The majority of foreign people who want to work in Canada need a work permit, which is a legal document allowing them to work and be paid by Canadian employers. A foreign national may, nevertheless, occasionally work in Canada without a work authorization.
Jobs that DO NOT require a work permit in Canada
For the following positions, foreign workers can work legally in Canada without a work permit. It should be emphasized that a person’s mere presence on this list does not automatically qualify them for a work permit exemption. A person’s job must be on this list and complete any extra exemption requirements listed on the International Mobility Program website for that job in order to be eligible for a work visa exemption.
- Player or Coach
- Investigator for aviation accidents or incidents
- Inspector for civil aviation Clergy
- Conference planner
- A crew member who provides emergency services
- Examiner and judge
- Investigator or expert witness
- A member of the foreign representative’s family
- Official or representative of a foreign government
- Student of medicine
- Judge, referee, or other official military personnel
- Reporter for the news or members of the media
- A producer or employee who creates commercials
- Artist performing
- Speaking in public
- Temporary highly skilled employee
- Temporary researcher
- Student off-campus employment
- Working on-campus as a student
- A foreign national may qualify for a work permit exemption if they work in one of the positions or circumstances mentioned above.
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Player or Coach
You might not need a work permit if you are a foreign national competing for a foreign athletic team in Canada. Athletes, coaches, and other foreign group members are covered under this clause. You need a work permit if you are a member of a Canadian team.
Investigation of aviation incidents or accidents
Consider that you have the necessary credentials to examine situations such as airline accidents. If so, you might not need a work permit to conduct such investigational work in Canada. The investigation must fall under the purview of the Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act to be eligible for the exemption.
Business traveler
Foreign nationals who visit Canada for business purposes but do not work there are referred to as business visitors. You might not need a Canadian work permit if you fall under the category of a business visitor.
Note: To be eligible for the exemption, you must fit the criteria of a business person, which differs significantly from a business visitor.
Aviation safety inspector
You can be eligible for a work visa exemption if your job involves inspecting the cabin safety and flight operations of international flights that pass through Canada.
Clergy
Let’s say you are a non-citizen who is a layperson, a clergyman, or a member of a religious organization. If so, you could be able to work as a pastor in Canada without a work permit. Preaching doctrine, leading worship, and providing spiritual guidance are just a few of your responsibilities in Canada.
Conference planner
You can qualify for a work permit exemption if you plan or direct international conventions or gatherings. Please be aware that this exemption only applies to conference organizers; anyone offering hands-on services (such as audio-visual services) must have the proper work authorization.
Team member
If you work as a foreign-national truck driver, bus driver, shipper or airline employee, you can be eligible for a work permit exemption. Your employment must satisfy two requirements in order to be qualified for the exemption:
Your employment must be related to the operation of the vehicles and providing services to passengers. The vehicles you are working on must be owned and registered by businesses outside of Canada and used to move cargo and passengers across international borders.
Provider of emergency services
If you are a foreign national working in Canada to offer services during an emergency, you might be eligible for a work permit exemption. Your assistance must safeguard Canadian property and human life. Natural catastrophes like fires or floods as well as industrial incidents that endanger the environment are considered emergencies.
Examiner and judge
If you are a professor or academic specialist from outside Canada, you might qualify for a work permit exemption to carry out specific tasks there. These tasks include of assessing and managing theses, research proposals, and academic initiatives. You might work for a Canadian university or research organization.
Investigator or expert witness
You can be qualified for a work permit exemption if you are employed in Canada to give testimony in front of an administrative tribunal, a court of law, or another tribunal.
A member of the foreign representative’s family
You might qualify for exemptions from the Canadian work permit requirements if you are a spouse, child, or foreign representative. To be eligible, you must fulfill the requirements listed below:
- It would be beneficial if you had a GAC counterfoil in your passport and were accredited by Global Affairs Canada (GAC).
- A letter of no objection from GAC is required. This letter is typically only sent if Canada and another country have an employment reciprocity agreement.
- official or representative of a foreign government
If you satisfy one of the three criteria listed below, you can be eligible for a work permit exemption:
- You are a government employee from a different country who is employed by a Canadian and foreign government through an exchange program.
