Agri-Food Pilot
In the 2019 budget, the Federal government of Canada introduced an Agri-Food Immigration Pilot to help fill labour shortages in agricultural industries. The three-year pilot is set to open to new applications in early 2020 and it will run until May, 2023
The Agri-Food pilot offers a pathway to permanent residence for agricultural workers in Canada. In recent years, Canadian agriculture and agri-food industries have strived to fill labour shortages and workers have had to rely on short-term, seasonal work permits in order to find employment. The pilot aims to magnetize and hold on to retain workers by offering a permanent residence in Canada, allow workers and their families to work and live in Canada for as long as they want.
A maximum of 2.5K principal applicants and their families will be accepted per year. This represents a total of 16,500 possible new permanent residents over the 3-year duration of the pilot.
Agricultural employers participating in the pilot will be eligible for a 2-year Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).
Agri-Food Pilot Program Requirements
To be eligible to taking part in the pilot, candidates must meet the following criteria:
- Work experience: 12 months of full-time, non-seasonal Canadian work experience in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in an eligible occupation in processing meat products, raising livestock, or growing mushrooms or green house crops
- Language: A Canadian Language Benchmark (CLB) level 4 in English or French
- Education: Canadian equivalency of high-school level or greater
- Job offer: an indeterminate job offer for full-time, non-seasonal work in Canada, outside of Quebec, at or above the prevailing wage
We can expect further details on how individuals may apply for permanent residence in early 2020.
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