The federal government has removed one of the incentives that has been fueling the abuse of Canada’s labor market impact assessment (LMIA) program.
As part of ongoing efforts to prevent and reduce fraud, Marc Miller, minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship, announced just before Christmas that Express Entry candidates will no longer receive additional points for having a job offer.
Truck drivers with arranged employment receive 50 comprehensive ranking system (CRS) points in their bid to be invited for permanent residence in the country.
“This temporary measure will reduce fraud by removing the incentive to illegally buy or sell labor market impact assessments to improve a candidate’s chances of being selected to come to Canada as a permanent resident. This change will come into effect in spring 2025,” according to a government news release.
Once they take effect, the changes will impact candidates pursuing permanent residence through the Express Entry system, including those currently working in Canada temporarily, the release stated.
The changes will not affect candidates who have already been invited to apply or who have an application in progress. Once the change is introduced, it will apply to all candidates with job offers in the pool as well as new candidates entering the pool.
Unsafe and toxic working conditions
In September, TruckNews.com exposed the potentially deadly, unsafe and toxic working conditions truck drivers endured as unscrupulous trucking company owners allegedly exploited them using LMIAs.
When an employer in Canada is unable to find an employee – a Canadian or permanent resident – with a certain skill set for their business, they can file an LMIA application with Employment and Social Development Canada to hire a foreign worker. Workers should not have to pay for the LMIA.
Trucking association executives have said that this key component of the temporary foreign worker (TFW) program is being abused, with foreign workers paying tens of thousands of dollars for an opportunity to live and work in Canada.
Slowing down LMIA sales
Reacting to the labor minister’s latest announcement, an immigration consultant told TruckNews.com that the sale of LMIAs will slow down, but not stop.
Manan Gupta, president of Skylake Immigration said there are mainly two groups of people who buy LMIAs from greedy employers.
In the first group, there are people seeking to boost CRS points in their bid to be invited for permanent residence in the country. This avenue will be shut in spring.
“For example, a person on a post-graduate work permit has 474 points. With the additional 50 points from an LMIA, their score increases to 524, boosting their immigration chances,” Gupta said.
“But this is a closed work permit, and the employee is bound to the LMIA provider for work. Some employers exploit the situation, asking the foreign worker to pay money upfront or a monthly fixed amount that is deducted from their wages.”
Secondly, there are others whose work permits are expiring and want to continue to work legally in Canada. Some of these folks will continue to buy LMIAs, Gupta noted.
Reducing fraud
“We are taking important steps to reduce fraud while continuing to attract the skilled talent our economy needs. Immigration has always been a cornerstone of Canada’s success, and we remain committed to welcoming the best and brightest to Canada so that everyone has access to the quality jobs, homes and supports they need to thrive,” Miller said in the release.
Express Entry is Canada’s flagship application management system for those seeking to immigrate permanently through the Federal Skilled Worker Program, the Federal Skilled Trades Program, the Canadian experience class and a portion of the Provincial Nominee Program.
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