While talking about the Canadian permanent residency program, we often come across the term Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP), as the processing of a Canadian Permanent Residency application is quite time-consuming. Loss of income during this period may turn out to be extremely taxing for any immigrant.
The BOWP comes to the rescue of such an individual, an immigrant possessing a BOWP is allowed to work in Canada during the processing of his permanent residency application, thus reducing the financial burden on the person.
In this article, we will discuss who can apply for the Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP), who can apply for it along with more useful information.
What is the Bridging Open Work Permit?
A Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) provides an avenue for a foreign national in Canada to continue working for a Canadian company while his or her application for permanent residence is being processed. A person who has applied for permanent residence in Canada can apply for a BOWP if he holds a valid work permit.
Also read: LMIA Exempt Work Permit for foreign employees
In addition, any person who has applied for permanent residence in Canada under the following economic immigration programs shall be allowed to work in the country until his or her application is processed.
- Canadian experience class
- Provincial nominee program
- Quebec skilled workers
- A federal skilled worker program
- Federal skilled trades program
- Agri-food pilot program
Who can apply for it?
The Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) eligibility criteria contain the following parameters:
- The person applying for the said permit should be a temporary resident of Canada;
- Secondly, he should hold a valid work permit or should apply for the renewal of a work permit under section R201(1);
- Similarly, the candidate should be eligible for restoration of temporary resident status;
- The person must have submitted an Application for Permanent Residence (APR) under the programs mentioned above;
- He must have completed at least one of the following APR stages;
- He must have submitted an electronic application for express entry and must have passed the completed check under section 10 of IRPR;
- Furthermore, the candidate should receive a positive eligibility assessment on their APR under the Caring for People with High Medical Needs Class, Caring for Children Class, Agri-Food Pilot, or non-Express Entry PNP stream.
How to Apply for a Bridging Open Work Permit?
- The first step of applying for a Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP) is checking your eligibility;
Moreover, you can enter the relevant details to find out if you are eligible for the program:
- The tools shall ask a few more questions to create a personalized checklist for you;
- Now you can proceed to apply for BOWP by paying a specified fee;
- Upload your scanned documents and the signed application form.
This concludes the application formality for BOWP. However, additional documents may be requested by the authorities from time to time during the processing of the same.
Eligibility Criteria
The spouse of a Bridging Open Work Permit holder must meet the following criteria to be eligible for an open work permit:
- Firstly, the spouse must hold a valid work permit in Canada under section 186(w) of IRPR;
- Secondly, he or she must be eligible to work in Canada for a period of at least 6 months from the date of receipt of the open work permit application;
- Thirdly, the person is employed in any of the following:
- Any job under NOC skill levels 0, A or B;
- NOC 0, A or B under Atlantic Immigration Polit;
- Pursuing any occupation and holding either a provincial nomination certificate or a Quebec Selection Certificate.
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Employment Location
There are specific rules with respect to the employment location of applicants for Bridging Open Work Permit (BOWP):
- If applying under Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), the work location must be confined to the nominating province only;
- Likewise, for those applicants who have been selected as skilled workers in Quebec, the employment place in the work permit must be specified as the said province only.
An important point to be kept in mind in this respect is that dependent children are not eligible for obtaining an open work permit. Such children need to obtain LMIA (Labour Market Impact Assessment) or possess an LMIA exemption status.
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