Our Blog

Mobilité Francophone – Attracting Skilled Workers to Canada’s Francophone Communities

“We want Francophone minority communities in Canada to continue to be vibrant and growing” – Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister John McCallum

On 1 June 2016, the Government of Canada launched the new Mobilité Francophone stream of the International Mobility Program with the aim to encourage the development of minority official language communities in Canada.

This program is designed for foreign skilled workers who have been recruited through a Francophone immigration promotional event coordinated between the Canadian federal government and Francophone minority community stakeholders and who will be working in any Canadian province or territory outside of Québec.

In order to qualify for this stream, a job offer is required in a managerial, professional or technical/skilled trade occupation that is in National Occupational Classification (NOC) level 0, A or B. The employer does not need to obtain a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), and must submit an offer of employment through the Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Employer Portal before a work permit application is made.

People working in Canada under this program will be able to acquire valuable Canadian work experience that will help them qualify for Canada’s various permanent residency programs, and rank higher in the Express Entry pool. To learn more about the Express Entry program, take a look at our Express Entry blog.

Note that if the offer of employment is for 6 months or more, an application for an open work permit may be submitted at the same time for the candidate’s spouse or common-law partner. Dependants may also apply to accompany and study in Canada.

A cautionary note
The foregoing provides only an overview and does not constitute legal advice. Readers are cautioned against making any decisions based on this material alone. Rather, specific legal advice should be obtained.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *