IEC Pool Reopening March 1 – Job Offer Now Required

Today International Experience Canada (IEC) announced via Twitter that the IEC pools for certain countries would be reopening on March 1, 2021. Due to Covid 19 the IEC pool has been closed since March 2020.

Job Now Offer Required Under Working Holiday

In order to be eligible to receive an invitation to apply under the working holiday program, applicants must have a job offer from a Canadian employer. Please note that this job offer does not require a LMIA, nor does it require a LMIA exempt job offer via the employer portal.

There are 4 steps outlined by IRCC to receive an ITA once the candidate has a Canadian job offer:

1. Send an email to IRCC at IRCC.IECWorkingHoliday-VacancetravailEIC.IRCC@cic.gc.ca advising them of the job offer
2. The email should include the subject “Working Holiday candidate with a job offer”
3. The body of the email should state:
• I have a job offer in Canada and wish to receive an invitation to apply. My International Experience Canada application profile number is *[WXXXXXXXXX].
• My information is:
• Full name [as it appears on your passport—family name followed by given name(s)]
• Date of birth [YYYY-MM-DD]
• Country of residence
• Date you created your IEC profile
• Employment information: employer [name], located at [address], may be contacted at [telephone number or email].
4. The job offer should be attached to the email and include:
• Business’s legal name and business’ operating name
• Job title
• Physical job location including city and province or territory
• Main duties of the job
• Expected start date of employment
• Expected duration of employment
• Employer’s primary contact information
• Wage and hours of work

Citizens from the countries listed below who are eligible to participate in the Working Holiday, Young Professionals or the International Co-op program are advised to submit their IEC profile’s as soon as the IEC pool opens. Please be sure to check that the category you wish to apply under is eligible to submit an IEC profile.

Once again, this is an unexpected move from immigration and refugee and citizenship Canada (IRCC) as many suspected the IEC pool may not open at all this year. This news comes 10 days after the unexpected 27,000 Invitations to Apply (ITAs) under the Canadian Experience Class issued by IRCC.

This will come as welcome news to thousands of people from participating IEC countries whose plans and adventures have been put on hold due to the pandemic.

As of February 24, 2021, it states the following on the IEC webpage:

“The pools for certain countries for the 2021 season are opening soon.

Select your country from the drop-down menu below to see the schedule for the opening of your pool.”

Although applicants will once again be able to submit their profile and to the pool, there has been no indication as to when we can expect the first round of invitations and 2021.

Not All Countries’ IEC Pools Reopening

Canada has an international mobility agreement with 35 countries in total all, however as stated, the pools from certain countries are not scheduled to reopen as of yet. The pool will reopen on March 1, 2021 for 23 out of the 35 countries to participate in the IEC including:

Australia, Belgium, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United Kingdom.

This is also great use for citizens of Hong Kong who wish to come to Canada their given the current political climate.

Working Holiday Visa

Contact Us to discuss your options for IEC or other work permits.