IRCC announced that effective May 15, 2020 it will be accepting 2,750 applications annually to the Agri-Food Pilot. The pilot is scheduled to run for until May 14, 2023 for positions to be filled outside Quebec.
The pilot aims to fill ongoing labour needs with full-time, year-round employees, and also provides a pathway to Canadian permanent residence for many foreign workers in Canada.
Eligible Industries
The Agri-Food pilot focuses on specific agricultural industries: meat processing, mushroom and greenhouse production, and livestock raising. Meat processing jobs are required for cattle, hog, pig, poultry and egg, sheep and goat farming. Below is a general list of eligible occupations and industries under the pilot:
- – MEAT PRODUCTION MANUFACTURING
- – retail butchers
- – industrial butchers
- – farm supervisors and specialized livestock workers
- – food processing labourers
- – GREENHOUSE, NURSERY, FLORICULTURE, and MUSHROOM PRODUCTION
- – farm supervisors
- – specialized livestock workers
- – general farm workers
- – harvesting labourers
- – ANIMAL PRODUCTION (EXCLUDES AQUACULTURE)
- – farm supervisors
- – specialized livestock workers
- – general farm workers
Eligibility Requirements
Prior experience: Applicants must have at least 1 year of non-seasonal, full-time work experience in Canada in the preceding 3 years. That experience must be in one or more of the eligible occupations listed above. An applicant’s Canadian work experience must have been through Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program (with LMIA).
Job offer: Applicants must hold a genuine job offer in one of the eligible occupations. The job must be full-time, non-seasonal, and permanent. Wage requirements depend on whether the position is unionized or non-unionized.
Language requirements: Applicants must show minimum language ability in French or English equivalent to the Canadian Language Benchmark 4. For the General IELTS exam, this translates to 3.5 Reading, 4.0 Speaking and Writing, and 4.5 Listening. For the TEF test, this translates to 121-150 Reading, 181-225 Speaking and Writing, and 145-180 Listening.
Educational requirements: Applicants must either hold a Canadian high school diploma or an ECA report showing the completion of a foreign credential equivalent to secondary school or above.
Settlement funds: Applicants already working in Canada under a valid work permit do not need to provide proof of settlement funds. Other applicants must prove they will have enough money to support themselves and any family members they have, even if those family members are not coming to Canada with them.
Pathway to PR
Successful applicants will receive permanent residence status for themselves and their eligible family members. To receive PR, applicants must not be criminally or medically inadmissible for PR.
Contact Ashamalla LLP for an appointment to have your eligibility assessed for this pilot or other pathways to Canadian PR, or to get assistance with your application.
