LMIA Rules Explain How Canadian Employers Hire Foreign Workers

LMIA rules determine whether a Canadian employer can hire a temporary foreign worker when no suitable Canadian or permanent resident is available for the job.

A Labour Market Impact Assessment is issued by Employment and Social Development Canada after reviewing the employer, job offer and likely effect on Canada’s labour market.

A positive LMIA supports a worker’s application for an employer-specific work permit, but it is not itself a work permit, permanent residence approval or guarantee of entry to Canada.

The current LMIA framework includes high-wage, low-wage, agricultural, caregiver, Global Talent Stream, foreign academic and permanent-residence support applications.

What An LMIA Means In Canada

A positive LMIA means ESDC has assessed the application and determined that hiring the temporary foreign worker is likely to have a positive or neutral effect on Canada’s labour market under the applicable program requirements.

Most employers must obtain an LMIA before hiring a foreign national through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

An employer may not need an LMIA if the worker already holds an open work permit or if a specific LMIA exemption applies under the International Mobility Program.

Employers should check the exemption rules before starting an LMIA application because the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and International Mobility Program have different requirements.

Which LMIA Stream Applies

The correct LMIA stream normally depends on the position, wage, occupation, industry, location and purpose of the application.

LMIA stream or application type	General purpose
High-wage positions	Jobs paying at or above the applicable provincial or territorial hourly wage threshold.
Low-wage positions	Jobs paying below the applicable provincial or territorial hourly wage threshold.
Global Talent Stream	Specialized or highly skilled workers needed by eligible Canadian employers.
Primary agriculture	Eligible agricultural occupations and activities, including applicable Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program and Agricultural Stream applications.
Caregiver positions	Eligible in-home caregiver and health-care provider positions.
Permanent-residence support	Skilled workers whose employment supports a permanent-residence application.
Foreign academics	Eligible academic positions that are not covered by an LMIA exemption.

The wage threshold is not one national number. Employers must use the hourly wage threshold for the province or territory where the worker will be employed.

The federal government updated the hourly wage thresholds effective July 17, 2026. Employers should verify the applicable threshold immediately before applying because a change can affect whether the application is treated as high-wage or low-wage.

Core LMIA Requirements For Employers

An employer must demonstrate that the business and job offer are genuine and that the employer can meet the wages and working conditions described in the application.

The position must generally be full-time, meaning at least 30 hours of work per week.

The employer must also show reasonable efforts to recruit or train Canadians and permanent residents before relying on a temporary foreign worker.

Recruitment records, advertisements, applications received and hiring results should be preserved because they can be reviewed during processing or a later inspection.

The employer must offer at least the prevailing wage for the occupation and work location. The prevailing wage is generally the higher of the median wage published on Job Bank or the wage range paid to existing employees in the same occupation and location with similar skills and experience.

The employment agreement must match the occupation, wages and working conditions in the approved job offer. The employer must provide a completed and signed agreement to the worker on or before the first day of employment.

High-Wage LMIA Rules

High-wage positions are assessed under requirements that include recruitment, wages, business legitimacy and employer compliance.

Employers normally need at least three different recruitment activities before applying. One activity must be advertising on the Government of Canada’s Job Bank, while two additional activities must be appropriate for the occupation and reach suitable candidates. At least one of the additional methods must be national in scope.

Advertisements must generally run for at least four consecutive weeks within the three months before the LMIA application is submitted. At least one recruitment activity must remain active until a positive or negative LMIA decision is issued.

A transition plan is normally required for a high-wage LMIA. The plan describes how the employer will recruit, retain and train Canadians and permanent residents and reduce reliance on the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Transition-plan exemptions include eligible agricultural positions, certain in-home caregiver and health-care provider positions, qualifying limited-duration and unique-skill positions, certain Quebec facilitated applications and applications supporting permanent residence without a work permit. A dual-intent LMIA supporting both temporary work and permanent residence requires a transition plan.

Employers may request an employment duration of up to three years for a high-wage position, although the approved duration must be consistent with the employer’s reasonable needs.

Low-Wage LMIA Rules

Low-wage applications face additional restrictions intended to ensure that employers consider Canadian workers first.

The employer must advertise on Job Bank, make recruitment efforts aimed at youth aged 15 to 30 and use at least two additional recruitment methods. Each additional method must target a different underrepresented group, such as Indigenous people, newcomers, persons with disabilities, vulnerable youth or eligible asylum claimants with work permits.

Low-wage advertisements must generally run for at least eight consecutive weeks within the three months before the LMIA application is submitted. This is different from the four-week minimum that generally applies to high-wage positions.

Low-wage employers must also meet applicable Job Bank requirements, including Job Match and Direct Apply requirements where the posting remains active.

Low-wage positions below the applicable provincial or territorial hourly wage threshold in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher are subject to a refusal-to-process measure. Subject to applicable exemptions, these applications will not be processed rather than receiving a full LMIA assessment.

