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ICT-
Intra-Company Transfer
The intra-company category permits international companies to temporarily transfer qualified employees to Canada for the purpose of improving management effectiveness, expanding Canadian exports, and enhancing competitiveness in overseas markets.
EXPAND YOUR BUSINESS TO CANADA
Investment
Minimum CAD 100,000
PROCESSING
Two – Six Months
Key benefit
Options to PR
Requirements
Program
The ICT work permit allows qualified foreigners to work legally in Canada, and potentially gain permanent residence. If you are employed by or own an international company with a parent company, branch, subsidiary, or affiliate in Canada, you can transfer on this Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA)under paragraph R205(a) (exemption code C12) exempt work permit.
Who are eligible for ICT?
- are currently employed by a multi-national company and seeking entry to work in a parent, a subsidiary, a branch, or an affiliate of that enterprise;
- are transferring to an enterprise that has a qualifying relationship with the enterprise in which they are currently employed, and will be undertaking employment at a legitimate and continuing establishment of that company (where 18–24 months can be used as a reasonable minimum guideline);
- are being transferred to a position in an executive, senior managerial, or specialized knowledge capacity;
- have been employed continuously (via payroll or by contract directly with the company), by the company that plans to transfer them outside Canada in a similar full-time position (not accumulated part-time) for at least one year in the three years immediately preceding the date of initial application.
Intra-company transferees under free trade agreements
Applicants may be eligible to apply under different intra-company transferee provisions in addition to Canada’s domestic regime (that is, paragraph 205(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations [IRPR]), depending on their country of citizenship, under our free trade agreements (FTAs).
The information below illustrates the harmonization of the general provisions with NAFTA provisions.
| General immigration provision (C12) | FTA (T24) | |
|---|---|---|
| Citizenship | No restrictions | American or Mexican (NAFTA); Chilean (CCFTA); or Peruvian (and permanent residents) (Canada–Peru FTA) |
| Employment criteria | Currently employed by a related enterprise outside Canada, and seeking entry to work in a parent, subsidiary, branch or affiliate in Canada; continuous employment for at least 1 year (full-time) within the previous 3 years in a similar position with the company outside Canada | Currently employed by a related enterprise outside Canada and seeking entry to work in a parent, subsidiary, branch or affiliate in Canada; continuous employment for 1 year (full-time)—or 6 months for the Canada–Peru agreement—within the previous 3 years in a similar position with the company outside Canada |
| Other criteria |
Companies must
The employee must
|
Same as general provisions |
| Documents required for entry |
From the worker:
From the employer:
Additional documents required from the employer for specialized knowledge workers:
|
From the worker:
From the employer: Same as in general provisions, except:
|
| Duration of stay |
Executives and managers: initial maximum 3 years, unless office start-up (1 year); 2-year renewals allowable; total period of stay may not exceed 7 years Specialized knowledge workers: initial maximum 3 years, unless office start-up (1 year); 2-year renewals allowable; total period of stay may not exceed 5 years |
Same as general provisions |
| Application for work permits | Ports of entry or visa posts; renewals or extensions through the Case Processing Centre in Vegreville | Same as general provisions |
Language
As a temporary skilled worker, you do not need to take a language proficiency test for English or French.
Processing Time
The processing times for an Intra-Company Transferee work permit depend on the applicant’s country of residence, in general between 2-6 months. Applicants who are also eligible under the Global Skills Strategy qualify for expedited 2-week processing.
Investment
There is no minimum investment amount for companies expanding to Canada. Therefore, based on our experience, businesses must be able to show stable gross sales of at least $200,000 annually and access to at least $150,000 in liquid funds to meet the first year’s operating expenses.
Work Permit
The typical length of an ICT work permit is one to two years. A 3-year work permit is advantageous for some citizens of the nations that do not require visas. The work permit may be renewed for a total of up to 5 years for specialized knowledge workers and 7 years for executives and managers.
Family Members
You can bring family members with you to Canada if they were processed for WP as your dependents. This includes:
- your spouse or common-law partner (open work permit)
- your dependent child (study permit)
Permanent Residency
The Intra-Company Transferees can qualify for permanent residency through the Express Entry system or Provincial Nominee Programs.
