Post-graduation (PGWP)
Graduates of eligible Canadian programs, once only, within 180 days of completion.
Most common
New rule
Hold a work permit? Since 4 September 2026 you can take a course of six months or less without a study permit.
What it means →
Open work permits
Open Work Permit — work for almost any employer in Canada.
An open work permit is not tied to a job offer, an employer, or an LMIA. It is the most flexible authorization in the system — and you can only get one if you fall into a defined category. Here is every one of them.
RCIC-led
Brampton & London
Reviewed July 2026
No job offer
Key feature
You do not need an employer or a signed offer to apply.
No LMIA
Always exempt
Open work permits are LMIA-exempt by definition.
Almost any employer
Flexibility
Except non-compliant employers and certain restricted sectors.
Category-based
The catch
You must fit a defined category — there is no general open permit.
Who qualifies
Every category that leads to an open permit.
There is no general-purpose open work permit. Eligibility comes from fitting one of these categories, each of which has its own rules.
Spouse or partner
Of certain foreign workers and of graduate-level students, under the narrowed 2025 rules.
Bridging (BOWP)
Applicants at a qualifying stage of a permanent residence application.
Vulnerable workers
Workers on employer-specific permits experiencing abuse. Free and expedited.
IEC participants
Working Holiday participants receive an open permit under youth mobility agreements.
Refugee claimants
Claimants awaiting a decision, generally with the fee waived.
Sponsored spouses in Canada
Spouses being sponsored from within Canada may qualify while the sponsorship is processed.
Destitute students
Students who can no longer meet the costs of their studies through no fault of their own.
Provincial nominee candidates
Limited routes exist for nominees of certain provinces to start working sooner.
New — 4 September 2026
You can study for six months without a study permit.
What the measure allows
While your work permit is valid you can take a program of six months or less without a study permit. No application, no fee; the permit itself is the proof. Study-related conditions on the permit stop applying, and no CAQ is needed in Quebec. It runs to 31 December 2027.
An open permit is the easy case — with one catch
If the course has a co-op placement, open work permit holders do not need to apply for a second permit; employer-specific permit holders usually do. The catch is Express Entry: study full time under this policy and that work will not count toward Canadian Experience Class eligibility or Canadian work experience points under the CRS. Read the full breakdown →
What to know
Restrictions that still apply.
You cannot work for just anyone
Employers on the non-compliant list, and certain adult-entertainment sectors, are excluded from all open permits.
Some jobs need a medical
Work in healthcare, childcare, or agriculture generally requires an immigration medical exam first.
It may be occupation-restricted
Some open permits are issued with conditions limiting occupation or location. Read the permit itself.
Validity is tied to your category
A PGWP follows program length; a bridging permit follows your PR stage. Plan for the expiry date.
One category at a time
You apply under a specific category, and the evidence must match that category exactly.
Status matters
Applying before your current status expires is what protects your ability to keep working.
How we help
How we help.
01
Find your category
We identify which open permit category you actually fit, and whether more than one is open to you.
02
Prove the category
Each category needs different evidence. We build the file the officer expects to see.
03
Protect your status
We time the filing so you keep working under maintained status wherever possible.
04
Plan the next permit
Open permits expire. We map what follows, including the route to permanent residence.
Eligibility checker
Which open work permit fits you?
Open permits are tied to your situation, not an employer. Answer what applies and see the route and its condition.
Rules as published by IRCC: Open work permits (IRCC).
Eligibility review
Which open permit fits you?
Tell us your situation and a licensed RCIC will confirm which open work permit category you qualify under, if any.
- The exact category you qualify under.
- What evidence that category requires.
- Whether you can apply from where you are now.
- What to do if no open category fits.
Check your eligibility
Reviewed by a licensed RCIC, usually the same business day.
Thanks — we’ll be in touch
A licensed RCIC will review your details and reach out, usually the same business day.
Message us on WhatsApp
Good to know
Questions, answered.
The questions we hear most on this topic, answered by our consultants. The full list is in the Help Centre.
Can my spouse get an open work permit while I work in Canada on a work permit?
Since 21 January 2025, only if you work in a TEER 0 or 1 occupation, or in one of the select TEER 2 or 3 occupations IRCC lists for sectors with labour shortages, and your work permit still has at least 16 months left when your spouse applies. Spouses of workers on free-trade-agreement permits and of workers transitioning to permanent residence are covered by separate measures that the 2025 changes did not touch. Our spousal open work permit page has a finder that checks any NOC code against the current list.
Which TEER 2 and 3 occupations still qualify for a spousal open work permit?
IRCC publishes a fixed list: 105 TEER 2 codes and 32 TEER 3 codes across natural and applied sciences, construction, health care, natural resources, education, sports and the military. Licensed practical nurses, early childhood educators, most construction trades, transport truck drivers and nurse aides are on it; retail, food service and most administrative roles are not. If the code is not on the list, the spouse is not eligible under this measure, whatever the salary.
Can the spouse of an international student get an open work permit?
Only if the student is in a master’s degree of 16 months or longer, a doctoral programme, or one of the professional degrees IRCC lists (medicine, dentistry, law, pharmacy, optometry, veterinary medicine, nursing, education and engineering) at a university. Spouses of students in college diplomas, certificates, shorter master’s programmes and most bachelor’s degrees are no longer eligible.
How long is a spousal open work permit valid?
Normally for the same period as the principal applicant’s work permit or study permit, and never longer than their passport. That is why the 16-month rule matters: a spouse applying against a permit with little time left would receive a permit that is barely usable, so IRCC now requires the time to be there at the outset.
What is a bridging open work permit?
If you have already applied for permanent residence and your current permit is running out, a bridging open work permit lets you keep working while IRCC decides the application. It is a different thing from an ordinary work permit extension, and you generally have to apply before your existing permit expires, so the timing matters more than the paperwork.
More questions on this topic are answered in the Help Centre.
Open work permit review
Do you actually qualify for an open work permit?
Send a few details. A licensed RCIC reads your profile personally, then replies with the routes that genuinely fit, the ones that do not, and the consultation fee and next available times.
- Read personally by a CICC-licensed consultant — never a bot, never a salesperson
- A written shortlist of the programs you realistically qualify for
- Consultations are fee-based; you get the fee and available times by reply
CHK Immigration Services — Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (CICC). Offices in Brampton and London, Ontario. Submitting this form does not create a client–consultant relationship; IRCC makes all final decisions.