Canada to Extend Work Permits of 6,700 Temporary Residents in Manitoba
Manitoba has successfully obtained a new public policy on work permit extensions from Immigration Minister Marc Miller. This initiative aims to tackle the issue of expired or expiring work authorizations for temporary residents. Under this policy, around 6,700 eligible temporary workers in Manitoba, whose work permits are set to expire in 2024, will be granted open work permits.
On May 7th, Minister Miller disclosed that Manitoba has formally requested an extension of work status for temporary residents employed in the province whose work permits expire in 2024. Manitoba is relying on these temporary residents, who hold work permits, to fulfill its provincial labor requirements. Marc announced the introduction of a new public policy to grant open work permits to eligible temporary workers in Expression of Interest pool of the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP).
Additionally, Minister Miller expressed optimism that these applicants will receive formal nominations from Manitoba and eventually become permanent residents within the next two years. Based on this statement, it seems likely that open work permits could be issued for a duration of two years, extending until 2026.
In recent news, the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) conducted a substantial round of invitations for the International Education Stream on May 2nd.
When will the new policy for work permit extensions be launched?
According to the official letter sent by Minister Miller to the Immigration Minister of Manitoba, officials are preparing to share a letter of intent that will detail the specifics of the public policy, along with additional conditions and qualifying criteria. This facilitative step will include conditions such as a schedule for performance reporting to support the implementation of the policy.
The minister also said, “I believe this will be an opportune time and context to also revisit the renewal of the Canada-Manitoba Immigration Agreement, as well as to advance discussions on how Manitoba will use its PNP to transition more temporary residents to permanent residency.”
With the implementation of this one-time facilitation measure, Canada aims to directly and positively affect prospective nominees by allowing them to work in Manitoba while their PNP applications are processed.
Long-term, as these temporary residents move to permanent status, this policy will add to Manitoba’s varied skilled labor supply.
Provincial Effort For Expiring Work Permits
In addition to seeking temporary policy changes from the Immigration Minister, the Manitoba Provincial Nominee Program (MPNP) has taken proactive measures to assist temporary residents facing expired or expiring work permits. As of April 26, Manitoba has implemented a prioritization system for evaluating MPNP applications submitted by individuals holding post-graduation work permits (PGWPs) and other work permits nearing expiration.
To qualify for priority processing, MPNP applicants with expired or soon-to-expire work permits (within the next 45 days) must inform the MPNP by completing the Skilled Worker Webform.
What about other provinces?
This initiative, focused on the necessity of a cohesive immigration strategy across Canada, aims to assist numerous vital temporary workers in Manitoba as they await their permanent residency applications. Talks surrounding the challenges faced by international students with expiring post-graduation work permits have led to calls for similar measures in other provinces. The lingering question is whether other provinces will adopt comparable approaches to provide temporary residents working within their borders with pathways to open work permits.
Furthermore, the Immigration Minister is scheduled to convene an annual meeting with all provincial and territorial immigration ministers on May 10. Hopefully, this meeting will bring about positive developments for other provinces as well.
English version: https://ttnimmigration.ca/vi/en/canada-gia-han-6700-giay-phep-lao-dong-cho-cu-dan-tam-tru-tai-manitoba/
