Various options are available for an eligible Canadian employer, depending on the need and current stage of candidate identification:

To hire Temporary Workers is undoubtably the quickest way and provides wider horizons of choices. This can be done by:

• Temporary Foreign Worker Program
• International Mobility Program

To hire Permanent Workers is also quicker, if you have recognized a candidate who can fill your job requirements, by supporting the candidate’s immigration application for programs like:

• Express Entry
• Provincial Nominee Program
• Atlantic Immigration and similar Pilot programs

It all starts with creating a Valid Job Offer !

• ensure they meet all of the conditions and requirements of the TFWP, as outlined in the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) application, the LMIA decision letter and annexes;
• keep all records associated with their LMIA application and any other documents that demonstrate their compliance with the program conditions for a period of six (6) years;
• inform Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)/Service Canada of any changes or errors relating to an approved LMIA or the temporary foreign worker;
• regularly review the activities related to the employment of temporary foreign workers to ensure they continue to uphold the TFWP conditions; and
• take action to rectify any errors and/or non-compliance as soon as it is discovered.

ESDC/Service Canada has the authority to review the activities of any employer, in relation to their LMIA or LMIA request, by conducting one of the three following forms of review:

• Inspection;
• Employer Compliance Review (ECR); and/or
• Under Ministerial Instruction.

During any form of review, LMIAs may be temporarily suspended. This suspension prevents foreign workers from obtaining a work permit from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) while the review is in process.

Inspection

It is to make sure that the employer continues to satisfy the conditions set out in the offer of employment, the positive LMIA letter and the annexes, thereby ensuring that workers are not mistreated and that the TFWP is being used as intended. The inspection may occur anytime in the 6 years following the date of the authorized employment period for which the work permit was issued.

Reasons for an Inspection

There are 3 reasons an employer could be selected for an inspection:

• reason to suspect non-compliance;
• non-compliant in the past; or
• randomly selected.

Expectations of Employers during an Inspection

Employers must:

• attend the inspection;
• answer questions;
• provide requested documents or information;
• provide assistance to the investigator; and
• retain all records relating to his/her compliance with the conditions of the offer of employment, LMIA application, letter and annexes for six (6) years from the start date of the period of employment for which the work permit was issued.

During an inspection, an officer may also enter and inspect any place in which a foreign national performs work and interview any foreign or Canadian workers at the worksite.

During an inspection, ESDC/Service Canada investigators will verify whether employers have upheld the conditions set out in the offer of employment, as well as the positive LMIA letter and annexes. These conditions include:

1. employers must remain actively engaged, during the validity of the work permit of the foreign worker, in the business for which the offer of employment was made, unless the offer was made for employment as a live-in-caregiver
2. employers must comply with federal and provincial/territorial laws that regulate employment and recruitment in the province/territory in which the foreign worker is employed
3. employers must provide each foreign worker with employment in the same occupation as stated in the offer of employment
4. employers must provide each foreign worker with wages that are substantially the same but not less favourable than those in the offer of employment
5. employers must provide each foreign worker with working conditions that are substantially the same but not less favourable than those in the offer of employment
6. employer must make reasonable efforts to provide a workplace that is free of abuse
7. employers must meet any specific agreed-to commitments, made at the time the LMIA was issued in relation to direct job creation for Canadians and permanent residents 
8. employers must meet any specific agreed-to commitments, made at the time the LMIA was issued in relation to job retention for Canadians and permanent residents
9. employers must meet any specific agreed-to commitments, made at the time the LMIA was issued in relation to hiring or training Canadians and permanent residents 
10. employer must meet any specific agreed-to commitments, made at the time the LMIA was issued in relation to development of skills and knowledge for the benefit of Canadians or permanent residents
11. employer must meet any specific agreed-to commitments, made at the time the LMIA was issued in relation to transfer of skills and knowledge for the benefit of Canadians or permanent residents
12. employer must demonstrate reasonable efforts to hire Canadians or permanent residents if that was one of the factors that led to the issuance of a work permit
13. employer must demonstrate reasonable efforts to train Canadians or permanent residents if that was one of the factors that led to the issuance of a work permit
14. employers must be able to demonstrate that any information they provided in the context of LMIA application was accurate 
15. employer must retain any document that relates to compliance with these conditions for a period of six years, beginning on the first day of employment of the foreign national
16. employer must report at any specified time and place to answer questions and provide documents to verify compliance with conditions
17. employer must provide any documents that are required as part of an inspection 
18. employer must attend any inspection (unless the employer was not notified of it) that is on premises or place, in which a foreign national performs work and/or any premises or place provided as accommodation to the foreign national, give all reasonable assistance to the person conducting that inspection and provide that person with any document or information that the person requires 
19. employer must ensure the foreign national resides in a private household in Canada and provides care, child care, senior home support care or care of a disabled person, in that household without supervision (specific to Live-in Care givers)
20. employer must provide the foreign worker with adequate furnished and private accommodations in the household (specific to Live-in Care givers)
21. employer must have sufficient financial resources to pay the foreign worker the wages that were offered (specific to Live-in Care givers)

