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Immigration Library™

Work Permit – International Experience Canada (WP-IEC)

International Experience Canada

immilib.com/IEC

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SUMMARY

International Experience Canada (IEC) provides youth with the opportunity to travel and work in Canada.

Qualified candidates are exempted from the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) (➨immilib.com/LMIA) under paragraph R205(b) of Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (IRPR) (exemption code C21).

To see a list of LMIA exemption Codes (➨immilib.com/LMIA-Exemptions)

Ready to take the next step towards your Canadian immigration journey? Fill out the form below and embark on your path to new opportunities.

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MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

The following requirements must be met if you are applying for a work permit under the International Experience Canada program:

1- Country of Nationality / Recognized Organization

Country of Nationality
To participate, your country or territory of citizenship must have a Youth Mobility Agreement with Canada that allows you to apply for an IEC work permit.
Some countries only allow you to participate once. Others allow you to participate twice, but in different pools. Because each country is different, it’s important that you check to see if you’re eligible to apply.
The following is the list of participating countries:
Country Working Holiday Young Professionals International Co-op
Andorra
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Chile
Costa Rica
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
France
Germany
Greece
Hong Kong
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Japan
Korea, Republic
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Mexico
Netherland
New Zealand
Norway
Poland
Portugal
San Marino
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Ukraine
United Kingdom

To see the eligibility requirements of your country, see (➨immilib.com/IEC-Country)

Recognized Organizations

If you are not from an IEC country, you may be able to use a recognized organization (RO) (➨immilib.com/IEC-RO). ROs are youth service organizations that offer work and travel support to youth. They can be non-profit, for profit, or educational.

If you’re from an IEC country or territory, you don’t have to use an RO, but you can choose to use one for more support. If you’re not from an IEC country or territory, you can only come to Canada through IEC if you use an eligible RO.

2- Travel and work experiences

There are three (3) pools of travel and work experiences under IEC program. Depending on which country you’re from, you can choose from up to 1, 2 or 3 pools:
Working Holiday
Working Holliday is an open work permit. You can use this program if you want to fund your vacation with temporary work in Canada.

Normally, this category is for you if you don’t have a job offer (due to current travel restrictions, a valid job offer is required).

You can work for more than one employer and more than one location.

Young Professionals
The type of work permit you get in the Young Professionals category is an employer-specific work permit for the purpose of gaining Canadian professional work experience to better compete in a global economy.
This category is for you if you have a job offer in Canada (one employer and one location) that contributes to your professional development.

Under this category, work must be paid and not self-employed and the job offer must be in the your field of study and contribute to your professional development.

The job you are offered in Canada must be classified as a National Occupational Classification (NOC) Code TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 (➨Appendix 1). A TEER 4 job might be accepted if you can submit a post-secondary diploma, certificate or degree, with your work permit application.

International Co-op (Internship)
The type of work permit you get in the International Co-op category is an employer-specific work permit to get valuable overseas work experience related to your field of study.
This category is for you if you’re a student registered at a post-secondary institution and you have a job offer for a work placement or internship in Canada.
You need to do this work placement or internship to complete your studies and you’ll work for the same employer in the same location during your stay in Canada.

3- Health-care Insurance

As an International Experience Canada, you must obtain valid health-care insurance for the entire period for which you seek a work permit. Upon approval of your work permit, you can present 2 consecutive health-care insurance policies if you were not able to purchase 1 policy to cover the entire length of your work permit.

At time of application, IEC applicants do not have to provide proof of health-care insurance (Except for cases from within Canada to extend an employer-specific work permit and the validity period of the offer of employment is shorter than the maximum duration allowed). They are, however, required to declare that they will purchase comprehensive health-care insurance, including insurance for hospitalization and repatriation, for the entire duration of their authorized period of stay in Canada. Applicants should be advised that they should purchase their health-care insurance only after they have received their letter of introduction.

Ready to take the next step towards your Canadian immigration journey? Fill out the form below and embark on your path to new opportunities.

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WHAT STEPS SHOULD YOU TAKE?

Step 1: complete and submit your IEC profile online

To start IEC process you can create a free online IEC profile (➨immilib.com/IEC-Apply). You should register or sign in to your IRCC account and select “International Experience Canada”.

The answers you give will be used to determine if you’re eligible for a pool in one or more IEC categories:

  • International Co-op (Internship)
  • Working Holiday
  • Young Professionals
There is one pool of eligible candidates per country and per category.

You can submit your profile to one or more of these pools and become “Candidate”. Candidates in the pools need to receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA) and become “Applicants”. Once candidates receive an ITA, they have 10 calendar days to refuse or accept it. 

Step 2: Apply for Work Permit

If you’re invited to apply, you’ll use your account to submit your work permit application. You will get a message in your account. The message will list your category and your next steps.

You’ll have ten (10) days to decide if you’ll accept the ITA and after that you’ll have twenty (20) days to apply online for a work permit.

Once you accept your invitation, you need to apply for a work permit. You’ll have to show proof of the information you provided in your International Experience Canada (IEC) profile. You’ll also have to provide more information about your background and the type of work you intend to do in Canada.

Step 3: Get your fingerprint and photo taken (Biometrics)

You and any members of your family between 14 and 79 years old need to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics). You only need to give your biometrics once every 10 years. If you gave biometrics in the past as part of an application for a visitor visa, work or study permit and they’re still valid, you don’t need to give them again.

You will be contacted to give your biometrics and you will have 30 days from the date on the letter to do it.

In order to give biometrics you need to go to an official biometrics collection service point. You must give your biometrics in person.

Before you go, check the location’s website for its services and fees at (➨immilib.com/Biometrics).

Step 4: Work Permit Issuance

If your application is approved, you will be issued a Letter of Introduction (LOI) in your account and become “Participant”. Participants must present their LOI to a border services officer upon arrival in Canada to obtain their IEC work permit.

You must show your letter of introduction and other supporting documents to a Canadian border services officer at the port of entry (airport, land border) on or before the expiry date of your letter.

A border services officer will review these documents and will make a final decision on whether you can enter Canada.

IEC Work Permit
Submit Online Application:
immilib.com/IEC-Apply
Official Program Guide:
immilib.com/IEC-Guide
IRCC Application Fees:
IEC Fee: $156
Working Holiday: $100
Employer Compliance Fee: $230
(if applicable)
Biometrics: $85
Processing Time:
immilib.com/FED-PT
Document Checklist:
Will be provided in online account
Contact:

1-888-242-2100 (in Canada)

1-613-944-4000 (outside Canada)

Web Form:

immilib.com/web-form

Visa Office:

immilib.com/Visa-Offices

Ready to take the next step towards your Canadian immigration journey? Fill out the form below and embark on your path to new opportunities.

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