Low-Wage Cap And Rural Measures

The standard cap limits low-wage temporary foreign workers to 10% of an employer’s workforce at a specific work location.

A 20% cap applies to specified sectors and occupations, including construction, food manufacturing, hospitals, nursing and residential care facilities and specified in-home caregiver positions.

Some positions have no low-wage cap. These include eligible on-farm primary agriculture positions, certain caregiving positions in health-care institutions, positions supporting permanent residence without a work permit, qualifying short-duration or highly mobile positions and qualifying seasonal positions lasting no more than 270 calendar days.

Employers with fewer than 10 employees at a work location must use a special cap calculation based on a workforce size of 10. Under that calculation, an employer may generally hire no more than one low-wage temporary foreign worker under a 10% cap or two under a 20% cap.

Temporary rural measures are available from April 1, 2026, to March 31, 2027, for eligible employers outside census metropolitan areas in participating provinces and territories.

Depending on the province and the employer’s circumstances, the measures may allow an employer to retain its current low-wage proportion or use a 15% cap instead of the usual 10% cap. Applications submitted before the measures take effect in the applicable province or territory are not eligible, and low-wage positions under the permanent-residence dual-intent stream are excluded.

As of the federal government’s July 27, 2026 update, Alberta and Ontario were not participating. British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia and Quebec had listed measures with different implementation dates or conditions. Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan and Yukon were listed as to be determined. Employers must still meet all other Temporary Foreign Worker Program requirements.

LMIA Fees And Recruitment Costs

The standard LMIA processing fee is $1,000 for each position requested.

The fee is generally not refunded if the application is withdrawn, cancelled or receives a negative decision. A refund may be issued if a fee was collected in error.

The employer must pay the processing fee and cannot recover it from the temporary foreign worker.

Employers and recruiters also cannot charge or recover recruitment fees from the worker directly or indirectly.

Processing-fee exemptions include eligible on-farm primary agriculture positions and certain caregiver applications, including specified home-care and childcare applications that meet the applicable conditions. Employers should confirm the fee rules for their specific stream before submitting the application.

What Happens After A Positive LMIA

After receiving a positive LMIA, the employer gives the worker the decision letter and the documents required for the work permit application.

The worker then applies to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada for an employer-specific work permit.

The work permit application may require the positive LMIA letter and Annex A, employment information, a passport, proof of experience, medical examination documents and other evidence requested by IRCC.

A positive LMIA does not automatically result in a work permit. IRCC separately assesses the worker’s eligibility, admissibility, identity documents and other work permit requirements.

Positive LMIAs for applications received on or after May 1, 2024, are generally valid for up to six months. The six-month rule applies across TFWP streams and provinces and territories except the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program.

The worker must submit the work permit application before the LMIA expiry date, even if the job is scheduled to begin later. The LMIA expiry date is different from the approved employment duration and the expiry date of the work permit.

Employer Compliance And Worker Protection

Employers must provide the job, wages and working conditions described in the LMIA and employment agreement.

They must pay workers for all required work, provide workplace safety coverage and follow applicable federal, provincial and territorial employment standards.

For low-wage positions, employers must generally pay round-trip transportation costs, provide or ensure that suitable and affordable housing is available and pay for private emergency health insurance for periods when provincial or territorial health coverage is unavailable, where required.

These costs cannot be recovered from the temporary foreign worker. Suitable and affordable housing generally means housing that is safe and costs less than 30% of the worker’s before-tax income.

Employers must keep relevant records for six years beginning on the first day of the period of employment for which the work permit was issued.

Service Canada can inspect an employer and may impose administrative monetary penalties, bans or other consequences for non-compliance.

Workers who believe they are being abused or exploited can report concerns through federal or provincial workplace protection channels.

LMIA Application Checklist

1. Confirm whether an LMIA is required or whether an exemption applies.
2. Identify the correct stream and wage category.
3. Check the current provincial or territorial wage threshold.
4. Review refusal-to-process rules and low-wage caps.
5. Complete the required recruitment and advertising activities, including the applicable four-week or eight-week advertising period.
6. Collect business legitimacy, payroll, recruitment and job-offer documents.
7. Obtain provincial employer registration or proof of exemption where required, including in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Nova Scotia.
8. Submit the application through LMIA Online when available.
9. Pay the processing fee unless the application qualifies for an exemption.
10. Provide the positive LMIA documents to the worker for the work permit application.

Because LMIA requirements can vary by occupation, wage, province, industry and application stream, employers should use the official federal instructions that apply to the specific position.

Official sources reviewed: Employment and Social Development Canada and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada program instructions current to October 4, 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Fact-Checked: Current federal LMIA rules, fees, wage categories, low-wage restrictions, rural measures and validity requirements were checked against official Government of Canada and IRCC sources on October 4, 2026.

Disclaimer: This article is general information and does not replace individualized legal or immigration advice.