Quebec has announced the suspension of LMIA processing for certain low-wage temporary foreign workers.

 Quebec has announced the suspension of LMIA processing for certain low-wage temporary foreign workers.

Effective September 3rd, the processing of Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) in Montréal will be halted for job offers with hourly wages below $27.47 CAD, which is the median hourly wage in Quebec. This suspension is expected to last for six months and has received approval from the federal government of Canada.

Quebec Premier François Legault and Immigration Minister Christine Fréchette made the announcement this morning, stating that the suspension aims to manage the province's temporary resident levels and uphold the integrity of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP).

Note: Temporary residents are individuals in Canada on a work or study permit, or a visitor visa/electronic travel authorization (eTA).

The suspension does not apply to:

• Jobs located outside the economic region of Montréal*;
• Jobs offering wages at or above the current median wage in Quebec ($27.47 CAD);
• LMIA applications submitted before September 3rd, 2024;
• Employers applying for LMIAs in specific industry sectors, as classified by the North American Industry Classification (NAICS), including:
  • Agriculture
  • Construction
  • Food processing
  • Education
  • Health and social services sectors

*The Montréal administrative region includes the following municipalities:

• Baie-d'Urfé
• Beaconsfield
• Côte-Saint-Luc
• Dollard-des-Ormeaux
• Dorval
• Hampstead
• Kirkland
• L’Île-Dorval
• Montréal
• Montréal East
• Montréal West
• Mount Royal
• Pointe-Claire
• Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue
• Senneville
• Westmount

The federal government has indicated that it will closely monitor this policy as it considers future decisions regarding the TFWP.

Recent scrutiny of the TFWP in Canada The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) is a federal initiative that allows employers to hire foreign workers to address labor shortages that cannot be filled domestically. Hiring a foreign worker under this program requires an LMIA.

The program has faced increased scrutiny following statements from Canada's Employment and Immigration Ministers.

On August 6th, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development, and Official Languages Randy Boissonnault announced new measures aimed at protecting the integrity of the TFWP, particularly focusing on the low-wage stream. Boissonnault expressed concerns that some employers may rely too heavily on inexpensive foreign labor and emphasized that the TFWP should not be used to bypass hiring Canadian workers where they are available. He also warned that the low-wage stream could potentially suppress wages in Canada and suggested that his ministry might consider halting the processing of LMIA applications under this stream altogether.

These concerns were echoed by Immigration Minister Marc Miller in recent comments to Reuters.