The federal government has exempted early childhood educators from restrictions on low-wage work permits in areas with high unemployment.
Effective November 6, 2026, employers can apply for Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) to hire early childhood educators through the low-wage stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), regardless of the local unemployment rate.
Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) announced the change in a news release published on November 6, 2026.
Before this change, early childhood educators could not receive low-wage TFWP work permits in Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher.
A TFWP position falls under the low-wage stream if it pays less than 120% of the provincial or territorial median wage.
At the time of writing, 30 CMAs across Canada are subject to the work permit moratorium until January 7, 2027. These include Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Fredericton, and Ottawa-Gatineau.
Early childhood educators are the latest group to receive an exemption from the low-wage work permit restrictions.
Other exemptions already cover workers in:
- Agriculture
- Construction
- Food manufacturing
- Hospitals
- Nursing and residential care facilities
- In-home caregivers for private households
A Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) is a document that ESDC issues to an employer to confirm that no Canadian citizen or permanent resident is available to fill a position.
Foreign workers applying for or extending a work permit through the TFWP generally need an employer with a positive or neutral LMIA.
On October 28, 2026, the federal government also removed the 90-day time limit for TFWP applications submitted alongside LMIAs by workers already in Canada whose work permits are close to expiring.
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