Many Canadian work permit workers will, at a certain point, look to extend or change their permit to continue working in Canada. If you are a foreign national in this position, you must know that your ability to continue working after your work permit expires depends on when you applied for a permit change or extension.
More precisely, only temporary workers who applied for a work permit change or extension before the conclusion of their original permit are eligible to continue working after their first permit expires*.
*Rules about work permit holders who apply for a study permit or visitor record differ slightly; we will discuss more on that later.
Why some temporary workers can continue working with an expired work permit?
People who submit a work permit change or extension before the original permit’s expiry have successfully kept their status in Canada and obtained authorization to work until their new application is finalized.
Temporary workers in this situation can legally resume employment in this country. The temporary worker must:
- Remain in Canada
- Resume the work under the same conditions as their original permit
How these rules vary depending on your unique situation
Work permit extension applicants must resume work under the same conditions listed on their current work permit if they have a closed (employer-specific) permit.
Those who have applied for a new work permit must resume work for the employer named on their original permit until a decision is made on their most recent application. Once a decision is final, the temporary worker may start employment under the new permit’s conditions.
If the temporary worker has an open work permit (OWP), the temporary worker is free to change jobs and employers. Work permit holders applying for a visitor record or study permit may only resume work until their original permit expires.
At this time, authorities should legally require these applicants to stop working, and those who applied for a study permit should not be allowed to resume studying before a decision is finalized on their application.
Proving your employer that you remain eligible to work in Canada
Work permit extension applicants, along with those applying for a new work permit, may ought to prove to their employer that they can resume working in Canada even after their first permit expires.
In either case, the proof that a work permit holder can provide relies on whether they applied for their permit change or extension online or on paper.
Online Applicants
Online work permit change or extension applicants can show their employer the following documents as proof of their ongoing eligibility to work in Canada:
- Work permit extension letter (WP-EXT except PGWP) obtained by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC); you should show this to an employer alongside your current work permit
- In the case that an applicant does not obtain a final decision on their work permit change or extension by the expiry date on their WP-EXT letter, they can prove they are still eligible to work by contacting IRCC or by showing their employer this webpage.
Paper Applicants
On-paper work permit change or extension applicants can show their employer the following documents as proof of their ongoing eligibility to work in Canada:
- A copy of their work permit change or extension application
- Proof that they paid their fees for the work permit change or extension application
- A copy of their application’s courier tracking information or postal
Note: On-paper applicants do not obtain a WP-EXT letter because IRC needs to ensure that their application is complete and that the applicant meets the conditions to work in Canada
