Program directory · Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Temporary Workers
- Program code
- BGD03 (CI)
- Core responsibility
- Visitors, International Students and Temporary Workers
- In Departmental Plans
- 2018-19 – 2026-27 · New since an earlier plan
What it does
IRCC facilitates the entry of foreign nationals who wish to work temporarily in Canada, through two main streams. The first stream involves a foreign national entering Canada at the request of an employer who is subject to a labour market test performed by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). This stream allows an employer to fill acute labour shortages on a temporary basis when no qualified Canadians or permanent residents are determined to be available. Under the second stream, exemptions from the labour market test are offered in cases that support broader Canadian interests, such as the competitive advantages and reciprocal benefits that Canadians enjoy as a result of international agreements and partnerships (including the North American Free Trade Agreement). IRCC and ESDC impose conditions on employers in relation to the foreign national’s work in Canada, inspect employers to verify program compliance and, in instances of non-compliance, issue administrative monetary penalties and bans. Temporary workers may be required to apply for a visa or an electronic travel authorization. IRCC issues work permits to successful applicants.
Source: the department's Program Inventory, via GC InfoBase.
History and lineage
First appears in GC InfoBase's actual spending by program in 2018-19. The data does not record when a program was created; it may be older than its first appearance here, which is limited by the sources (program spending starts in 2010-11, Departmental Plans in 2018-19).
| Program | Relation | Years with data | Actual spending over those years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary Workers | This program | 2018-19 – 2028-29 | $555M |
No earlier or later program in the same department has a similar name.
Significant changes in scope and budget
Detected from the data: renames between plans, programs it appears to replace, merge with or split into (matched by name), year-over-year changes in spending of at least 25% and $5M, or in employees of at least 20% and 25 FTEs, linked budget measures, and results indicators added or dropped.
| Year | What changed | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | Employees (FTEs) 529, against 419 in 2018-19 (+26%). | FTEs (GC InfoBase) |
| 2019-20 | Spending $78.8M, against $55.5M in 2018-19 (+42%). | Actual spending (GC InfoBase) |
| 2020-21 | Indicators dropped: Percentage of inspected employers found compliant | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2022-23 | Employees (FTEs) 700, against 535 in 2021-22 (+31%). | FTEs (GC InfoBase) |
| 2022-23 | Spending $79.2M, against $60.4M in 2021-22 (+31%). | Actual spending (GC InfoBase) |
| 2024-25 | Employees (FTEs) 968, against 782 in 2023-24 (+24%). | FTEs (GC InfoBase) |
| 2026-27 | Planned employees (FTEs) 524, against 1,054 in 2025-26 (−50%). | FTEs (GC InfoBase) |
| 2026-27 | Indicators added: Percentage of overseas work permit applications that are processed by IRCC within the established service standards | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
| 2026-27 | Indicators dropped: Number of temporary work permit holders who enter Canada; Percentage of inspected employers found compliant (including compliant with justification) | Departmental Results Framework (GC InfoBase) |
Success criteria
The program's indicators from its department's Departmental Results Framework: the target set in each year's plan, and the result reported the following year. Source: GC InfoBase.
Historical: targets against results
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 250,000 – 300,000 | 2018 | 338,769 In 2018, the total number of work permits issued was 338,769 under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Mobility Program. This rise of 12.4% reflects, in part, the increased issuance of permits to support broader Canadian economic and cultural interests under the International Mobility Program. Half of the increase in work permits is attributable to increases in post-graduat… | Not met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 265,000 | 2019 | 404,369 In 2019, the total number of work permits issued was 404,369 under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and the International Mobility Program. This rise of 19% over the 2018 total reflects, in part, the increased issuance of permits to support broader Canadian economic and cultural interests under the International Mobility Program. 36% of the increase in work permits is attributable to the grow… | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 300,000 | 2020 | 326,116 Despite the significant disruptions in service delivery caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, IRCC met targets for temporary work permit holders entering Canada by implementing facilitative measures and policies that allowed temporary foreign workers to meet ongoing labour needs in Canada. | Met |
| 2021-22 | ≥ 300,000 | 2021 | 415,817 While there were continued disruptions in service delivery caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, IRCC exceeded targets for temporary work permit holders entering Canada by implementing facilitative measures and policies that allowed essential temporary foreign workers to continue to enter Canada through border restrictions imposed in response to the pandemic. A measure was also introduced to allow for… | Met |
| 2022-23 | ≥ 300,000 | 2022 | 604,382 In 2022, IRCC launched the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel in response to Russia's invasion of the Ukraine. The demand for this exceptional measure has been unprecedented, with the arrival of close to 147,000 individuals as of April 1, 2023. Of these, 79,500 are work permit holders. | Met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 350,000 | 2023 | 946,259 The number of work permit holders who were in Canada primarily for work purposes has increased in both the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and International Mobility Program (IMP). Growth in IMP volumes is mainly tied to open work permit categories, and primarily driven by broader Government of Canada commitments, such as whole-of-government response to unprecedented global crises (e.g., Ukraine… | Met |
