How to extend your stay in Canada after a working holiday

Is your Working Holiday permit coming to an end but you aren’t ready to leave Canada yet? Don’t worry, there are ways to legally stay in the country a little longer! Read on for an overview of the different options available to extend your stay, including tourist, work, and study permits.

Summary

• Staying in Canada with a new IEC permit
• Staying in Canada as a tourist
• Staying in Canada on a work permit
• Staying in Canada as a student
• Staying in Canada as the spouse of a skilled worker or student
• Staying in Canada as a permanent resident

Staying in Canada with a new IEC permit

Unfortunately, your IEC permit in Canada is not extendable or renewable. This is the case for all three IEC categories: Working Holiday, Young Professionals and International Co-op.

However, you may be able to apply for another participation, either through your citizenship (certain nationalities are eligible for multiple IEC participations) or by using the services of a Recognised Organisation.

We explain the different ways to get a second IEC participation in Getting a second Working Holiday permit to Canada—Loopholes and exceptions.

Note: You must maintain legal status in Canada at all times. If you’re still waiting for your new IEC permit application to be approved, you must switch to a visitor record or leave the country when your current permit expires to avoid an illegal overstay. Read on to learn more about visitor records.

Staying in Canada as a tourist

If you plan to stay in Canada to travel and sightsee without working, securing an extension of your stay is easy. You just need to apply for a visitor record.

The application costs vary, starting from CA$100. The government states you should apply at least 30 days before the expiry date of your IEC permit. However, many people wait until the week before, as you lose days from your work permit if the visitor record is approved too soon.

Online processing times vary but don’t fear! Once you submit your application, you can legally remain in the country after your IEC permit ends, even if you haven’t received the visitor record approval yet. You just have to stop working on the day your permit expires.

The visitor record usually lasts for six months, although this can vary depending on your citizenship. If you want to stay in Canada even longer, you can apply for a further six-month visitor record. Once you leave Canada, the visitor record becomes invalid.

Rather than applying for a visitor record, some working holiday makers simply decide to leave Canada for a certain period of time, then return as a tourist. Be careful with this option, however. If you leave the country for too short a period, or you do not have sufficient proof that you are returning as a genuine tourist (e.g. you have ties to the country like a lease, you don’t have proof of a flight home, you don’t have proof of funds to cover your entire stay, etc.) the immigration officer could suspect you of returning to work illegally and refuse you entry.

Read Can I stay longer as a tourist after my Working Holiday Visa? for more info.

Staying in Canada on a work permit

If you want to stay in Canada to work but don’t qualify for another IEC participation, you can look into other types of work permit.

Your employer may be able to help you apply for a closed work permit. For example, depending on the type of employment, your employer can complete a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to prove to the government that they couldn’t recruit a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and, therefore, they need to retain you as foreign labour. Learn more.

Since the LMIA is an expensive and complicated process, many people look for alternative work permits that do not require an LMIA. For example, the Francophone Mobility program is an increasingly popular way of staying in Canada. You do not need an LMIA; only an eligible job offer in any province except Quebec, and proficiency in the French language. Learn more.

Staying in Canada as a student

Another solution is to start or resume your studies! If there is apply for a study program and get accepted into a Canadian educational institution, you can obtain a study permit.

Depending on your situation (e.g. full-time or part-time studies and/or whether your educational institution is eligible), you may be entitled to work outside of your studies. As part of your study permit, you can also consider taking vocational training to train for a career.

To obtain a study permit, you will need to prove that you have enough savings (or a guarantor) to support yourself throughout your studies. This is usually around CA$10,000 in addition to tuition fees, so not a cheap option!

You can read more about study permits in All permit and visa options for going to Canada.

Staying in Canada as the spouse of a skilled worker or student

If you are the common-law partner or spouse of a holder of a work permit or study permit in Canada, you can obtain a spousal open work permit (SOWP) under certain conditions.

The SOWP allows you to work for any employer without restrictions. Your permit will expire at the same time as your partner’s.

The conditions to be eligible for a SOWP were tightened within the last year, making it much harder to get. Learn more.

Staying in Canada as a permanent resident

If you want to stay in Canada for several years (or forever!), obtaining permanent residency is probably the best solution.

Obtaining permanent residency in Canada will give you almost the same rights as a Canadian citizen (apart from the right to vote), and will eventually allow you to apply for Canadian citizenship.

There are several permanent residency programs in Canada. The best program for your circumstances will depend on your personal situation and the province you wish to live in. Applying for permanent residency is an expensive and lengthy process (sometimes taking several years).

Begin your research into the various programs available by reading Obtaining PR in Canada.