Intra-Company Transfers

International companies can temporarily transfer qualified employees to Canada, under the intra-company category. Nevertheless, the main purpose of employee transfer is to improve management effectiveness, expand Canadian exports, and enhance competitiveness in overseas markets.

Qualified intra-company employees require work permits and are exempted from the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).  The reason behind the exemption is that the qualified employees provide significant economic benefits to Canada through the transfer of their expertise to Canadian businesses.

The new Canadian business must provide financial information and a business plan.

To be eligible to work in Canada under the Intra-Company Transfer program, candidates should have at least one year of full-time work experience with a foreign International company. In addition, the qualified employee should perform equivalent work in Canada and should fall into one of the following categories:

• Executives oversee the management of the company
• Senior managers manage all or part of the company and administer the work of other subordinate managers.
• Workers with an area of expertise can demonstrate particular knowledge of the company’s product or service.

Work permit duration and renewal

The duration of the work permit is one year but it can be renewed if the company and the employee meet the conditions. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) want to see that Canadian and foreign companies still have a qualifying affiliation. Moreover, the new bureau has adequate staff and it is engaged in the constant provision of goods or services for the past year.