SOWP · rules since 21 January 2025
The spousal open work permit was narrowed significantly in January 2025. Many spouses who would have qualified a year earlier no longer do. Whether yours does now turns on your spouse’s occupation, or their program of study.
Eligibility finder
Eligibility flows from the principal applicant, not from you. Choose their situation and the finder checks it against the rules in force since 21 January 2025.
Searches all 516 NOC 2021 occupations. Go by the duties they actually perform, not the title on the offer letter.
Your answer appears here.Search their occupation and pick it from the list, or choose a permit type. The verdict, and every rule behind it, lands in this column.
Your answer appears here.Pick their program. For a professional degree, we also ask which one and where it is taught.
The Spouse or Common-Law Partner in Canada class carries its own open work permit, and the subsection 25(1) public policy covers partners whose status has lapsed. See spousal sponsorship.
IRCC kept these measures outside the January 2025 changes. The occupation’s TEER is not the test; the agreement or PR stream is. Use the worker tab and pick that permit type.
Since 25 May 2026, spouses of health professionals in NOC 31301, 32103 or 32120 admitted to a designated Quebec recognition or recruitment project (code CONJOINTSANTEQC); only the 16-month rule is waived (IRCC). Since 23 March 2026, spouses of workers on a BC Significant Investment Project, in any TEER (code SIPSPOUSEBC; IRCC). Both verified October 9, 2026. Use the worker tab and pick that permit type. Separately, since 5 June 2026 a spouse included in the Quebec permanent selection application (DSP) of a PSTQ worker covered by IRCC’s temporary Quebec public policy can get an open work permit until 31 December 2026 (code PPTR2PRQC2026; IRCC, verified October 16, 2026).
Existing permits stay valid. A renewal from inside Canada is assessed under the same criteria as your current permit, for the same period as the principal’s authorisation.
Since 21 January 2025, dependent children of foreign workers are no longer eligible for an open work permit under this measure. They may still qualify for a study permit or their own work permit.
Quick answers
Straight answers to the questions we hear most, checked against IRCC on October 26, 2026.
Since January 21, 2025, only some spouses qualify. Your partner must work in a TEER 0 or 1 job, or in one of the TEER 2 or 3 jobs IRCC lists, and their permit must be valid for at least 16 months after IRCC receives your application. Some spouses of students qualify too.
Source: IRCC →Yes, if the student holds a valid study permit and is in a master’s program of 16 months or longer, a doctoral program, an eligible pilot program, or a listed professional degree at a university, such as law, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, education or engineering.
Source: IRCC →Only if your partner’s job meets the occupation rule (TEER 0 or 1, or a listed TEER 2 or 3 job) and their PGWP is valid for at least 16 months after IRCC receives your application. A PGWP alone, in any other job, does not make you eligible.
Source: IRCC →Yes. Our Brampton office works with families across the GTA, including Brampton, Mississauga and Toronto, and our London office serves Southwestern Ontario. Spousal open work permit applications from inside Canada are filed online, so we can take your file wherever you live.
From the blogSpousal open work permit when your partner is on a PGWP
The 2025 rules in brief
Two circles: who your spouse is, and what IRCC now accepts. A spousal open work permit exists only where they overlap. Scroll and watch them meet.
Spouses of workers now generally qualify only where the worker is in a TEER 0 or 1 occupation, or select TEER 2 and 3 roles. Spouses of students generally qualify only for graduate and select professional programs. Older guidance online is often wrong.
Since IRCC’s 4 March 2026 update, the student must also not be in the last term of their program, for new applications and extensions alike. For a master’s, the proof of enrolment must show a duration of at least 16 months; a range is accepted only if it starts at 16 months, so “12 to 18 months” does not qualify (Source: IRCC program delivery instructions, C42, verified October 9, 2026).
New · 4 September 2026
What to know
Six things that decide whether a spousal open work permit file goes smoothly.
Your eligibility, and your permit’s validity, are tied to your spouse’s status and occupation or program.
Marriage or common-law status must be properly evidenced, exactly as in a sponsorship file.
Applying together, or immediately after, avoids gaps that cost working months.
Dependent children generally follow different rules and may need study permits instead.
Permits already issued are not cancelled by the rule change, but renewal is assessed afresh.
If you no longer qualify, an employer-specific permit or another route may still be available.
How we help
We confirm the NOC/TEER code or program level that decides your eligibility before filing.
Marriage or common-law proof assembled to the standard IRCC expects.
We align filings so the household is not left with a gap in work authorization.
If the rules now exclude you, we look at employer-specific and other options.
Eligibility review
Send us the principal applicant’s occupation or program and a licensed RCIC will confirm eligibility under the current rules.
Reviewed by a licensed RCIC, usually the same business day.
A licensed RCIC will review your details and reach out, usually the same business day.
Message us on WhatsApp →Good to know
The questions we hear most on this topic, answered by our consultants. The full list is in the Help Centre.
More questions on this topic are answered in the Help Centre.
Next on your path
The checklist, free tools and guides that usually come next.
Free, fee-exempt options exist. Your employer or partner is not asked.
Want to know where you stand on immigration? A licensed RCIC can review your situation in confidence. Call 647-948-7200 when it is safe, or book a private consultation.
