{"id":3445,"date":"2025-09-10T16:09:41","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T20:09:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/?p=3445"},"modified":"2025-09-10T16:09:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T20:09:43","slug":"canada-plans-new-changes-to-the-temporary-foreign-worker-program-tfwp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/?p=3445","title":{"rendered":"Canada Plans New Changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced that the federal government is preparing further adjustments to Canada\u2019s <strong>Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP)<\/strong>, a program central to meeting labour shortages across the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Speaking at the Liberal caucus meeting in Edmonton on <strong>September 10, 2025<\/strong>, Carney emphasized that the TFWP must evolve into a <strong>\u201cfocused approach that targets specific, strategic sectors and regional needs.\u201d<\/strong> While no concrete details were released, the Prime Minister made it clear that reforms are actively in the works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">What is the TFWP?<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Temporary Foreign Worker Program allows Canadian employers to hire foreign nationals when no Canadian citizens or permanent residents are available to fill critical labour gaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before hiring, employers must complete a <strong>Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)<\/strong>, issued by <strong>Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The LMIA ensures hiring a foreign worker will not negatively affect opportunities for Canadians.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Employers must show proof of recruitment efforts, wage compliance, and working conditions before approval.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">Opposition Criticism<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Pierre Poilievre<\/strong>, Leader of the Opposition, has criticized the program, arguing that it reduces job opportunities for Canadians.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Conservative Party has even suggested <strong>abolishing the TFWP<\/strong> altogether.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">Government\u2019s Adjustments to the TFWP Since 2024<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Over the past 18 months, Ottawa has taken steps to <strong>tighten the program<\/strong> and reduce reliance on temporary workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\"><table class=\"has-light-green-cyan-background-color has-background\"><thead><tr><th><strong>Policy Change<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Details<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Annual Target<\/strong><\/td><td>Net new TFWP admissions capped at <strong>82,000<\/strong> for 2025.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Low-Wage Jobs<\/strong><\/td><td>Moratorium on low-wage LMIA applications in regions with unemployment rates <strong>6% or higher<\/strong>.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>High-Wage Jobs<\/strong><\/td><td>Employers hiring under the high-wage stream must now pay <strong>20% above the regional median wage<\/strong>.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Employer Caps<\/strong><\/td><td>Reduced percentage of workforce allowed under TFWP.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Spousal Open Work Permits (SOWPs)<\/strong><\/td><td>Restricted only to spouses of workers in <strong>TEER 0 or 1 jobs<\/strong>, or select <strong>TEER 2\u20133 in-demand roles<\/strong>, with at least <strong>16 months left<\/strong> on the worker\u2019s permit.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">Impact of These Measures<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Work permit issuances fell by 50%<\/strong> between January and June 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Only <strong>33,722 net new TFWP permits<\/strong> were issued in the first half of 2025, far below the annual target.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>These figures suggest the government\u2019s restrictions are already having significant effects on temporary worker inflows.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">Key Takeaways<\/mark><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The government intends to <strong>narrow TFWP\u2019s focus<\/strong> to regional and sector-specific needs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Opposition parties are pushing for stronger action, with some calling for the <strong>end of the program<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Current measures already demonstrate a <strong>sharp decline in work permit approvals<\/strong>, highlighting the balancing act between meeting labour needs and protecting opportunities for Canadians.<br><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-vivid-red-background-color has-text-color has-background has-medium-font-size\">For a <strong> consultation<\/strong> about Immigration options, reach out to the <strong>CAD IMMIGRATION <\/strong>today!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-16018d1d wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/cadimmigration\/profilecard\/?igsh=aWYzamtvMzlvZHUy\" style=\"border-radius:50px;color:#fffffa;background:linear-gradient(135deg,rgb(135,9,53) 0%,rgb(179,22,22) 100%)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">INSTAGRAM<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@cad_immigration?_t=8rYlOtSiktj&amp;_r=1\" style=\"border-radius:50px;color:#fffffa;background:linear-gradient(317deg,rgb(135,9,53) 0%,rgb(179,22,22) 100%)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">TIKTOK<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/cad-immigration\/\" style=\"border-radius:50px;color:#fffffa;background:linear-gradient(42deg,rgb(135,9,53) 0%,rgb(179,22,22) 100%)\">LINKEDIN<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced that the federal government is preparing further adjustments to Canada\u2019s Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), a program central to meeting labour shortages across the country. Speaking at the Liberal caucus meeting in Edmonton on September 10, 2025, Carney emphasized that the TFWP must evolve into a \u201cfocused approach that [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":3446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[79,83,49,3,78,76,77,57,70,36],"class_list":["post-3445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cicnews","tag-cad-immigration","tag-cad-immigration-news","tag-cadimmigration","tag-canadaimmigration","tag-immigration-canada","tag-immigration-new-rules","tag-immigration-new-updates","tag-immigration-trend","tag-immigration-updates-canada","tag-immigrationupdates"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3445"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3447,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445\/revisions\/3447"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cadimmigration.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}