cases, if your company decided to transfer your specialization in one of the parent companies established in Canada, you can be issued with an ICT visa Canada.
What is an Intra-Company Transfer (ICT)?
In an Intra-Company Transfer, a company transfers an employee to a different office or workplace, usually overseas. An employee will be allowed to work under a special working permit.
In Canada, only multinational companies that have a parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate, can send employees to work temporarily in the country.
Acquiring an ICT permit in Canada requires you to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). The processing of this permit may undergo a lot of procedures; however, exemptions are cited under R205 (a).
An ICT visa Canada applies to transferees who have a specialization that falls into these three categories;
- Executive
- Senior Managerial
- Specialized Knowledge
For you to receive a foreign worker permit, the Canadian affiliate shall demonstrate and provide qualifying relationships with the international company and the employee. And to be qualified for an ICT permit, one must possess these following requirements;
- The employee must have completed at least a year of full-time experience working in a foreign company.
- The foreign employee shall offer specialization on skill type 0 (managerial) and skill level A (professional)
- Your specialty must have been relocated or transferred by the parent company, branch, subsidiary, or a Canadian affiliate.
- Foreigners visiting temporarily to Canada just for work.
- The position given to you must be similar to your current job while temporarily residing in Canada.
Another advantage of attaining an ICT permit is the chance of becoming a permanent resident in Canada. Applicants can their spouses to accompany as long as you process your open work permit.
Validity Period of Foreigners Working in Canada with ICT permit
When your company is initiating to have an ICT visa Canada, expect that working there can last for up to 7 years, including all extensions. Provided that you meet all the criteria, immigration officers will issue your work permit with the expected duration of your employment. Being issued with this permit also exempts you from applying for the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).
Estimated Processing Time for ICT Work Permit
The processing time will differ from each type of application, but usually, it will take 2-9 weeks. According to Global Talent Stream (GTS), two weeks is enough to get your ICT Canada Work Permit.
Their goal is for a rapid application assessment time. It is aiming to process work permits, including ICT and LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment) for just a matter of 10 business days.
Having the chance to be offered an ICT Work Permit by your company is a significant opportunity to level up professionally. Not only will you have more experience in your specialization, but you will meet new people and experience different cultures.