How to Extend Your Canadian Work Permit
Like every license, your Canadian work permit has limited validity. So, before it expires, you should prepare and find out how to extend your Canadian work permit. Then renew it before it expires; this way, you can keep your employment legal and stay out of trouble.
Usually, you should apply online to extend or change the conditions on your work permit. You have to ensure that your application is complete before submitting it. If everything goes well, you will get a letter confirming that you can keep working under the same conditions as your current work permit. Your Canadian work permit may be one of the following categories.
Table of Contents
3 cases when you need to extend your working permit in Canada:
👷🏼 Temporary Worker
As a temporary worker, you should apply at least 30 days before your Canadian work permit expiration date. If you are taking a new job or even the same job but with different terms than the previous one and under a new employer, you will need to apply for a new permit. You can process your application on paper or online.
💼 Experience Gainer
You may be a foreigner who came to work in Canada to gain experience working in the country for a short time. Along the way, many things can happen during this short period. There would be a possibility that when you would almost ready to end your working experience, your employer would want to extend your work for them. In this scenario, you may decide to apply for an extension of your work permit.
In this case, for the necessary procedures to commence, you would have to apply under Form IMM5710E. The said form is for “application to change conditions extend my stay or remain in Canada as a worker”.
👩👧👦 Caregiver
The Live-in Caregivers program is not accepting new applications for work permits currently. Those who already have the permit can continue with it and apply for an extension as needed. You can have your application submitted either written on paper or through their website online and ask for your working permit extension.
Note: You should apply for the extension of dates at least thirty days before your permit expiration date.
Steps on Applying for an extension of your Canadian work permit
Step 1. Check your current work permit expiration date.
Of course, you should know first when is your current Canadian work permit be expiring. You should apply for its extension at least thirty days before to ensure you will not get caught by its expiry. You may need to stop working if you miss the deadline, although you may resume working upon its renewal.
Step 2. Prepare for your working permit extension application.
The necessary documents to submit during your application will depend on your permit category. For guidance, check the Canadian goverment website to determine which application package applies to you. Ensure that you completed your application before submitting it because an incomplete application could delay the processing of your permit application.
Step 3. Pay the necessary fees for your working permit application.
Payment, of course, is included with your working permit extension application. The processing fees vary depending on the working permit extension circumstance you are applying for. For example, if you are applying for an OPEN WORK PERMIT EXTENSION, that is an added $100 on top of the $155 standard fee for a STANDARD WORK PERMIT EXTENSION.
Step 4. Submit your working permit extension application.
The usual application process is done online through the Canadian federal goverment website. There are just limited circumstances or exceptions that may allow you to do it otherwise. You should prepare your scanner or camera and a valid credit or debit card for your online application.
Step 5. Waiting Time - your application is in the process.
Your application for the extension of your Canadian work permit is in process. The federal government may reach out to you if any further action should be required from you. Otherwise, you will receive a letter; informing you of either the acceptance or refusal of your application. In the case of refused application, you are only allowed to further stay in Canada until the expiration date of your current working permit.
If you are still unsure how to process your application, you may consider getting a Canadian immigration expert. We can help you with your application for an extension on your work permit in Canada.
