CANADIAN IMMIGRATION: WORK PERMIT EXEMPT ACTIVITIES

BACKGROUND

Under Canadian immigration law, foreign nationals are prohibited from engaging in work or taking up employment in Canada without first having obtained a Work Permit except where the work in question is a Work Permit Exempt Activity (also known as "work without a work permit").

TEMPORARY RESIDENT REQUIREMENTS APPLY

Foreign nationals who wish to enter Canada to perform Work Permit Exempt Activities will be treated as Temporary Residents and will be subject to the usual rules, regulations and requirements which apply to Temporary Residents.

Applicants who are Visa Exempt Foreign Nationals do not require a Temporary Resident Visa and may apply for admission at the port of entry.

Applicants who are not Visa Exempt Foreign Nationals must apply for a Temporary Resident Visa prior to entering Canada at the Canadian embassy or consulate outside of Canada which serves the country where the foreign national resides or the foreign national's country of citizenship.

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS

Applicants who plan to enter Canada to perform Work Permit Exempt Activities, must be careful to make sure that their intended activities in Canada meet the requirements of the exempt activity category under which they are applying for entry, and that what they will be doing while in Canada does not, in fact, require a Work Permit.

Applicants who fail to do this may find that the Canadian immigration visa officer is not prepared to admit them unless they obtain a Work Permit. In the case of applicants who enter on a Temporary Resident Visa, this may mean a return trip home in order to apply for a Work Permit.

Applicants should also be aware that Canadian immigration law imposes very stringent penalties where a foreign national unlawfully performs tasks or duties which would otherwise require a Work Permit. For more information, read our page on Penalties for Failing to Obtain a Work Permit.

LIST OF WORK PERMIT EXEMPT ACTIVITIES

Foreign Representatives Military Personnel Foreign Government Officers On-Campus Employment of Students Performing Artists Professional Coaches and Athletes News Reporters Public Speakers Convention Organizers

Clergy Judges and Referees Examiners and Evaluators Expert Witnesses Health Care Students Civil Aviation Inspectors Aviation Accident Inspectors International Transport Crews Emergency Service Providers

FOREIGN REPRESENTATIVES

This category includes foreign representatives and their personal servants who have been accredited by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (DFAIT). It applies only to the performance of official functions of the foreign representative or servant. It also includes diplomatic representatives to UN agencies or international organizations of which Canada is a member such as the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR). Family members of foreign representatives may also work without a work permit where DFAIT confirms in writing that it has no objection to the family member’s employment. Return to list.

MILITARY PERSONNEL

This category includes foreign military and civilian personnel performing duties in Canada under the authority of the Visiting Forces Act. Return to list.

FOREIGN GOVERNMENT OFFICERS

This category includes foreign government personnel employed by Canadian federal or provincial government departments or agencies pursuant to international agreements. Return to list.

ON-CAMPUS EMPLOYMENT OF STUDENTS

This category permits foreign students who hold student permits and who are enrolled as full-time students in a degree or diploma-granting course of study at an approved institution to work without a work permit at on-campus jobs at the institution where they are enrolled. It applies to a broad range of institutions including, universities, community colleges, publicly funded trade/technical schools and private institutions authorized by provincial statute to confer degrees. Return to list.

PERFORMING ARTISTS

Work permits are not required in the case of certain types of performing artists and their essential crew and staff members who are:

• performing live events not intended for film, internet, television or radio broadcast,
• in Canada on a short-term, limited-time basis as part of a foreign production or group, or as a guest artist in a Canadian production or group, and
• not in an employment relationship with a Canadian organization that has contracted for their services.

Examples of this include:

• Musicians in a band performing several tour dates in Canada.
• Guest conductors and artists performing with Canadian productions or groups for a few performances.
• Actors in foreign touring theatrical productions.
• Professional wrestlers and circus performers in foreign touring productions.
• Musicians and buskers coming to Canada to perform in festivals.
• Support crew and other workers who are integral to a live production.
• Disc jockeys coming to Canada to work at private events, festivals, concerts and fairs.

NOTE: Confirmed Work Permits will be required in the case of performing artists who:

• Perform in bars or restaurants.
• Work on the production of a film, television, radio, or Internet broadcasts.
• Enter into an employment relationship with the Canadian organization contracting for their services.

Film producers and users of film and recording studios who are not entering the Canadian labour market , and individuals doing guest spots on Canadian radio and TV shows are also admissible under this category.

Persons who are considering entering Canada under this category should exercise caution since the rules relating to Work Permit exemptions are very complex and are subject to numerous other exceptions and qualifications. Return to list.

