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You’ve probably heard of LMIAs for Canadian immigration or maybe you’re here already in Canada working on an LMIA work permit. Now the question is how you can utilize this LMIA that you already have or are planning to obtain from your employer to convert you to Canadian Permanent Residency (PR). This is the subject of our article today.
Do you want to become a Permanent Resident in Canada? Our licensed consultants could assess your profile against +75 immigration programs across Canada. Get a FREE email assessment by filling out our form, click here.
A Labour Market Impact Assessment, or also known as ‘LMIA’, is not in itself a permanent immigration program and cannot lead you to a direct PR without further steps.
An LMIA is a tool or almost an add-on that can boost your chances of immigration to Canada. Of course, a positive LMIA which is linked to your name can allow you to apply for a closed work permit. But how can it help you with a Canadian Permanent Residency?
Keep in mind that it doesn’t matter if you have a low wage LMIA or high wage LMIA or a Global Talent Stream LMIA. The key is to become eligible for one of the PR programs which we will be outlining in this article. Some of the PR immigration programs allow low skilled occupations, and some don’t. The LMIA is only a facilitator.
Here are the ways an LMIA can help you to boost your permanent residency chances in Canada.
Do you want to become a PR in Canada? At INGWE we could support you! Get a FREE email assessment with one of our licensed immigration consultants. We speak over +8 languages, and we have helped applicants from +49 countries in their immigration path to Canada. Fill out our form, click here.
An LMIA is a great way to come to Canada on a closed work permit to work for your employer who sponsored you under the Temporary Foreign Worker Stream. It can allow you to gain Canadian work experience working for your employer, and after 1 year you could become eligible for the Express Entry sub-stream called the Canadian Experience Class.
Many overseas mature applicants, who are over the age of 40, and have a bachelor’s degree, and an IELTS of 6.0 or CLB 7, would not be eligible for any Express Entry program. However, with a valid LMIA linked to their name, they can actually become eligible for Express Entry – giving them many new options for PR.
Once you have a valid Express Entry, an LMIA can boost your Express Entry profile allowing you to select the valid offer of employment option, leading to 50 bonus points in most cases, and sometimes to 200 depending on your NOC code and position. Refer to our previous published video on YouTube to learn how you can claim the points in Express Entry with your LMIA. Of course, it doesn’t guarantee you in any way that you will be selected, unless you have the minimum CRS score.
Keep in mind that you can have a PR supported LMIA or a regular non-PR supported LMIA, but regardless of the type, you must use Express Entry to convert to a Canadian PR.
With an LMIA you can use Express Entry to convert to a PR before you arrive in Canada without a work permit or perhaps receive your closed work permit, if you have a non-PR supported LMIA, to then apply through Express Entry. You can claim the LMIA job offer points in Express Entry even 1 year after the LMIA date or when you started working for the employer – it does not need to be current. This LMIA Express Entry route could be a great option for applicants from both inside or outside Canada who have an employer who has linked a positive LMIA to their name.
Do you want to plan your future in Canada? We could help you get your PR! Reach out and get a FREE email assessment with one of our licensed immigration consultants, who will assess your profile against +75 immigration programs across Canada, click here.
An LMIA can be of great assistance for the Federal Agri-Food Pilot program allowing you to work for low skilled jobs based on a closed work permit inside Canada and becoming eligible for PR under this program based on specific agricultural and food processing industries & occupations.
Under the provincial nominee programs, an LMIA can do the following:
* Allow your employer to hire and issue you a job offer under the PNP regulations without advertisement / recruitment efforts.
* If you already have a work permit based on an LMIA or LMIA-exempt category, many PNP’s allow you to claim additional bonus points to increase your chances in the Provincial Nominee Program. Sometimes you may have had to work for the employer for 6 or 12 months to claim additional points. As an example, if you have a CLB 5 and work for an employer in Manitoba for minimum 6 months, let’s say with an LMIA, then you will have an over +95% chance of being invited for PR by the MPNP (Manitoba PNP).
* One of our favorite programs is combining a Provincial Nominee Program with Express Entry, to claim 600 bonus points if you receive a PNP nomination certificate. Each province’s Express Entry routes are different. For example, Ontario doesn’t have an employer driven Express Entry route but a Human Capital Stream only for specific occupations with minimum CRS scores. Other provinces such as BC, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, and Atlantic provinces have employer driven provincial nominee programs linked to Express Entry. All this means is that when you are hired by a local eligible employer and nominated through the PNP, you can process your PR in Express Entry within 6 months instead of the typical 20 months under the non-Express Entry route. Of course, an LMIA is not mandatory, but it can help and facilitate the process sometimes depending on your profile and the specific province.
Do you want to become a PR in Canada? At INGWE we could support you! Get a FREE email assessment with one of our licensed immigration consultants. We speak over +8 languages and we have helped applicants from +49 countries in their immigration path to Canada. Fill out our form, click here.
An LMIA cannot help you with any business, investor, or entrepreneur immigration programs except one specific type of application. Keep in mind many entrepreneurial and professional work permits are LMIA exempt such as Intra-Company Transfer, C10 and C11, and Startup Visa. The only time you will be able to use an LMIA for business immigration is in the following scenario:
An owner/operator LMIA which is now known as an LMIA with investment is probably the only method an LMIA can assist a business or investor applicant. If you plan to invest in a business, and the percentage of share are not relevant, then this means that an operating business inside Canada can apply for this type of LMIA to bring in an executive or director, as a future shareholder, with an LMIA which can offer the investor or executive a work permit, and bonus points in Express Entry for the offer of employment – and depending on the size of the business this can be 50 or 200 points. The business should be already operational, the investment can be made after the LMIA approval, the size of the business and existing retained earnings and salaries will be checked by Service Canada, and there should be some kind of benefit for the business in terms of creation or maintaining Canadian jobs.
Do you want to become a Permanent Resident in Canada? Our licensed consultants could assess your profile against +75 immigration programs across Canada. Get a FREE email assessment by filling out our form, click here.
An LMIA does not help or facilitate anyway with the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP) – as it’s an LMIA exempt stream without any points.
An LMIA is great for skilled immigration programs – but no other programs such as family sponsorship, Startup Visa, Entrepreneur, C10, C11 or other types of business and investment programs.
To summarize, an LMIA by itself is not a direct PR, even if it’s a PR supported LMIA with or without a work permit – but it can help facilitate and increase your chances in the Federal skilled immigration stream which are points based and give you an edge with a Provincial Nominee Skilled worker stream.
If you’re thinking about immigrating whether permanently or temporarily, you’re at the right place! Our team speaks over +9 languages, and we help applicants from over 49 different countries during their immigration process. Get a FREE email assessment, click here.