Unlike inspections, ECRs occur before the LMIA application is approved in order to verify past compliance with respect to program requirements for wages, occupation, and working conditions. Returning employers attest to this past compliance on their LMIA application form. In the ECR, ESDC/Service Canada may look at an employer’s compliance for up to six years prior to the receipt of the LMIA application.

On December 31, 2013, employer requirements were updated to ensure that foreign workers are:

• employed in the “same” occupation (previously “substantially the same” occupation) set out in the offer of employment; and
• provided with wages and working conditions that are substantially the same as – but not less favourable than – those set out in the offer of employment (previously “substantially the same wages and working conditions”).

Expectations of Employers during an ECR

Upon re-applying to the TFWP, employers may be subjected to a document-based review to ensure that they have met the wage, working conditions, and occupation requirements. Employers will be asked to provide specific documents to demonstrate their compliance. During the review, employers will have an opportunity to provide justifications for initial findings of non-compliance and to take corrective action, in some cases.

Pending LMIAs may not be finalized until the ECR is completed.

The purpose of a review under Ministerial Instruction is to determine if new information received by ESDC/Service Canada justifies the revocation of an already approved LMIA and may occur at any point in time after a positive LMIA has been issued. Employers are selected for this form of review only when ESDC/Service Canada receives an allegation through the tip line regarding an LMIA that may justify the suspension/revocation based on public policy reasons.

During the period of review, the LMIA will be suspended.

Expectations of Employers during a Review under Ministerial Instruction

Employers undergoing this form of review will be:

• notified whether they are being reviewed for a potential revocation using Ministerial Instructions;
• notified whenever an LMIA has been suspended or revoked; and
• provided with an opportunity to provide relevant information that relates to the allegation(s).

There are 2 possible initial outcomes of any review:

• Satisfactory: the employer demonstrates compliance with the conditions inspected or sufficiently justifies the non-compliance; or
• Non-compliant: the employer is unable to demonstrate compliance with the conditions inspected or unable to sufficiently justify the non-compliance.

If the outcome of the review is “non-compliant”, a positive LMIA will not be issued and the LMIA processing fee will not be reimbursed.

Employers who think they may have violated the conditions of the TFWP are encouraged to take necessary actions to become compliant and to voluntarily disclose this information to IRCC. IRCC will then determine if the information received is relevant and credible, assess the severity of the possible violation, and determine if an inspection is necessary. Not all disclosures will lead to an inspection.

If an inspection is conducted after a voluntary disclosure and the employer is found non-compliant, the employer may face a reduced penalty or no penalty at all. In such cases, IRCC will consider a number of factors to determine if the employer qualifies for a reduced penalty, including:

• the completeness of the disclosure;
• whether the disclosure is truly voluntary (i.e. the employer is not already the subject of an inspection or enforcement action);
• the severity of the impact of the violation on the foreign worker;
• the severity of the impact of the violation on Canadian workers or the Canadian economy;
• the timeliness of the disclosure;
• the employer’s history of voluntary disclosures; and
• the nature of the condition the employer has failed to comply with.

Employers may benefit from a voluntary disclosure only if the violation occurred on or after December 1, 2015.

Employers found non-compliant as a result of an inspection from a violation that occurred on or after December 1, 2015, could be subject to:

• warnings 
• administrative monetary penalties ranging from $500 to $100,000 per violation, up to a maximum of $1 million over one year, per employer 
• a ban of one, two, five or ten years, or permanent bans for the most serious violations from the Temporary Foreign Workers Program (TFWP) and International Mobility Program (IMP) 
• the publication of their name and address on the IRCC public website with details of the violation(s) and/or consequence(s) 
• the revocation or suspension of previously-issued LMIAs