Canada Is Removing the Requirement for Employers to Prove They Cannot Find a Canadian for High-Wage Jobs
The proof step is going away for high-wage offers
The Canadian government is removing the requirement for employers to prove they cannot find a Canadian for high-wage jobs, per CTV.
The change targets the Labour Market Impact Assessment, or LMIA, the document through which an employer has had to show Employment and Social Development Canada that no Canadian citizen or permanent resident was available to fill a job before hiring a foreign worker. From November 3, 2026, an LMIA will no longer be needed for a qualifying high-wage job offer to count in the Express Entry permanent-residence system.
Canada is removing the LMIA requirement for qualifying high-wage job offers from November 3, ending the step where employers had to prove no Canadian was available for the role, per CTV.
What changes on November 3
The removal sits inside a wider Express Entry overhaul. Canada is restoring job-offer points under a new structure aimed at high-wage occupations: a qualifying offer pays additional Comprehensive Ranking System points based on the wage level of the occupation, 50 points at at least 1.3 times the national median wage, 70 points at 1.5 times, and 100 points at 2 times. A high-wage job under the policy starts at that 1.3-times threshold, and the occupation must be on the government's designated list.
A temporary public policy also exempts candidates invited to apply on or after November 3 from LMIA-related requirements for job offers used to qualify under the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the Federal Skilled Trades Program. A qualifying offer generally has to be full-time, continuous employment in Canada for at least a year after the candidate becomes a permanent resident, and a revoked offer stops counting.
Ottawa says the point is to reward occupations tied to strong economic outcomes and to cut a step that added cost and months of delay for employers and candidates. The LMIA is not being replaced with nothing: immigration officers will still verify that an offer is genuine, that the employer runs a legitimate, active business, can actually pay the promised salary, and that the applicant holds the required qualifications and licences. The change also does not remove LMIA requirements that apply separately when employers hire temporary foreign workers under other programs.
Supporters say the shift helps Canada compete for engineers, doctors and programmers it needs and speeds up hiring. Critics are likely to argue a system tilted toward higher earners leaves behind workers in lower-paid but essential jobs.
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Options market and stocks to watch
Immigration settings are a slow macro variable, but the direction matters for Canadian growth and housing demand. Broad Canada exposure sits in EWC, and the big banks that intermediate Canadian household and business credit, RY and TD, are the listed read on whether faster skilled immigration shows up as economic momentum.
The sectors named in the debate, tech, healthcare and engineering, feel it first through hiring rather than earnings. Watch the November 3 implementation and the first Express Entry draws under the new points, and follow Canadian policy headlines on the Unusual Whales news feed.
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