Advertising requirements for Canadian employers hiring foreign workers

Canadian employers who need a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) in order to hire foreign workers will oftentimes need to complete an advertising requirement.

The purpose of the advertising requirement is to demonstrate to the Canadian government that there are no Canadian workers available or willing to fill a job vacancy. Employers must satisfy the guidelines set out by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), the federal government department that oversees the LMIA process.

To meet the advertising requirement, employers must advertise all job vacancies across the Canadian job market for at least four weeks before applying for an LMIA.

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Where employers can advertise job postings

Employers must prove they have used at least three recruitment methods. One has to be a posting on the Canada Job Bank website, plus two other methods which can be chosen from the following:

general employment websites
online classified websites
specialized websites which are dedicated to specific occupational profiles (for example, accounting, marketing, biotechnology, education, engineering)
local, regional and national newspapers or newsletters
local stores, places of worship, and community resource centres
local, regional and provincial or territorial employment centres
magazines and journals (for example, national journals or magazines, professional associations magazines, specialized journals)
participation at job fairs
partnering with training institutions or offering internships
professional recruitment agencies
consultations with unions for available labour
advertising through professional associations
recruitment within the company (for example, considering internal candidates for the position)

If the two additional methods of recruitment are online, they must each have unique value and reach different audiences. If employers advertise on multiple websites of the same type, the combined advertisements will only be considered as one additional method of recruitment.

Employers must be sure to focus advertising efforts on groups of Canadians who are under-represented, such as Indigenous people and people with disabilities.

How long the job advertisement must last

Employers must ensure that the job advertisements are posted for minimum of 30 days. This 30-day period must be within the three months prior to submitting the LMIA application. This means that applications submitted after the three months period may be returned as incomplete requiring the employer to complete a new advertising period of 30 days.

At least one of the three recruitment activities to seek qualified Canadians must be ongoing until employers get a positive or neutral LMIA from the government.

Proof of advertisement

Employers must demonstrate they have made efforts to recruit qualified Canadian workers by providing the following documents as proof of advertisement with your application:

a copy of the advertisement and information to support where, when and for how long the position was advertised
proof that the print media and websites used to advertise target an audience that has the appropriate education, professional experience or skill level required for the occupation
proof of other recruitment activities (for example, an invoice from a Job Fair)

ESDC says employers have to keep records of the advertising requirement for at least six years as employers will be asked to provide the results from recruitment efforts.

Variations to the advertising requirements

In certain circumstances, there are variations to the advertising requirements for specific positions and in particular provinces or territories. The positions which have variations in their advertising requirements are listed below:

Also, if your company or the position available is eligible for the Global Talent Stream (GTS), you may be able to skip the advertising process and bring over skilled talent more quickly. This option is tailored for employers in the tech sector. The GTS has a processing standard of two weeks.

Getting workers to Canada can be a daunting process. A Canadian immigration lawyer can help you apply for Canadian work permits.