One of the main pillars of Canada’s immigration strategy is Family Reunification, and IRCC has introduced new measures to make it feasible for more families to live together.

Spouses, lawful partners, and dependents of individuals who are already in Canada as Canadian citizens, permanent residents, temporary workers, and students are able to apply for open work permits.

Earlier, applicants for inland sponsorship as well as who are already living in Canada with a Temporary Residence Visa (TRV), were only allowed to apply for the open work permit.

The new measures established by the IRCC allow individuals to apply for open work permit for outland applicants (who are applying from outside of Canada).

Family members include spouses, conjugal partners, common-law partners, and dependent children who are over 18 years old.

The Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is expecting to process all the applications for spousal sponsorship within a year.

What are the eligibility criteria for an open work permit?

As stated by IRCC, the family members of the sponsor may be eligible for an open work permit if they have a valid temporary resident status, maintained their status or are eligible for and have applied to restore their status, and have the same residential address as their sponsor in Canada when they apply for an open work permit.

As per IRCC public policy, foreign nationals who satisfy either one of the following conditions will be eligible to obtain an open work permit.

The foreign citizen is:

  • A primary applicant who has applied as a spouse, common-law or conjugal partner under the family class or for permanent residence under the spouse or common-law partner in Canada that IRCC has accepted for processing
  • Has applied for a work permit, in which the maximum work permit validity is of maximum two years
  • Sponsored by their Permanent Resident or Canadian citizen spouse, common law or conjugal partner
  • Has the identical home address in Canada as their sponsor during the application submission, and
  • Has valid temporary resident status in Canada or is eligible for and has applied for status restoration

OR

The foreign national is:

  • A dependent child who has been listed as an accompanying family member in the permanent residence application
  • Has submitted a work permit application in which the work permit is valid for a maximum of two years
  • Has the same home address in Canada as the principal applicant and their sponsor in Canada during the time of application submission, and
  • Has valid temporary resident status in Canada or is eligible for and has applied for status restoration

Canada’s Continuous Support for Family Reunification

Mr. Fraser, The immigration minister of Canada, on May 26, declared the open work permit for outland applicants. This new measure of OWP for outland spousal sponsorship is accompanied by other family reunification measures, which are as follows.

  • Quicker processing times of temporary resident visas (TRV) for spousal applicants
  • Introduction of new and dedicated processing tools for spousal TRV applicants
  • Extensions of Open work permit for the holders of open work permit whose permits expire between August 1 and the closing of 2023

Minister Mr. Fraser also stated that IRCC is dedicatedly working to reunite families faster. Also, it enables them to work and support themselves rapidly once they enter Canada. According to him, Canada is assisting newcomers in reaching their full potential while also strengthening Canada’s economy and social fabric by doing so.