Canadian immigration policy shift removes job offer boost in Express Entry

Key Takeaways

• Express Entry no longer grants points for LMIA-backed jobs starting spring 2025, affecting skilled worker retention.
• The LMIA wage threshold for high-wage positions rose 20% as of November 8, 2024, increasing employer costs.
• Temporary worker caps and regional freezes, like Montréal’s until March 2025, delay hiring and add uncertainty.

Executive Summary

Canadian immigration policy is changing in ways that are making it harder for employers to hire and keep foreign workers. Recent updates—including changes to Express Entry, rising wage rules for the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), freezes on hiring streams, stricter enforcement, and new limits on temporary workers—are creating uncertainty and more cost for businesses. Employers are worried about not being able to keep skilled workers, increased risks of breaking rules, higher labor costs, and more paperwork. To address these issues, this policy brief examines the current environment, explains the main pain points for employers, and presents clear next steps and recommendations to help resolve these problems.

Introduction

Employers in Canada 🇨🇦 rely on foreign workers to fill gaps in their workforce, especially in sectors like healthcare, agriculture, and technology. However, recent changes to the Canadian immigration process and stricter government enforcement are causing business leaders to rethink their hiring plans. These new barriers are driving away not only foreign talent but also the businesses that depend on them to grow.

This brief explains recent policy changes related to Express Entry and LMIA, shows their impact on employers, and offers recommendations for making the system more predictable and easier for both businesses and workers.

Background

Canada 🇨🇦 has long promoted itself as a welcoming place for skilled migrants and international students, partly through its Express Entry system and programs for temporary workers. The Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is a tool used by the government to judge whether hiring a foreign worker is needed. If approved, it shows that no Canadian worker is available for the job, and the employer can move forward with the hire.

But as reported by VisaVerge.com, recent years have seen many policy changes meant to stop fraud and make sure that Canadian jobs go first to Canadians. These changes, while intended to protect the job market, are also adding more steps and rules for employers who want to bring foreign workers to Canada 🇨🇦.

Some of the most important changes in 2024 and 2025 include:

• Removal of points for LMIA-backed job offers under Express Entry
• Higher wage requirements under LMIA streams
• Freezes on certain hiring streams in regions like Montréal
• New caps on total numbers of temporary workers and international students
• Stricter enforcement and bigger fines for employers who break the rules

Analysis

1. The End of Extra Points for Arranged Employment (Express Entry)

Until spring 2025, foreign workers applying under Express Entry could get extra points if they had a job offer backed by an LMIA. This not only helped them get picked quickly for permanent residence, but it also made Canada 🇨🇦 more attractive for talented workers.

Now, the points for arranged employment under Express Entry will be taken away. While the reason is to reduce fraud, it has raised serious worries among employers:

• Foreign workers now have less of a reason to accept a job in Canada 🇨🇦 if they cannot become permanent residents faster.
• Employers can no longer offer the chance for faster permanent residency as an incentive to high-skilled migrants.
• This move makes it harder for businesses to keep international workers long-term.

Employers in sectors with high labor shortages, such as health care and STEM (science, technology, engineering, math), are especially hurt. These industries need skilled talent from around the world, not just from within Canada 🇨🇦. With one less pathway to permanent status, businesses can lose out in the tight race for talent.

1. Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA): Higher Wages and More Uncertainty

The LMIA is a key step for many employers. Before hiring a foreign worker, an employer must show they cannot find a local worker able to do the job. As of November 8, 2024, the median hourly wage threshold for high-wage positions under the LMIA rose by 20%.

This steep wage hike means:

• Higher wage bills for employers, even when hiring for positions that do not require higher pay in the open market.
• Some small and medium-sized businesses may no longer afford to hire foreign labor.
• Certain jobs that don’t justify higher wages (but still lack Canadian candidates) simply go unfilled.

