Canada’s Agri-Food Immigration Pilot is a program that aims to attract and retain skilled workers to the agri-food sector, which includes primary agriculture, food processing, and the restaurant industry.

The pilot program will run for three years from 2020 to 2023, and it will provide a pathway to permanent residency for eligible applicants. The program has a cap of 2,750 applications per year.

To be eligible for the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot, applicants must have a job offer in Canada in one of the eligible occupations, which include meat processing, harvesting labourer, and industrial butcher. Applicants must also meet the language and education requirements, and have enough settlement funds.

The Agri-Food Immigration Pilot has two streams:

1. Temporary Foreign Worker Stream – This stream is for temporary foreign workers who have been working in Canada for at least one year in an eligible occupation.

2. Permanent Residence Stream – This stream is for applicants who are outside of Canada and have a job offer in an eligible occupation.

Applicants under both streams will need to go through a two-step process, which includes applying for a temporary work permit and then applying for permanent residency.

The Agri-Food Immigration Pilot is a great opportunity for skilled workers who want to work and live in Canada. It will help address the labour shortages in the agri-food sector and support the growth of the Canadian economy.

Agri-Food Immigration Pilot: Eligible Occupations

The occupations and industries eligible under the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot include:

-meat processing

-retail butcher

-industrial butcher

-food processing labourer

-harvesting labourer for year-round mushroom production and greenhouse crop production

-general farm worker for year-round mushroom production, greenhouse crop production, or livestock raising

-farm supervisor and specialized livestock worker for meat processing, year-round mushroom production, greenhouse crop production or livestock raising.

Agri-Food Immigration Pilot: Eligibility Requirements

Candidates with work experience in the above occupations must also meet the following eligibility requirements in order to be considered for Canadian permanent residence under the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot.

12 months of full-time, non-seasonal Canadian work experience in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in one of the eligible occupations.

a Canadian Language Benchmark level 4 in English or French

the foreign equivalent of a high school level education or greater

an indeterminate job offer for full-time, non-seasonal work in Canada, outside of Quebec, at or above the prevailing wage.

Agri-Food Immigration Pilot: 2-year LMIA for Employers

Eligible employers in the meat processing sector who use the pilot will be issued a two-year Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA).

In order to be eligible, meat processors will be required to outline their plans to support the temporary foreign worker in obtaining permanent residency.