Ottawa, August 28, 2024—Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has terminated a temporary public policy that allowed visitors to apply for work permits while in Canada, effective immediately.

This policy was initially implemented in August 2020 to assist visitors who could not depart the country due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. It enabled visitors to apply for work permits without leaving Canada and allowed those who had changed their status to “visitor” after holding a work permit in the past 12 months to legally work while awaiting a new permit decision.

Although the policy was originally set to end on February 28, 2025, IRCC has decided to conclude it earlier to better manage the number of temporary residents and maintain the integrity of the immigration system. Concerns about misuse of the policy by some individuals to deceive foreign nationals into working without proper authorization also contributed to this decision.

Applications submitted before August 28, 2024 will still be processed under the previous policy guidelines.