Over the past few years, especially in 2022, Canada has removed the immigration cap and welcomed more immigrants.
Current News – Ottawa, January 2023
Recently, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship, Sean Fraser, announced that Canada had opened the International Experience Canada (IEC) for International youth.
This program entails a wide array of benefits allowing the immigrants to travel, work and stay in Canada for 2 years. This decision was made considering the increasing interest of youth in Canada’s meaningful life and work experiences and bringing diverse and valuable skills to boost Canada’s economy.This program entails a wide array of benefits allowing the immigrants to travel, work and stay in Canada for 2 years. This decision was made considering the increasing interest of youth in Canada’s meaningful life and work experiences and bringing diverse and valuable skills to boost Canada’s economy.
Moreover, as announced previously on December 1, 2022, Canada will welcome more than 90,000 young immigrants worldwide in 2023. Expanding immigration opportunities will enable Canadian employers to find skillful employees and young talents to tackle the current labor shortages in the country.
IEC programs align with a long-standing history of Canada for supporting international youth to travel, work and live abroad. Via this program, Canada offers international exposure and better work and life experience to the youth from 36 partner countries. These young people attain approval from Canadian Immigration with a work permit — allowing them to work and travel freely within the country.
With the extension of the IEC program, the Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) foresees a fulfillment of employees to counter labor shortage, especially in the tourism sector in Canada post-pandemic.
The IEC program empowers the youth to explore new languages, societies, and cultures while building meaningful job prospects and a thriving lifestyle.
• As per a decision made on December 19, 2022, the international youth can now create an online profile to submit to the IEC pool.
• For the Canadian youth – Canadians can apply for the IEC program throughout the year.
• For the international applicants – They can only apply at specific times of the year, mainly from December until fall.
• The IEC program is a reciprocal stream that enables international and Canadian youth to travel, work, and stay in each other’s countries for a limited period.
• Canada partners with 36 countries and foreign territories for youth mobility from where young internationals from the age of 18 to 35 years can travel, stay and work in Canada for 2 years.
There are three participation categories in this program:
1. Young Professionals – In this category, the approved applicants will receive an employer-specific work permit through with they can gain professional yet relevant work experience to progress in their desired fields of study or career.
2. International Co-op or Internship – In this category, the approved applicants will receive an employer-specific work permit through which the students can acquire relevant work experience in their focused fields of study.
3. Working Holiday Permit – In this category, the approved applicants will receive an open work permit to work and stay anywhere in the host country to support their lifestyle and travels.
Key Note: The good part is that if you are a citizen of any of the 36 partner countries, you might be able to apply in one or more of the three participation categories. However, if you are not a citizen, you might have to apply through a recognized organization for the IEC program.
This article focuses on how to get a working holiday visa for Canada.
The work permit you get for the Working Holiday IEC program is an open work permit. With this permit, you can work anywhere in Canada,
for any employer – some exceptions may apply. This lets you work for almost any employer in Canada.
The working holiday category is a perfect fit for you in Canada if you:
• Do not have any job offer
• Want to work in one or more locations
• Want to work for one or more employers
• Want to earn extra money to finance your travels
All IEC participants are fully protected by Canadian Labor Laws, in which your employer:
• I will have to pay you the minimum wage
• Ensure that your workplace is secure and safe
• You cannot take your work permit or passport away from you
No IEC participant can work for any non-compliant employer who is currently banned.
The IEC application pools to receive your working holiday permit for this season for the year 2023 are now open.
If you fulfill the eligibility criteria, you can create an online profile. By selecting your country or foreign territory, you can determine when the first IEC round of invitations for your country or foreign territory will be.
Candidates – Canadian or international – who want to apply for the IEC program must under the IEC need to:
• Be a passport holder or citizen of any one of the 36 partner countries that have signed the Youth Mobility Agreements with Canada
• Be within the eligible age limit (all-inclusive depending on the applicant’s nationality); 19-29, 18-30, and 18-35
• Please have a valid passport for their desired stay duration in Canada
• Bring $2,500 CAD or equivalent when the land in Canada
• Arrange a round-trip ticket before their departure, or have enough finances to buy the departure ticket as their duration of authorized stay ends in Canada.
• Please have proper health insurance coverage for their duration of stay in Canada.
• Not have any dependents with them on arrival in Canada
• Pay the required fees
Key Note: You will first have to get a medical exam for some jobs.
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Check your eligibility and submit an online application for the working holiday IEC program!