Canada loosens low-wage foreign worker rules and broadens employer access, despite continued labour-market strain
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Ottawa will let low-wage temporary foreign workers stay for up to two years, expand exemptions for employers in high-unemployment cities to include early childhood educators, and move toward even more provincial control over the program, all while insisting Canadians must still be offered jobs first.
Ottawa announced that the maximum duration of a low-wage Labour Market Impact Assessment, required for hiring a temporary foreign worker, will be increased from one year to two years. The change applies to low-wage positions and is intended to give employers more flexibility, even as workers and communities continue to face pressure from weak wages and insecure employment.
The government confirmed that the existing rule barring temporary foreign workers in cities where the unemployment rate exceeds six per cent will remain, but early childhood educators are now added to the list of occupations exempt from that restriction. The exemption list already includes certain roles in health care, construction and food processing, showing how narrowly the policy continues to be targeted around employer demand.
A set of proposals slated for implementation on March 1, 2027, would give provinces and territories the option to opt in and to modify the exempt occupations list. The proposals also would allow jurisdictions to raise the cap on low-wage temporary foreign workers in a workforce from 10 per cent to 15 per cent, pending provincial or territorial approval, further widening the door for employers to rely on cheap labour.
Immigration Minister Lena Diab said the government plans to work more closely with provinces and territories to tailor the temporary worker program to regional labour needs. > "I have heard also loud and clear from many people across the country, no matter who they are, that there is a need for that program," Diab told a news conference in Stellarton, Nova Scotia. She added that while the share of temporary workers may increase in some sectors, all jobs should first be offered to Canadians.
Diab also announced that the Rural Community Immigration Pilot, which connects vetted rural employers with skilled foreign workers and provides a pathway to permanent residency, will become a permanent program. The pilot currently supports more than 1,950 employers in 14 rural communities and allocates about 5,500 permanent residency slots under the latest immigration levels plan, locking in a system that many see as serving employer recruitment needs more than worker protections.
The temporary foreign worker program reforms were referenced in the recent federal budget, though officials said detailed information was not yet available. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre responded by calling for the program to be unavailable in communities where unemployment exceeds 5.5 per cent. Statistics Canada reported a national unemployment rate of 6.7 per cent in October, with rates fluctuating between roughly 6.5 per cent and 7 per cent over the past two years, underscoring the disconnect between policy flexibility and a still-fragile labour market.