Do I need a positive LMIA under IEC Visa to apply for permanent residency?

[aricarat]

Hi all,

I am working and living in Canada under the IEC (International Experience Canada) program, currently on a 1 year contract at a place that hires pretty much exclusively seasonal workers.
My IEC visa does not require employers to have a positive LMIA to hire me.

I fall under the skilled worker category with a NOC 0 rating.
I know I could possibly apply for permanent residency through the CEC (Candian Experience Class) if I stick out the full year and my employer wants to offer me permanent work, but I don't want to do the full year or commit to a permanent position at risk of losing my sanity, and my point rating from what I could figure out quickly is only at 295, so I don't like my chances of being approved that way.
It may be possible for me to find a job elsewhere that isn't seasonal (that I'd be willing to stay with) which opens up the possibility of applying as a skilled worker...

I guess after all this my main questions are:
A) If I'm already here on an IEC visa, and exempt from needing an LMIA *now*, if I am to apply for residency as a skilled worker with a valid job offer, will I need a positive LMIA or will I still be exempt?
B) What other options do I have?

 

[21Goose]

You will need a valid LMIA to get points for your job offer. If you only have 295 points, you will not get invited even if you qualify under FSW - you absolutely need the 200 points from your NOC 0 job. If you don't get a NOC 0 job, you'll only get 50 points.

Are you sure you only have 295 points? That seems very low. Do you have a Master's degree? How much work ex. do you have? What's your IELTS scores (estimated)?

Options are limited, but you can look into the various Provincial Nominee Programs to see if you qualify under any of those.

 

[aricarat]

You will need a valid LMIA to get points for your job offer. If you only have 295 points, you will not get invited even if you qualify under FSW - you absolutely need the 200 points from your NOC 0 job. If you don't get a NOC 0 job, you'll only get 50 points.

Are you sure you only have 295 points? That seems very low. Do you have a Master's degree? How much work ex. do you have? What's your IELTS scores (estimated)?

Options are limited, but you can look into the various Provincial Nominee Programs to see if you qualify under any of those.

It said I only get 50 points for an NOC 0 job, and 200 points is for NOC 00 - though I don’t know what the difference is there. If I am eligible for 200, that would get me to 445. It’s low because I don’t have any any kind of education besides secondary school. I have 6+ years experience.
I did start looking into the possibility of the Provincial Nominee Program, which should give me 600 points, and I think I’m eligible but I’m also not entirely sure. The main concern is the valid job offer thing, and needing a positive LMIA.

Haven’t done the IELTS yet but I should score 10+ for CLB.

 

[scylla]

It said I only get 50 points for an NOC 0 job, and 200 points is for NOC 00 - though I don’t know what the difference is there. If I am eligible for 200, that would get me to 445. It’s low because I don’t have any any kind of education besides secondary school. I have 6+ years experience.
I did start looking into the possibility of the Provincial Nominee Program, which should give me 600 points, and I think I’m eligible but I’m also not entirely sure. The main concern is the valid job offer thing, and needing a positive LMIA.

Haven’t done the IELTS yet but I should score 10+ for CLB.

Since you are on an IEC and your work permit is an open work permit that doesn't name a specific employer, you need an approved LMIA for this to be classified as a job offer and qualify for job offer points.

 

[scylla]

It said I only get 50 points for an NOC 0 job, and 200 points is for NOC 00 - though I don’t know what the difference is there. If I am eligible for 200, that would get me to 445. It’s low because I don’t have any any kind of education besides secondary school. I have 6+ years experience.
I did start looking into the possibility of the Provincial Nominee Program, which should give me 600 points, and I think I’m eligible but I’m also not entirely sure. The main concern is the valid job offer thing, and needing a positive LMIA.

Haven’t done the IELTS yet but I should score 10+ for CLB.

BTW - NOC 00 roles are senior management / executive roles. NOC 0 roles are management roles. To be classified as a NOC 00, you'd need to be in a role such as CEO, CFO, VP, etc.

 

[aricarat]

Since you are on an IEC and your work permit is an open work permit that doesn't name a specific employer, you need an approved LMIA for this to be classified as a job offer and qualify for job offer points.

Let’s say I apply for the Provincial Nominee Program through Alberta - they require you to have a valid work permit in order to apply. Their website states that LMIA exempt permits are eligible, I just need to be currently working in a job that matches my NOC level.
So to confirm? My best option may be to find a job that I’m willing to commit to 1+ years in, get the permanent/no-end-date contract while I’m still LMIA exempt, get accepted for the PNP which gives me the extra 600 points to boost my point ranking to 895, then apply for my PR through the CEC stream. Am I understanding this correctly?

 

[scylla]

Let’s say I apply for the Provincial Nominee Program through Alberta - they require you to have a valid work permit in order to apply. Their website states that LMIA exempt permits are eligible, I just need to be currently working in a job that matches my NOC level.
So to confirm? My best option may be to find a job that I’m willing to commit to 1+ years in, get the permanent/no-end-date contract while I’m still LMIA exempt, get accepted for the PNP which gives me the extra 600 points to boost my point ranking to 895, then apply for my PR through the CEC stream. Am I understanding this correctly?

That's not how it works. If you get the PNP nomination, then your application will go through the PNP immigration stream (which tend to have significantly longer processing times). You cannot use the 600 PNP points to qualify under CEC.

 

[aricarat]

That's not how it works. If you get the PNP nomination, then your application will go through the PNP immigration stream (which tend to have significantly longer processing times). You cannot use the 600 PNP points to qualify under CEC.

So what’s the point of having PNP points as an option in the ranking system for CEC? Lol.
The Alberta website says that once you receive a nomination, you then apply for residency afterwards. Please clarify.