In addition, there are temporary freezes on new LMIA applications for low-wage streams in some regions, most notably in the Montréal economic area until March 3, 2025. Quebec’s own freeze on new selection certificates in several programs through mid-2025 only adds to the delay.

For employers:

• Hiring plans get delayed by months, leaving critical positions empty.
• Planning workforce needs long-term is almost impossible because employers don’t know if they will be able to legally hire a foreign worker at the right time.

For more information on the LMIA and how to apply, employers can visit the Government of Canada’s official Temporary Foreign Worker Program page.

1. Caps and Restrictions on Temporary Workers and Students

Permanent residents, temporary workers, and international students are all subject to new federal limits. By the end of 2027, the Canadian government aims to keep the number of temporary residents—including workers and students—at less than 5% of the total population.

This means:

• Every year, fewer foreign workers can come to Canada 🇨🇦.
• Worker shortages, already felt in many industries, may get worse.
• Businesses that depend on hiring during peak seasons or busy months must rethink their plans.

1. Stricter Enforcement and Costs of Non-Compliance

The government has stepped up enforcement. Recent actions include:

• More frequent audits and inspections of workplaces employing foreign workers
• Heavy fines for non-compliance—companies in Ontario have had to pay between $25,000 and $75,000 per offense
• New rules requiring business owners and HR teams to complete compliance training

Employers face:

• Risk of large fines and damage to their company’s reputation
• Higher spending on legal advice and staff training
• Anxiety over being able to pass complicated audits and reviews

Sometimes, small errors or confusion over rules can trigger an investigation, so even companies trying to follow the law are nervous about making mistakes.

1. Frustration Over a Closed Work Permit System

Canadian immigration rules mostly offer “closed” work permits, which tie a worker to one employer. While this helps the government track employment and stop abuse, it brings major headaches for both workers and employers:

• Workers have less flexibility to change jobs if they face abuse or need to leave for personal reasons.
• Employers find it harder to keep workers, since complicated rules make it costly and risky for workers to stay if their work situation changes.
• Many advocacy groups continue to ask for more open work permits, but so far no broad changes have been made.

Employer Pain Points: At a Glance

The table below lays out the main challenges companies are facing:

Policy Options

To address these mounting challenges, several policy options have been suggested by stakeholders and experts:

Option 1: Restore or reshape Express Entry points for arranged employment
– Bring back points for job offers that have an approved LMIA, possibly with added checks to prevent fraud.
– This would again make it attractive for skilled foreign workers to choose Canada 🇨🇦, giving companies a better chance to fill important jobs.

Option 2: Reconsider high wage thresholds under LMIA
– Tie required wages more closely to actual regional or sector needs rather than a single national standard.
– This change could lower costs and open doors for smaller businesses without threatening Canadian worker pay.

Option 3: Review freezes and streamline approval processes
– Allow for quicker exceptions or faster application review for employers in proven labor-shortage sectors.
– Provide clear, advance notice of any freezes or changes, so companies can plan ahead.

Option 4: Open work permits in special cases
– Introduce more open or sector-based work permits to increase worker protection and employer flexibility.
– At a minimum, create an easier system for workers to switch employers if they face abuse or are let go.

Option 5: Better employer communication and training
– Offer detailed, easy-to-follow official guides and training resources for employers.
– Less guesswork would lead to fewer unintentional rule breaks and make the whole process smoother.

Pros and Cons of Each Option

Option 1 (Restoring Express Entry Points)
Pros: Brings back a strong benefit for skilled workers and employers. Easy to implement for jobs with LMIA approval.
Cons: Risk of repeated abuses if fraud controls are weak.

Option 2 (Lower Wage Requirements Through LMIA Reform)
Pros: Reduces costs, helps small businesses, makes hiring more affordable.
Cons: Might face public pushback if seen as lowering wages for Canadians.

Option 3 (Streamlined Processes and Transparency)
Pros: Eases stress, cuts down on bottlenecks. Employers know where they stand.
Cons: Can be hard for governments to move quickly on short notice.

