The Yukon is a sparsely populated territory in northwestern Canada, with an active and diverse labour market where employers often rely on seasonal workers. Yukon Community Pilot (YCP), a stream under the Yukon Nominee Program (YNP), was launched in January 2020 to help six targeted Yukon communities attract immigrants and facilitate their permanent settlement.
The participating Yukon communities are
Whitehorse | Watson Lake | Dawson City | Haines Junction | Carmacks | Carcross
Under the YCP stream, Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) exempt open work permit is issued to foreign national for 2 years for a specific community enabling the foreign national to work at multiple jobs in that community instead of single employer.
However, to qualify for the work permit, foreign national must
- have a valid nomination for permanent residence from the Yukon
- have 2 or 3 eligible job offers
- have a signed letter of support from the Government of Yukon
- meet the general requirements for a work permit
Job Offer Requirements in Yukon Community Pilot
- They must all be in the same participating Yukon community
- They must add up to at least 30 hours of work a week (equal to a full-time job)
- They must be non-seasonal
- In general, this means you have consistent and regularly scheduled paid employment throughout
- the year
- The wage must meet or exceed the minimum wage
- Your experience must show that you can perform the duties of the jobs offered
IRCC will issue an open work permit to foreign nationals with a mandatory condition limiting the work location to the participating Yukon community. The work permits will be valid for 2 years. Work permit applications must be submitted electronically.
The spouse or common-law partner of the principal applicant may also be issued an open work permit only if
- the principal applicant is employed in at least one NOC Skill Type 0 or Skill Level A or B
- position
- will be limited to the same community as the principal applicant’s place of employment
- will be valid for a maximum of 2 years.
About the Yukon Nominee Program
The Yukon Nominee Program (YNP) is run by the Yukon Government in partnership with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) under the “Agreement for Canada-Yukon Cooperation on Immigration.” This partnership allows Yukon to nominate applicants who qualify to the federal government for permanent residency. The YNP streams for Skilled Workers and Critical Impact Workers is locally driven and based on the needs of Yukon employers.
When eligible Yukon employers cannot find Canadian citizens or permanent residents to fill permanent full-time jobs, they can find workers from outside of Canada. Yukon select internationally trained and experienced foreign workers who have the skills needed in the local labour market and nominate them to receive Canadian permanent resident visas to settle and work in Yukon.
The YNP has following streams
Processing time
Yukon Nominee Program is committed to timely processing of applications, greater transparency to clients and courteous, helpful customer service.
The applications are processed on a first-come-first-served basis. Processing times for Skilled Worker and Critical Impact Worker applications are 12 to 14 weeks from receipt of a complete application package. Processing times may increase with the volume of applications received.
Contact us for more information and/or assistance!