International Experience Canada (IEC) provides youth from around the world with the opportunity to live and work in Canada on a temporary basis, often giving them opportunity to gain valuable Canadian work experience to qualify to remain in Canada permanently.
How To participate in International Experience Canada for 2021:
In order to participate in an IEC program, the applicant must come from a country or territory which has an agreement with Canada that allows you to apply for an IEC work permit. There is also an option to be nominated by a recognized organization (RO).
A list of country or territory with an agreement with Canada can be found here.
In addition to having a country agreement or receiving nomination, an applicant must also meet the eligibility requirements for their country or territory of citizenship and the pool they’re applying for.
Generally, applicants must:
- be an citizen of the participating country;
- have a valid passport for the duration of their stay in Canada;
- be between the ages of 18 and 30 or 35 (depending on the country);
- have a minimum of CAN$2,500 to help cover expenses in Canada;
- have health insurance for the duration of your stay;
- not be inadmissible to Canada;
- have, before departure, a round-trip ticket or demonstrate that you’ll have the financial resources to purchase a departure ticket at the end of your authorized stay in Canada;
- not be accompanied by dependants;
- pay the fees- the amount due is dependent on the program selected under.
All eligible applicants must submit a profile to the International Experience Canada pool. IRCC regularly issue invitations to candidates in the IEC pools during the IEC season.
A profile can submitted to the IEC pool at any time during the IEC season. As long as the profile was submit before the date of the last round of invitations for the applicants country, they may receive an Invitation to Apply for a work permit.
The applicants must then submit an application for a work permit.
Types of programs available under the International Experience Canada
There are three types of programs available under the International Experience Canada.
Working Holiday
Due to current COVID 19 travel restrictions, applicants under the working holiday program will have to provide proof of a valid job offer to receive an invitation to apply for the 2021 season, however normally under this category, the applicant does not need an job offer to apply.
The type of work permit you get for Working Holiday is an open work permit, allowing you to work anywhere in Canada. However, there are some jobs where you’ll have to get a medical exam first.
Young Professionals
Historically, to get a work permit under the IEC as a young professional, the applicant needed to have a job offer from a Canadian company. This remains true for the 2021 season. The job offer used to support an application under this category needs to be a skilled job offer (some semi- skilled offers may be considered) that contribute to the applicant’s professional development.
The type of work permit you get under the young professional program us an employer- specific work permit meaning the applicant will need to work for the same employer in the same location during their stay in Canada.
International Co-op (Internship)
This category is available for applicants who are registered as a post-secondary institution who need to complete an internship as part of their studies.
The type of work permit issued under the International Co-op program us an employer- specific work permit meaning the applicant will need to work for the same employer in the same location during their stay in Canada and the job/ internship offered in Canada must be directly linked to the applicant’s field of studies.
Lauren Boorman
