To help Canadian employers fill labour and skills gaps in their organizations when there are no qualified and available Canadians or permanent residents (PR), Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) operates the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP).
As a condition of the work permits provided to foreign workers through this program, employers hiring foreign talent must complete a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to demonstrate that the hire will either have a positive or neutral effect on the Canadian labour market.
However, in the following three circumstances, the processing time of an LMIA can be expedited to 10 business days.
Note: Despite the expedited processing time, employers that fall under the following categories must still meet all usual program requirements used to assess TFWP applications
LMIAs for workers in high-wage skilled trade occupations
The expedited 10 business day service standard is available for employers hiring foreign workers in the following skilled trades — deemed essential for infrastructural development and natural resource extraction, thereby qualifying as vital to Canadian economic growth — and offering a wage either at or above the median wage in the province or territory where the job is located.
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NOC 2021 Code Occupation |
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72011 Contractors and supervisors, electrical trades and telecommunications occupations |
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72013 Contractors and supervisors, carpentry trades |
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72014 Contractors and supervisors, other construction trades, installers, repairers and servicers |
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72310 Carpenters |
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72020 Contractors and supervisors, mechanic trades |
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72021 Contractors and supervisors, heavy equipment operator crews |
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82010 Supervisors, logging and forestry |
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82020 |
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Supervisors, mining and quarrying |
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82021 Contractors and supervisors, oil and gas drilling services |
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83110 Logging machinery operators |
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82030 Agricultural service contractors, farm supervisors and specialized livestock workers |
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92010 Supervisors, mineral and metal processing |
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92011 |
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Supervisors, petroleum, gas and chemical processing and utilities |
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92013 |
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Supervisors, plastic and rubber products manufacturing |
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93100 |
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Central control and process operators, mineral and metal processing |
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92100 |
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Power engineers and power systems operators |
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92101 Water and waste treatment plant operators |
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72100 |
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Machinists and machining and tooling inspectors |
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72102 |
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Sheet metal workers |
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72104 Structural metal and plate work fabricators and fitters |
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72105 |
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Ironworkers |
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72106 |
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Welders and related machine operators |
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72200 |
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Electricians (except industrial and power systems) |
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72201 |
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Industrial electricians |
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72202 |
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Power system electricians |
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72203 Electrical power line and cable workers |
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72204 Telecommunications line and cable workers |
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72205 Telecommunications installation and repair workers |
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72300 Plumbers |
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72301 Steamfitters, pipefitters and sprinkler system installers |
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72302 Gas fitters |
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72400 Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics |
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72401 Heavy-duty equipment mechanics |
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72402 Heating, refrigeration, and air conditioning mechanics |
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72403 Railway carmen/women |
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72404 Aircraft mechanics and aircraft inspectors |
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72406 Elevator constructors and mechanics |
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72500 |
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Crane operators |
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73402 |
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Drillers and blasters - surface, mining, quarrying and construction |
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73402 |
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Water well drillers |
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83100 Underground production and development miners |
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83101 Oil and gas well drillers, servicers, testers and related workers |
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93101 Petroleum, gas and chemical process operators |
The median hourly wages effective April 30, 2022 (in each Canadian province and territory( are as follows:
Alberta (AB): $28.85
British Columbia (BC): $26.44
Manitoba (MB): $23.00
Ontario (ON): $26.06
Quebec (QC): $25.00
Saskatchewan (SK): $25.96
Prince Edward Island (PEI): $21.63
New Brunswick (NB): $21.79
Newfoundland and Labrador (NL): $24.29
Nova Scotia (NS): $22.00
Northwest Territories (NT): $37.30
Nunavut (NU): $36.00
Yukon (YT): $32.00
