GATINEAU, Quebec - The federal government has doubled the maximum length of low-wage work permits under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to two years and added early childhood educators to the list of occupations exempt from the processing pause, in reforms announced November 6.
Effective November 6, 2026, Labour Market Impact Assessment applications in the low-wage stream will have a maximum duration of up to two years, an increase from the current one-year duration. The change gives employers and workers more predictability: a worker hired under a low-wage LMIA can now stay up to two years on a single assessment instead of returning to the process after one.
Applications are still not processed in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6 per cent or higher, except for priority sectors. Those sectors are health care, construction and food processing. On November 6, early childhood educators were added to the list of exceptions, in response to ongoing labour needs across the country.
Budget 2026 provides $151.5 million over five years to support and improve service delivery for the program, and $82 million over four years for the Migrant Worker Support Program, which helps temporary foreign workers understand their rights and how to exercise them while living and working in Canada.
Further changes are proposed, not yet in effect, and depend on provinces and territories opting in. From March 1, 2027, the government proposes to let eligible employers hire temporary foreign workers for up to 15 per cent of their workforce through the low-wage stream, up from the current 10 per cent maximum, while priority sectors would continue at the existing 20 per cent limit. In large metropolitan areas with unemployment below 6 per cent, employers would have targeted access for occupations on the Canadian Occupational Projection System list and any additional occupations identified by provinces and territories. Rural communities would keep full access to all occupations in the low-wage stream.
“Canada’s workforce is the foundation of a strong economy,” said Patty Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Families. “While Canadians must always be first in line for available jobs, employers in key sectors continue to face labour shortages that can limit growth and affect communities across the country.”
What it means for Surrey employers and workers
Surrey sits at the centre of this change. Construction and food processing, two of the exempt priority sectors, are major employers in the city, and South Asian workers make up a large share of the temporary foreign workforce in the Lower Mainland. A two-year permit means fewer renewals, less paperwork and more stability for both sides, while the 15 per cent cap proposed for March would only apply if British Columbia opts in. The government says the changes are meant to restore predictability for businesses while keeping Canadians first in line for available jobs.
(Source: Employment and Social Development Canada news release, November 6, 2026)
