Canada helps PGWP holders to gain more Canadian experience

Lately, it was allowed for foreign graduates who did a study in Canada and stayed on to work in the country with a PGWP to apply for another open work permit with a validity of 18 months.

This move was made by the Canadian government to help international students who were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. So, IRCC has been taking in applications from candidates under the new policy whose PGWP had expired or was about to expire.

The extended time the PGWP holders will get to work under the new open work permit will add to their Canadian experience. It will help them to become eligible for Canada immigration visa. Also, the former international students will acquire the advantage of faster integration into the Canadian job market, which also makes them favorites to Canadian employers.

The current estimate of IRCC is 52,000 PGWP holders who could benefit from this new policy. Interested candidates can apply for the 18-month open work permit till July 27, 2021.

The following are the eligibility criteria to apply for the new open work visa:

• The candidate must have a PGWP that expired on January 30, 2020, or after that if not a PGWP that is due to expire in 4 months’ time from the date of application.
• The candidate must be in Canada on January 27, 2021, at the time of this policy taking effect. He/she must also remain in Canada.
• The candidate must have a temporary status in Canada that’s valid. Or else, he/she must have applied to restore visa status if not applying to restore his/her status.
• The candidate must mention in the application that he/she is applying for the new open work permit.
• The candidate must have a valid passport that's valid for at least 18 months from the date of approval of the application for the new open work permit. If the candidate's passport expires within 18 months, the open work permit he/she gets will correspond to the length of time as his/her passport’s period of validity.

Every student who has graduated from a DLI could apply for a PGWP. The PGWP’s validity is 3 years. Obtaining the PGWP is significant for international students because they will get greater recognition in the skilled worker pathways of the Canada immigration system than others. This is because they already have a Canadian experience.

If you are looking to Study, Work, Visit, Invest or Migrate to Canada, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Company.

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Note:

IRCC – Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada

PGWP – Post-Graduate Work Program