Canada to extend post-graduate work permits for international graduates
International graduates with expired or soon-to-be-expiring work permits shall be allowed to use for an extension because the federal authorities seeks to spice up Canada’s anemic labour sector.
Starting April 6, graduates with a lately expired or expiring post-graduation work allow (PGWP) will qualify for a further or prolonged work allow to remain in Canada and achieve job expertise for as much as 18 months, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser introduced on Friday. Currently, there are about 127,000 post-graduation work permits set to run out in 2023.
“We need to use every tool in our toolbox to support employers who continue to face challenges in hiring the workers they need to grow,” Fraser mentioned in a media launch. “At the same time, we’re providing international graduates whose work permit is expiring or has expired with some additional time to stay in Canada to gain valuable work experience and potentially qualify to become a permanent resident.”
The PGWP program permits worldwide graduates to obtain an open work allow to realize work expertise in Canada. Starting April 6, PGWP holders who wish to keep longer will be capable to start a voluntary course of to increase their work allow.
International graduates whose permits have already expired in 2023 can even be capable to apply for a further 18-month work allow. So will those that had been eligible for the 2022 PGWP facilitative measure – a coverage change that allowed overseas nationals whose allow expired between Sept. 20, 2021 and Dec. 31, 2022 to apply for a further 18 months by both extending their work allow or making use of for a brand new one.
International graduates with expired work permits will be capable to restore their standing below the most recent coverage change, even when they’re past the 90-day restoration interval. Those who apply shall be allowed to work whereas they wait for his or her utility to be processed.
The coverage replace comes as employers throughout Canada battle to draw and retain expert employees amid an ongoing labour scarcity. Experts have attributed that scarcity partly to disruption brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, however largely to an getting old workforce.
Canada’s labour drive progress charge has been declining since 2000, Statistics Canada studies, however the pattern has intensified lately as child boomers – Canada’s largest era, born between 1946 and 1964 – get older and begin to depart the workforce en masse.
According to StatCan, greater than 1.4 million Canadians entered the 55-and-older demographic between 2016 and 2021. In 2022, the variety of Canadians of working age between 55 and 64 reached an all-time excessive within the historical past of the Canadian census, at one in 5. By the second quarter of that 12 months, there have been greater than 1,000,000 vacant jobs in Canada.
The Ministry of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship mentioned in Friday’s announcement that expert worldwide graduates “play a vital role in addressing Canada’s labour shortage.” But consultants have warned extra change is required to make sure new Canadians are well-matched to jobs that maximize their abilities, {qualifications} and expertise.
StatCan information reveals that current immigrants are much less more likely to see their abilities and training utilized than Canadian-born employees. They are additionally overrepresented in sure industries, together with transportation and warehousing, and lodging and meals companies.
-With recordsdata from The Canadian Press