PROFESSIONAL COACHES AND ATHLETES

This category applies to

• Professional or amateur teams and individual athletes, coaches and trainers who enter Canada to compete in sport events.
• Foreign athletes who enter Canada to become members of Canadian amateur teams.
• Amateur players on Canadian teams junior level “farm teams”.
• Foreign pet owners entering their own animals in a show (e.g., dog handlers).
• Jockeys racing horses from foreign-based stables.
• Racing car drivers and persons attending professional team tryouts.

The exemption does not apply to professional athletes, coaches and trainers who enter Canada to work for Canadian professional sports teams. Return to list.

NEWS REPORTERS

This category applies to:

• News reporters and their crews coming to Canada for the purpose of reporting on Canadian events.
• Journalists and resident correspondents working for non-Canadian print, broadcast or internet news service providers (e.g., journals, newspapers, magazines, TV shows, etc.).
• Crews of aerial vehicles such as blimps where used to assist in the coverage of major sporting events.

It does not apply to managerial or clerical staff of foreign news companies, and to media crews (including writers, print, video, film and broadcast journalists, as well as technicians such as camera operators) who enter Canada to produce travelogues, documentaries or tourism promotional material. Return to list.

PUBLIC SPEAKERS

This category includes:

• Guest speakers for specific events (such as academic speakers at university or college functions, convention speakers, etc.).
• Commercial speakers or seminar leaders provided the seminar program does not last longer than five days. Return to list.

CONVENTION ORGANIZERS

This category applies to persons organizing a convention or conference and to their administrative support staff. The types of event which are covered are:

• Association and corporate meetings and congresses
• Incentive meetings.
• Trade shows or exhibitions and consumer exhibitions/shows.

The exemption does not apply to related convention or conference service providers, such as individuals who supply audio-visual (A/V) services, installation and dismantling services, show decorating services, or exhibit builders . Return to list.

CLERGY

This category applies persons whose are employed in “pulpit duties” such as the preaching of doctrine, presiding at liturgical functions, providing spiritual counseling, either as an ordained minister, a lay person or a member of a religious order. It also applies to clergy who are attached to a congregation in Canada and who perform missionary or proselytizing work as party of their congregational duties.

It does not apply to charitable workers or religious workers carrying out duties for a Canadian religious or charitable organization. Return to list.

JUDGES AND REFEREES

This category applies to judges, referees and similar officials involved in international sporting events, generally organized by an international amateur sporting association and hosted by a Canadian organization, such as international or university games, Olympics games, etc. It also includes judges of artistic or cultural events such as music and dance festivals, animal shows and agricultural competitions. Return to list.

EXAMINERS AND EVALUATORS

This category includes eminent individuals who direct the studies and review the work done by scholars under their tutelage and who are required to enter Canada to review their scholar’s thesis and papers. It also includes foreign professors and researchers seeking entry to evaluate academic programs or research proposals. Return to list.

EXPERT WITNESSES

This category includes persons who will be expert witnesses before a regulatory body, tribunal or court of law. Return to list.

HEALTH CARE STUDENTS

This category permits foreign students in fields such as medicine, occupational and physical therapy, nursing and medical technology may do their clinical clerkships or short-term practicums in Canada without having to obtain a Work Permit. Return to list.

CIVIL AVIATION INSPECTORS

This category applies to flight operations inspectors and cabin safety inspectors who enter the country temporarily to inspecting safety procedures on commercial international flights.

AVIATION ACCIDENT INSPECTORS

This category applies to accredited representatives or advisors participating in an aviation accident or incident investigation conducted under the authority of the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board. Return to list.

INTERNATIONAL TRANSPORT CREWS

This category applies to applies to crew members working on foreign-owned or registered trucks, buses, ships and aircraft engaged primarily in the international transport of cargo and passengers. It also applies to truck drivers transporting goods across the U.S.-Canada border. Return to list.

EMERGENCY SERVICE PROVIDERS

This category applies to persons who enter Canada in times of emergency in order to preserve life and property which is threatened as a result of natural or man-made disasters such as floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, industrial or commercial accidents threatening the environment or medical emergencies. Examples would include:

• Doctors or medical teams.
• Appraisers and insurance adjusters to assist in the rapid handling of insurance claims in major emergencies.

  READ MORE . . . about Temporary Resident Visas about Work Permit Exempt Activities about Work Permits about Confirmation Exempt Work Permits about Penalties for Failing to Obtain a Work Permit about Student Visas about Canadian Immigration Medical Examinations

• Persons seeking seek entry under an agreement with Emergency Preparedness Canada. Return to list.

Disclaimer: The information contained on this site is intended to educate members of the public generally and is not intended to provide legal or professional advice or solutions to individual problems. If you require legal advice or assistance, you should consult a Gaertner Tobin LLP lawyer at info@GTLLP.com.