Canada: New Pilot Program for Canadian Employers Recruiting in the Philippines

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has launched a new pilot program at IRCC’s visa office in Manila (called CAN Work Philippines), aimed at streamlining immigration processing for eligible Canadian employers recruiting from the Philippines to help address labor market shortages. To be eligible for the program, Canadian employers must be either hiring approximately 50 or more workers or hiring for critical occupations in sectors such as health care, construction and agri-food. Furthermore, to participate in the program, employers must demonstrate their commitment to fair and ethical recruitment guidelines, as published by the International Organization for Migration (the method of confirmation of this commitment is not yet clear and will likely vary case-by-case). Benefits of the program include allowing employers to schedule group appointments for medical examinations and biometrics for potential employees in the Philippines to streamline the immigration application process. Canadian employers interested in more information on the CAN Work Philippines pilot program can contact Fragomen Canada.