Immigration Announcement
International Experience Canada (IEC) Program Capacity Increases by 20%
The Canadian government, for its International Experience Canada (IEC) program forthcoming year, will increase the number of applicants. The information is disclosed at a news conference in Banff, Alberta. They also announced the program’s start date as January 9, 2023.
The International Experience Canada (IEC) program enables young people between the ages of 18 and 35 who reside in any of Canada’s 36 partner nations to work and travel for up to two years in Canada and vice versa. Also, on January 9th, 2023, its application pool will expand by 20% or almost 15,000 additional positions. As a result, “almost 90,000 individuals, including the Francophone young community, will be able to work and travel in Canada, which will help employers cover labour gaps.
According to Canada’s Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, “Our administration is helping more global youth with working and travel in Canada, really helping businesses, the vast majority of those in the travel industry, find the workers they need. By offering youth the chance of global travel and work insight, we are reinforcing our economy and assisting our organizations with succeeding, especially in places like Banff that need seasonal help.”
Eventually, this new IEC program change permits Canada to additional development two exceptionally sought-after objectives;
- Assisting Canadian managers with getting the laborers they need and making a difference;
- Youth will be able to investigate new societies, dialects, and social orders;
- Creating fundamental abilities and further developing their work possibilities for the future
Overview of the IEC program
International Experience Canada (IEC) is a set of programs allowing young people from participating countries to travel to Canada to live and work temporarily. Those who are successful in applying for one of the IEC programs will get to apply for a work permit without requiring an LMIA. The approval of work permits will stay for a maximum of one year.
The IEC program operates three separate streams, as mentioned below.
Working Holiday
Participants under the stream will receive an open work permit which allows them to work anywhere in the host country to help with their travels.
International Co-op (Internship)
IEC participants under this stream are provided with an employer-specific work permit which enables students to gain focused work experience in their field.
Young Professionals
Participants in the program will also receive an employer-specific work permit. However, besides gaining targeted work experience, the participants can also pursue their desired career options.
