Permanent Residency
The Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) is frequently used to bring international academics to Canada to work and is the program through which many new professors obtain their work permits. The TFWP enables Canadian employers to hire foreign workers temporarily, to fill immediate skills and labour shortages when Canadians and permanent residents are not available. Since this program is primarily intended for temporary positions, if you are a non-Canadian academic who has accepted a permanent tenure-stream position, you will need to apply for permanent residence status soon after your arrival to Canada, to retain your permanent job. Applying for permanent residence status is a lengthy process. The time frame from submission of an application to the issue of 'Permanent Resident' status is significant. A delay in applying may require that you renew your work permit before its expiration. For current processing time frames please visit the Government of Canada webpage.
Express entry- A points-based application system used for those who wish to apply for permanent resident status. There are different immigration programs managed through Express Entry, the program typically used by York’s academics is the Canadian Experience Class. For more information, please visit the Government of Canada here.
Canadian Citizenship
Once you have legally resided in Canada for a minimum of three years, you may be eligible to apply for citizenship. For more information, please visit the Government of Canada website.
NOTE: Canada’s immigration laws and regulations are enforced, regardless of whether you know about them or not. It is your responsibility, not York University’s, to obtain and maintain your legal immigration status, and to obey immigration regulations while working in Canada. Please check your immigration documents to ensure that they are accurate and have not expired. Please note that some processes, e.g., applying for permanent residency, can be very lengthy (takes years rather than months to process). It is your responsibility to apply for or renew your documents before they expire.