Visa Watch! Canada: week of 27 July 2026

Canada tightened, then withdrew, a rule that C20 reciprocal employment work permit applicants must already work for the company abroad

On 29 July 2026 Canada's immigration department published new instructions for officers saying a worker applying for an LMIA-exempt reciprocal employment (C20) work permit must already be employed by the company outside Canada. This affected people hired by multinational employers whose job would only start after arriving in Canada. The department later said the text was published in error and removed it on 6 August 2026, so officers are again using the earlier approach.

Reported by a news outlet. We could not find this on the government's own pages, so treat it as news rather than as a rule you can rely on. Check the official source before you act.

Reported by cicnews.com: https://www.cicnews.com/2026/07/canada-restricts-common-lmia-exempt-work-permit-to-current-employees-0778701.html