NAFTA Investor Work Permit

NAFTA provides unique opportunities for citizens of the United States and Mexico to work in Canada. The investors from the nations covered by NAFTA provisions may be eligible to acquire an investor work permit in Canada without the requirement for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

The provision of this permit is based on the trade agreements between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. The NAFTA Investors work permit was formed as an extension of the preferential trading relationship found in the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the US and Canada.

NAFTA investor work permit is designed to allow certain business persons and investors to gain temporary entry into Canada in order to facilitate trades and investments. The permit discussed in this article does not have any bearing on permanent residency. The provision of this permit defines temporary residence as an entrance without the aim to settle permanently.

NAFTA investor work permit is an arrangement that is based on reciprocal agreement. The work permit places the same set of conditions on citizens of all participating countries. The permit gives the same rights to Mexican citizens as well as US and Canadian citizens. The NAFTA investor work permit aims to equalize the playing field by making it just as easy for investors from all three countries to invest and work in the others.

Mexico is the newest addition to the already existing trade agreements between the US and Canada. A Mexican or an American person wishing to enter Canada is qualified for consideration under the terms of NAFTA and the general provisions that apply to all international workers.

The program’s name was modified from NAFTA to the CUSMA (Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement) in 2020, but it operates similarly.

Page Contents

• Overview of the NAFTA Investor Work Permit
• What Is NAFTA 2.0?
• Main Legal Aspects of the NAFTA Investor Work Permit
• Eligibility Criteria for the NAFTA Investor Work Permit
• Cost of the NAFTA Investor Permit
• What is the Processing time for NAFTA Investor Work Permit?
• Application Procedure for the NAFTA Investor Work Permit
• NAFTA Investor Work Permit For Professionals
• Eligibility Requirements For NAFTA Investor Work Permit For Professionals
• NAFTA Investor Work Permit For Employees
• Where Can Applicants Submit An Application For The NAFTA Investor Work Permit?
• What is the Validity Period for the NAFTA Investors Work Permit?
• How Can IAS Help?
• Frequently Asked Questions

Before NAFTA was established, there was a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the USA and Canada, but NAFTA developed the agreement to include Mexico.

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is a trilateral trade agreement negotiated between Canada, the United States, and Mexico in 1994.

The Free Trade Agreement was revised in 2018, in which Canada, the United States, and Mexico, reached a tentative deal which aimed to replace NAFTA. The new deal is called United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

The current draft of the USMCA maintains identical provisions for business visitors, workers, and investors traveling between the countries as are outlined in NAFTA.

As previously mentioned, the trade elements, as well as NAFTA work permit arrangements remain the same under USMCA. In the year 2020, however, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) finally replaced the North American Free Trade Agreement – NAFTA. USMCA is sometimes called CUSMA or NAFTA 2.0. Although the USMCA changed some areas of NAFTA, it didn’t affect the requirements and process of acquiring a work permit for Canada.

• NAFTA investor work permit enables temporary entry for investors who are United States, Canada, and Mexico citizens.
• The permit does not require investors to obtain any document for Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).
• The investors who hold the NAFTA investors work permit do not need other types of permit to work in Canada.
• NAFTA is particularly useful for professionals and intra-company transferees, as it expedites the application process.
• NAFTA investor work permit does not guarantee permanent stay in Canada.
• NAFTA does not replace the general laws and provisions for investors and foreign workers.
• NAFTA will not substitute for any global requirements related to passports, medical examinations, identity documentation or safety and security.
• NAFTA investors permit does not exempt investors and workers from meeting the licensing or certification requirements to practice their profession.
• The permit does not grant individuals special rights to their spouses or extended family members. Their access is controlled by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations.
• Applicants cannot be granted both trader and investor status. Applicants who are unsure which status is best suited for their circumstances, however, may apply for consideration for both designations.
• NAFTA Investor work permit is for a maximum duration of one year, with the possibility of a two-year extension provided that all requirements for an extension are satisfied. Information from the initial application will be compared with the application for an extension to ensure all conditions are satisfactory.

Investors who wish to acquire the NAFTA Investors work permit are required to:

• Be citizens of any of the United States, Canada, or Mexico.
• Have committed, or be in the active process of committing, a significant amount of capital to an existing or new Canadian business.
• Not be a permanent resident of any of the participating countries.
• Be employed in an executive or supervisory position, or in a professional position that needs crucial skills.
• Have a valid work permit to work in Canada.
• Have the intention and ability to engage in substantial trade of goods or services between Canada and the country of the applicant’s citizenship (United States or Mexico).

Temporary work permit in Canada costs $155 per individual. As for the entire cost for the NAFTA investor work permit, cost may vary based on location and the circumstances of entry. Applying as a group may also attract extra costs as well. In the event that applicants are required by the application center to submit their biometrics, this may also attract additional costs to the already existing visa fees.

When you apply at a Canadian visa office, the processing time for your investor work permit is based on the standard processing times at the Canadian visa office in the country from which you apply.

Applications from the United States typically take five weeks on average while applications from Mexico take 14 weeks on average. Those times do not include the time it takes to send the application between a visa application centre and the office of the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), and the time for biometrics.

• The Canadian employer must be an American or Mexican citizen
• The employer must have investor status If the employer is a business entity, the entity must be majorly owned by American or Mexican citizens who already have investor status in Canada (if they do not reside in the US or Mexico)
• The employee must be an American or Mexican citizen
• The employee will work in a supervisory or executive capacity or has specialized knowledge or essential skills to the Canadian firm’s operations
• The employee is able to meet the temporary entry requirements
• The employer is not a permanent resident of Canada (or permanent resident by ownership if the employer is a corporation)

NAFTA investor work permits may also be granted to employees of the American or Mexican company that invested if such employees are in a position that involves essential skills. These are the requirements to bring an employee to Canada with this NAFTA work permit.

NAFTA Investor work permits may also be granted to employees of the primary investor, provided they are considered essential staff. In order to bring an employee to Canada under investor status:

1. the employer in Canada must be a US or Mexican citizen who currently has their investor status; or
2. if the employer is a corporation or other business entity, such entity must be majority owned by US or Mexican citizens, who currently have investor status in Canada (if they are not living in the U.S. or Mexico).

There are three places from which you can apply for a NAFTA Investor Work Permit:

• At a Port of Entry (PE) in Canada, such as an airport
• Before your departure, a Canadian visa office outside of Canada
• You can also apply in Canada if you are a temporary resident already

Traders and Investors from the NAFTA Agreement may obtain a work permit for one year. They may apply for an extension for two years if they still fulfil the criteria. The visa officer will compare the information in your first application to your extension request when you apply for an extension.

Please be advised that if you acquire another job in Canada or partake in an activity that goes against the investor work permit (like ceasing the business), your title of the investor will no longer be applicable.

Unless indications suggest otherwise, an applicant’s clear desire to return to the U.S. or Mexico once their trader status expires will usually be enough evidence of temporary intent. The applicant’s trader status would end if they got another job, did something that didn’t fit this role, or shut down their business. etc.