International Experience Class Work Permit

International Experience Canada (IEC) gives youth the opportunity to travel and work in Canada for up to 2 years.

There are 3 different kinds of work and travel experiences available: Working Holiday

This category is for you if

  • you don’t have a job offer
  • you want to work for more than one employer in Canada
  • you want to work in more than one location
  • you’d like to earn some money so that you can travel

The type of work permit you get for Working Holiday is an open work permit. This lets you work for almost any employer in Canada (some exceptions apply).

You’ll need to get a medical exam first for some jobs. Young Professionals

This category is for you if

  • you have a job offer in Canada that contributes to your professional development
  • you’ll work for the same employer in the same location during your stay in Canada

Under this category, work must be

  • paid
  • not self-employed

The type of work permit you get in the Young Professionals category is an employer-specific work permit.

Your employer must meet all labour laws in the province or territory where you plan to work, including minimum wage requirements.

National Occupational Classification 2021

On November 16, 2022, we’re switching to the 2021 version of the National Occupational Classification (NOC).

The job you are offered in Canada must be classified as a National Occupational Classification (NOC) skill type or level 0, A or B to be considered as contributing to your “professional development.”

An NOC C job may qualify if it’s in your field of study. When you apply, you’ll need to submit your post-secondary

  • diploma
  • certificate or
  • degree

It must be translated into English or French. International Co-op (Internship)

If you’re a citizen of a partner country, you may be able to apply to one or more of these 3 categories.

If you aren’t a citizen of a partner country, you may still be able to apply to IEC through a recognized organization.

IEC Walkthrough Guide

Watch this video for an overview of the International Experience Canada application process and common mistakes to avoid along the way.

Normally, your profile will stay in the pool until:

  • you receive an Invitation to Apply for a work permit
  • we remove all of the profiles from the pool(s) at the end of the season or
  • you’re no longer eligible for IEC

We’ll regularly issue invitations to candidates in the IEC pools during the IEC season. Check the schedule to find out:

  • when the rounds of invitations for each country and category will start and end
  • the number of candidates in the pools and
  • your chances of getting an invitation this season

You can submit an IEC profile at any time during the IEC season. As long as you submit your profile before the date of the last round of invitations for your country, you may receive an Invitation to Apply for a work permit.

One IEC profile in multiple pools

You can only have 1 IEC profile at any time. However, you can be eligible for more than 1 IEC pool.

When you complete your profile, we’ll tell you which pools are available to you. You can submit your profile to any of these available pools. For example, you might be eligible to submit your profile to the Working Holiday and Young Professionals pools.

How we issue Invitations to Apply

Invitations to Apply are issued in the following order:

  1. International Co-op (Internship)
  2. Young Professionals
  3. Working Holiday

If your profile is in an International Co-op (Internship) pool and Working Holiday pool, you’ll receive an Invitation to Apply for an International Co-op category. You’ll only receive an Invitation to Apply for a Working Holiday work permit if there are no spots left in the International Co-op (Internship) category.

Get your supporting documents ready

You won’t automatically get a work permit, if you receive an Invitation to Apply.

To get a work permit, you’ll have to:

  • show proof of the information you gave us in your IEC profile
  • provide additional information on your education, work history and background and
  • provide other potential supporting documents when requested

If you’re in an IEC pool, you should start getting any supporting documents you may need for your work permit application. Some documents may take several months to get. You could get an Invitation to Apply at any time, and you’ll have limited time to submit your work permit application and documents.

If you have any further questions or queries, please do not hesitate to contact Nayyar Immigration Services. We are regulated consultants and authorized by CICC.

Please refer to CIC website for latest and updated information

There are many good job search portals available in Canada which can help you to secure a job suitable for your experience and education. Few of them are; Prudent Jobs, Jobbank.g.ca, Indeed, LinkedIn, and more one can search online.