Most foreign workers who want to work temporarily in Canada must have a validated job offer and an employment authorization before they arrive. If the job offers acceptable Canadian wages and working conditions and cannot be filled by a qualified Canadian, the HRCC may validate the job offer. Upon receipt of a HRCC-validated offer, visa officials abroad will decide if the foreign worker qualifies for the employment authorization. They will assess if the worker meets health, and security requirements, and other criteria. If an employment authorization is issued, it is valid only for a specified job, employer and time period.
Additional procedures apply for foreign workers who intend to work in Quebec.
Temporary workers may not undertake full-time studies and may not change jobs unless authorized by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. In 1997, CIC introduced a pilot project in collaboration with Human Resources Development Canada, Industry Canada, and the Software Human Resource Council to streamline the hiring of foreign workers in specific software positions. The project's goal was to respond to industry concerns over the shortage of highly skilled workers. Under this pilot project, extended to the end of December 1999, companies can hire foreign software workers with certain skills without having to obtain validation by a Human Resources Canada Centre. Pilot project to issue employment authorizations to spouses of highly skilled workers As of October 1998, a pilot project will permit spouses of highly skilled temporary workers to accept employment without an HRCC validation.