- You represent another nation as a diplomat or other official representative.
- You are a UN official or a diplomat from a different country.
- If a government employee is working in Canada for more than three months, they need to have an official letter.
Student of medicine
Take the example of a foreign national studying healthcare in Canada who wants to work as part of a training program. You might be qualified for a work permit exemption in that situation. You must fulfill the four criteria listed below in order to be eligible for the exemption:
Clinical clerkship participation is required
Your employment’s primary objective is to train you.
You require official authorization from the regional regulatory organization that oversees your profession (please note that not all provinces require this).
Your training period cannot exceed four months.
Only if you satisfy these requirements will you need a work visa.
Judge, referee, or other representative
You can be eligible for a work permit exemption if you’re a foreign national visiting Canada to serve as a judge or other official at an amateur international competition. This exemption applies to the following categories of events:
- Festivals of dance and music.
- zoo exhibits.
- Agri-sports competitions.
- armed forces personnel
You can be qualified for a work permit exemption in Canada if you are a soldier in another country. You must obtain movement orders declaring that you are visiting Canada in accordance with the Visiting Forces Act in order to be eligible for this exemption.
Reporter for the news or members of the media
If you are a foreign national working as a news reporter or on a film and media crew in Canada, you might be eligible for a work permit exemption. To be eligible, you must fulfill one of the requirements listed below:
- You need to be a news reporter or a member of their team.
- You must be a part of a media or film crew that isn’t going to work in Canada.
- You must be a journalist who works for a non-Canadian print, radio, television, or online medium.
- You have to be a local reporter.
- You must work as a manager or administrative assistant for an event that lasts less than six months.
- A producer or employee who creates commercials
- You can be eligible for a work visa exemption if you enter Canada to participate in a foreign-financed commercial or advertising shoot for television, publications, or other media. You must hold one of the following roles in order to be eligible:
Producer of movies actor director technician
additional crucial personnel
This exception only applies to temporary employment, which is often only two weeks long.
Artist performing
Without a work permit, foreign performing artists may work in Canada. The foreign national must fulfill the following conditions in order to be eligible for this exemption:
- You are the foreign artist or a significant member of the artist’s team.
- You’ll give a brief performance in Canada.
- The organization that employed you will not continue to employ you in Canada.
- You won’t be involved in making a broadcast for radio, TV, or a movie.
- Speaking in public
- If you are a guest speaker, paid speaker, seminar leader, or a foreign national, you can be eligible for a work permit exemption. Most five-day events’ speakers are the only ones who qualify for this exemption.
Temporary highly skilled employee
- If a specified length of time passes between each exception, highly talented workers can be permitted to work in Canada for brief durations.
- Foreign citizens working in Canada at NOC Skill Level 0 or A may be free from needing a work permit for a brief period of time under the guidelines of the short-term work permit exemption.
- The worker must be coming: if they meet the requirements for the short-term work permit exemption.
- To work for 15 calendar days in a row or less, and six months have passed since the start of the work period under the prior application of this exemption; or
to carry out work that will last no more than 30 calendar days, provided that 12 months have passed since the start of the work under the prior application of this exemption. - Those residing in Canada are unable to apply for the short-term work permit exemption since it is intended to make it easier for foreigners to work outside of Canada.
Temporary researcher
Some foreign nationals visiting Canada for a brief period of time to conduct research can qualify for a work permit exemption. This exemption is only valid if the researcher satisfies the requirements listed below:
- must be conducting research at a public university or a research institute that is linked with it.
- must have worked for no more than 120 days straight.
- must not have used this exemption in the 12 months prior.
- student off-campus employment
- International students enrolled full-time do not need a work permit to work off campus while they are in school. International students enrolled full-time are permitted to work up to 20 hours per week while in class and full-time during the usual academic vacations and holidays.
Working on-campus as a student
It is not necessary to have a work permit to work on the campus where you attend classes if you are an international student studying there full-time. International students enrolled full-time are permitted to work up to 20 hours per week while in class and full-time during the usual academic vacations and holidays.
Originally posted 2023-01-03 16:42:53.