Work in Canada

How to Apply for a Canadian Work Visa from Saudi Arabia

The reason people are exploring how to apply for a Canadian work visa in Saudi Arabia may be due to many factors. These include cheaper living expenses, a wider range of benefits, or something as simple as a change in the weather.

Maybe free education and world-class health care will appeal to you, or it could even be the affordability of living in Canada. With Canada’s goal of welcoming over 1.2 million immigrants over the next three years along with all of the aforementioned benefits, the work visa application could not be made at a better time.

The details of the Canadian work visa can be confusing, but don’t worry, here are some ways to get a work visa in Canada.

How to Get a Canadian Work Visa

The two types of work visas available in Canada are an open work permit and an employer-specific work permit. The type of work permit you need depends on your job in Canada.

What Is an Open Work Permit>

An open work permit will allow you to have any job in Canada related to your employer or location in Canada. There is a restricted open work permit that allows you to work for any employer, but you can tie it to the type of work you do.Advertisements

The open work permit means that you are exempt from needing a Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA). This is a document that proves that no Canadian citizen or permanent resident is willing or able to occupy a specific position in Canada, allowing the employee to hire a foreign worker.

The International Mobility Program (IMP) allows Canadian employees to hire temporary foreign workers without the need for the LMIA, which makes the PMI a very popular program because it is a much faster process and easier.

The International Mobility Program serves the broader economic and cultural interests of Canada. One of these interests is the graduate work permit.

Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)

The Graduate Work Permit allows students graduating from a designated learning institute (DLI) to obtain an open work visa.

With PGWP, you can work in Canada and are free to change jobs or locations in Canada. The work visa is valid for up to three years, depending on the length of the program.

You can request a PGWP if:

your study permit is still valid
you have a valid visitor record
you have maintained full-time student status in Canada
you submitted an application to extend your study permit before it expired and no decision has been made on your application
you studied program at a designated learning institution that was at least eight months long

If you want to apply for a Canadian work visa from Saudi Arabia through this route but have not studied in Canada, no problem! There are many affordable higher education institutions to study in Canada. This is a great way to get an open work visa for Canada and in the right direction for permanent residence in Canada.

What Is an Employer-Specific Permit?

Most foreign nationals looking to work in Canada are more likely to obtain an employer-specific work permit, also known as a closed work permit.

A specific permit from the employer allows you to work as a foreign citizen under certain conditions or limitations of the work permit. It also limits you to one employer and one position.

The limitations of an employer-specific Canadian work visa may include restrictions such as:

Name of the employer you can work for
How long you can work for this employer
The location where you can work (if applicable)

One way to get a Saudi employer-specific work visa is to use the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.

Temporary Foreign Worker Program

The Temporary Foreign Worker Program offers a solution to Canadian employers by allowing them to temporarily hire foreign nationals to fill the labor shortage in Canada and bring in new skills and knowledge to help the country’s economy grow. .

Examples of streams you can apply for a work visa through, from the Temporary Foreign Worker Program are:

Global Talent Stream
Agricultural Stream

Global Talent Stream

Global Talent Stream (GTS) is a government service aimed at helping employers access highly skilled global talent and grow the workforce in Canada. The advantage of going through Global Talent Stream is that it has a much faster processing time of just two weeks.

Global Talent Stream has two categories. They are as follows:

Category A

This category is for employers who have been referred to the Global Talent Stream stream by one of the stream’s designated partners. Employers should also hire people with unique or specialized talents.

To be eligible for category A, you must meet the following conditions:

Have a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)
You must have a job in Canada
Must prove that you will leave Canada after your work permit expires
Prove that you can finance your stay and your family’s stay in Canada and that you have enough funds to go back to your home country
Have a clean criminal record
Prove that you are not a threat to the national security of Canada
Be in good health

Category B

This category is for employers looking to hire highly-skilled foreign workers to fill in-demand positions in Canada that are on the Global List of Talented Occupations.

The list includes professions such as: