You need a work permit
If you’re a charitable worker, you need a work permit to work in Canada.
You’re a charitable worker if your main duties will directly help to relieve poverty, advance education or address another community need and
- you’re being paid, or
- you’re doing an activity that is normally a paid job or would be valuable work experience for a Canadian citizen or permanent resident
Examples include
- cooking at homeless shelters
- providing prenatal instruction to low-income families who cannot afford it
- providing 24/7 residential care in a group home setting to people who have developmental disabilities
- working on a Habitat for Humanity project as a professional carpenter
Exclusion
- An office manager working at the head office of a national charitable organization would not be considered a charitable worker.
Type of work permit
You need an employer-specific work permit(opens in a new tab) . You don’t need a labour market impact assessment (LMIA).
Before you apply
You must meet the general eligibility requirements(opens in a new tab) for a work permit.
Before you can apply, your employer must
- submit an offer of employment to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada using the Employer Portal
- pay the employer compliance fee, unless you qualify for a fee exemption, and
- give you the offer of employment number
Who’s eligible for a fee exemption
In most cases, you have to pay the work permit processing fee and your employer has to pay the employer compliance fee.
You may be exempt from paying the work permit processing fee if you won’t be paid, other than
- a small payment for living expenses, or
- non-monetary benefits (such as room and board, health care insurance)
In some cases, you may receive a small payment and non-monetary benefits and still be exempt from paying the work permit processing fee.
If you’re exempt from paying the work permit processing fee, your employer will also be exempt from paying the employer compliance fee ($230). If they’re exempt, they still need to submit an offer of employment in the Employer Portal.
If your employer doesn’t show how you meet the fee exemption, you and your employer will be required to pay all fees.
Special instructions to apply online
When you apply online, we ask you some questions to create your personalized document checklist. Depending on where you’re applying from, you must provide specific answers to get the right checklist.
Applying online from outside Canada
If you’re applying from outside Canada, here’s how to answer the questions to get the right checklist:
- When asked, “What would you like to do in Canada?” select “Work.”
- When asked if the statement, “I have a job offer and my employer gave me an offer of employment number or LMIA number (or proof of that your employer applied for an LMIA).” applies to you, select “Yes.”
- When asked, “Do you plan to work in one of the following categories?” select “No.”
- You should get the result “Foreign worker.”
- Click “Continue.”
- When asked, “What type of work permit do you want to apply for?” select “A work permit for religious or charitable work.”
Applying online from inside Canada
In most cases, you must apply online from inside Canada. When you apply from inside Canada, here’s how to answer the questions to get the right checklist:
- When asked, “What is your current immigration status in Canada?” select “Worker.”
- When asked, “Do you have a written job offer?” select “Yes.”
- Choose the result “Work permit (in Canada).”
- When asked, “Which situation best describes your work situation?” select “I’m applying for an employer-specific work permit with LMIA- exemption.”