Option 4 (Open or Sectoral Work Permits)
Pros: Improves worker safety, gives employers access to a stable workforce.
Cons: Needs careful design to avoid encouraging job-hopping or undue movement from one job to another.

Option 5 (Employer Training and Communication)
Pros: Reduces confusion, fewer rule breaks, supports fair hiring.
Cons: May require ongoing outreach and frequent updates as rules change.

Recommendations

Based on this analysis, policymakers should:

1. Restore points for LMIA-backed job offers with stronger fraud checks to balance integrity and access.
2. Review wage thresholds for LMIA jobs, allowing more flexibility for sector and regional realities.
3. Commit to giving employers at least six months’ notice before making major policy changes or freezes.
4. Expand the use of open work permits in clear situations, such as in industries with chronic shortages or proven worker abuse cases.
5. Invest in new, user-friendly guides and support lines for employers to reduce mistakes and make compliance less daunting.

These actions would help Canadian employers keep up with staffing needs, protect local workers, keep Canada 🇨🇦 globally competitive, and make the immigration system easier for all.

Counterarguments and Challenges

Some may argue that relaxing any rules could open the door again to fraud or make it harder for Canadians to get jobs. Others worry about the cost of more government help for employers and possible loopholes from new permit types.

However, Canada 🇨🇦 has always corrected its pathways based on practical feedback. Well-designed reforms can improve honesty and efficiency without risking the main aim—giving Canadians and those already here fair access to opportunity.

Conclusion

Changing Canadian immigration rules—especially around Express Entry, LMIA, wage rules, and temporary worker caps—are making it harder and more costly for employers to bring in and keep the talent they need. If these issues stay unaddressed, Canada 🇨🇦 risks losing both businesses and skilled workers to other countries. Policymakers should listen closely to both employer concerns and public needs, and act to simplify the process, improve communication, and keep pathways open and fair for all.

Employers who need the latest, most accurate details on the steps and forms involved should rely on official sites, such as the Government of Canada’s Immigration and Citizenship page.

References

1. https://engageanywhere.com/canada-immigration-laws-2025-update/
2. https://www.fasken.com/en/knowledge/2025/01/employers-guide-to-key-immigration-policy-updates-in-the-new-year
3. https://www.mondaq.com/canada/general-immigration/1621560/how-to-keep-your-foreign-workers-employed-in-2025
4. https://immigcanada.com/ircc-boosts-immigration-efficiency/
5. https://www.cicnews.com/2025/04/liberals-vs-conservatives-comparing-proposed-immigration-policies-ahead-of-the-2025-election-0454370.html

Summary

Canadian immigration policies are getting more complex for employers, especially with changes to Express Entry and the Labour Market Impact Assessment. Rising wages, strict audits, sudden freezes, and tight caps are making it harder to plan, hire, and keep international workers. Clearer processes, restored incentives, better communication, and more open work options could ease the pain for companies and workers alike. By acting soon, Canada 🇨🇦 can keep its doors open to the talent and businesses it needs for a bright economic future.

Learn Today

Express Entry → Canada’s system to select skilled immigrants using a points-based ranking for faster permanent residence processing.
Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) → A government evaluation ensuring no qualified Canadian worker is available before hiring a foreign worker.
LMIA-backed job offer → A job offer supported by a positive LMIA proving employer’s need for foreign labor.
Temporary Foreign Worker Program → Canada’s program allowing employers to hire foreign nationals for temporary work.
Closed work permit → A work permit restricting a foreign worker to one employer, limiting job mobility.

This Article in a Nutshell

Canadian immigration changes complicate hiring foreign workers, raising wage rules and imposing freezes. Employers face higher costs, stricter audits, and fewer pathways for permanent residency, risking talent loss. Policy reforms restoring points, easing wage rules, and increasing work permit flexibility could support businesses and improve immigration stability in Canada.
— By VisaVerge.com

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