Working temporarily in Canada - Extending your stay

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A work permit allows you to work in Canada temporarily.

If you want to stay in Canada for any of the following reasons after your work permit expires, you must apply to do so:

    * your job is extended or changes
    * you are offered a different job in Canada
    * you want to live and work in Canada permanently
    * you leave Canada and then want to re-enter

Note: if you are a temporary foreign worker in Canada who has a work permit under the Low Skill Pilot Project, and you want to extend your stay, please see Low Skill Pilot Project under the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.
Your job is extended or changes

If your job is extended or changes, you must apply to extend or change the conditions of your existing work permit before it expires.

You can find the application you need to do this in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page or by contacting the Call Centre (see Contact Us at the top of this page).
You are offered a different job in CanadaIf you are offered a different job in Canada, you must apply for a new work permit.Do not start your new job without a new work permit.

You can find the application you need to do this in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page or by contacting the Call Centre (see Contact Us at the top of this page).

You want to live and work in Canada permanently
A work permit lets you work in Canada temporarily.

If you want to stay in Canada permanently, you must qualify under one of the permanent resident categories, such as the skilled worker category. Information about coming to Canada as a skilled worker can be found in the Related Links section at the bottom of this page.
You leave Canada and then want to re‑enter

If you leave Canada after working here and then want to come back here to work, you must have a valid passport or travel document and a valid work permit.

If you are a citizen of a country that requires a temporary resident visa to travel to Canada, you must also have a valid entry visa to return, unless you are returning to Canada from the United States, Greenland or Saint-Pierre et Miquelon and the period initially authorized for your entry or any extension to it, as a visitor, student or worker has not expired.

Possession of these documents does not guarantee that you will be allowed back into Canada. You must show that you meet all the requirements of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations before you will be allowed to re-enter Canada.