| 2024-25 | ≥ 425,000 | 2024 | 905,440 The number of temporary work permit holders in 2024 represents a 4.3% decrease compared to last year. The most significant reductions in the number of temporary work permit holders in 2024 were in the Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) Program and spouses/common-law partners of international students. Measures to limit volumes were introduced throughout the year, which led to a downward shift in… | Met |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≤ 15% | 2019 | 1% Of the employers inspected, 1% of employers were found non-compliant with regulatory program conditions. Please note that this indicator should only include employers found non-compliant. Per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, compliant with justification is considered to be compliant with program conditions and should not be included in the calculation of employers found non-com… | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≤ 15% | 2020 | 1% Of the employers inspected, 1% of employers were found non-compliant with regulatory program conditions. *Note that this indicator should only include employers found non-compliant. Per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, compliant with justification is considered to be compliant with program conditions and should not be included in the calculation of employers found non-compliant. | Met |
| 2020-21 | ≥ 95% | 2021 | 99% Employer compliance inspections underwent significant shifts during 2020-2021. Inspections based on quarantine conditions took precedence to ensure the health and safety of workers and Canadians. Even though the conditions and number of inspections differed from previous years, the percentage of inspected employers found compliant reached 99% for the third year in a row. Although employer inspect… | Met |
| 2021-22 | ≥ 95% | 2022 | 99.5% In fiscal year 2021-22, employer compliance inspections were primarily focused on conditions under the Emergencies and Quarantine Act to ensure the protection of health and safety for workers and Canadians. Results of these inspections indicate that the IMP employer population were aware of and adhered to the conditions of the Program as the percentage of inspected employers found compliant (comp… | Met |
| 2022-23 | ≥ 95% | 2023 | 99.6% IRCC has found that 99.6% of all employers who hire International Mobility Program (IMP) employer-specific work permit holders were found compliant, or compliant with justification, upon inspection during the 2022-23 fiscal year. This compliance rate is only slightly higher than the 99.5% compliance rate for the previous year. For the previous three years (i.e., 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21), th… | Met |
| 2023-24 | ≥ 95% | 2024 | 98.9% IRCC has found that 98.9% of all employers inspected under the International Mobility Program – employer-specific foreign workers were found compliant, or compliant with justification, during the 2023-24 fiscal year. | Met |
| 2024-25 | ≥ 95% | 2025 | 98.6% In 2024-25, IRCC has conducted 4,330 inspections of employers who hired temporary foreign workers under the International Mobility Program (IMP). Out of this number, 98.6% of employers inspected were found to be compliant (67%), or compliant with justification (31.6%), meaning they offered an acceptable justification as set under the IRPR. Only 1.4% of employers inspected were found not compliant… | Met |
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | ≥ 85% | 2019 | 99% Of employers inspected, 99% respected regulatory program conditions; this includes employers that were found compliant and were able to justify compliance (i.e. administrative error) with program conditions. Please note that this indicator should include employers found compliant as well as those found compliant with justification. Per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, compliant… | Met |
| 2019-20 | ≥ 85% | 2020 | 99% Of employers inspected, 99% respected regulatory program conditions; this includes employers that were found compliant and were able to justify compliance (i.e. administrative error) with program conditions. *Note that this indicator now includes both employers found compliant and those found compliant with justification. As per the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, compliant with j… | Met |
Current: the 2026-27 plan's targets
Bars: result reported. Dashed line: target.
| Report year | Target | Due | Result | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | ≥ 80% | 2027 | — | Planned |
Future goals: targets due after 2026-27
No targets with a later due date.
Spending and employees: planned against actual
Spending
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | $30.4M | $55.5M |
| 2019-20 | $69.1M | $78.8M |
| 2020-21 | $69.7M | $68M |
| 2021-22 | $68M | $60.4M |
| 2022-23 | $76.1M | $79.2M |
| 2023-24 | $76.9M | $95.4M |
| 2024-25 | $105M | $118M |
| 2025-26 | $104M | — |
| 2026-27 | $101M | — |
| 2027-28 | $93.8M* | — |
| 2028-29 | $93.7M* | — |
Employees (FTEs)
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Planned | Actual |
|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 360 | 419 |
| 2019-20 | 504 | 529 |
| 2020-21 | 513 | 535 |
| 2021-22 | 438 | 535 |
| 2022-23 | 491 | 700 |
| 2023-24 | 555 | 782 |
| 2024-25 | 950 | 968 |
| 2025-26 | 1,054 | — |
| 2026-27 | 524 | — |
| 2027-28 | 524* | — |
| 2028-29 | 516* | — |
Planned spending, plan by plan
Each row is one year's Departmental Plan and its forecast for the next three fiscal years; read a column down to see how the forecast for one year changed. The last row is what was actually spent. Click an amount for its source. Biggest changes in federal spending plans
| Plan | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | 2028-29 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-19 plan | $30,380,096 | $31,911,784 | $32,140,805 | ||||||||
| 2019-20 plan | $69,113,345 | $64,359,962 | $63,502,111 | ||||||||
| 2020-21 plan | $69,656,322 | $64,390,093 | $63,405,087 | ||||||||
| 2021-22 plan | $67,980,892 | $63,181,457 | $62,579,642 | ||||||||
| 2022-23 plan | $76,086,200 | $72,061,130 | $66,854,164 | ||||||||
| 2023-24 plan | $76,938,617 | $74,505,526 | $76,945,460 | ||||||||
| 2024-25 plan | $105,297,153 | $103,138,949 | $93,233,967 | ||||||||
| 2025-26 plan | $103,555,973 | $92,400,293 | $90,694,771 | ||||||||
| 2026-27 plan | $101,247,206 | $93,781,476 | $93,731,033 | ||||||||
| Actual | $55,483,564 | $78,839,328 | $68,028,469 | $60,412,655 | $79,172,341 | $95,366,276 | $117,566,020 |
Actual spending is from Departmental Results Reports and the Public Accounts, as published in GC InfoBase. FTEs are full-time equivalents.
