There are changes in works for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

On September 10, Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the federal government is changing the way the Temporary Foreign Worker Programme (TFWP) works in Canada. Carney told the Liberal caucus trip in Edmonton that the plan should "have a focused approach that targets specific, strategic sectors and needs in specific regions." He didn't say what would happen, but he did say that changes are being made.

When there aren't any qualified Canadians or permanent residents available, the TFWP is the main way for business in Canada to hire tourists. Employers must first get a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) from Employment and Social Development Canada before they can hire a foreign worker. This study shows that hiring a foreign worker won't make it harder for Canadians to find work.

Why the Temporary Foreign Worker Program has been implemented for changes?

Carney said that the federal government has already made things harder in the last 18 months. Some of these are limiting the number of TFWP hires a business can make, raising the minimum wage for high-wage streams, and not processing low-wage applications in places where the unemployment rate is over 6%. Couples whose partners have highly skilled or in-demand jobs could only get spousal open work permits after more changes. This is as long as the main applicant still has a permit that is valid for at least 16 months.

The government also wanted the TFWP to bring in 82,000 nett new people by 2025. But government data shows that the number of people who are taking it has dropped sharply. Only 33,722 nett new TFWP passes were given out from January to June 2025. The total number of work passes given out fell by 50% compared to the same time last year.

Based on what Carney said, it sounds like the plan might be narrowed even further in the future. This way, temporary foreign workers would only be brought in for the most important jobs where there aren't enough American workers. But for now, companies, workers, and policy experts all want to know more about what the TFWP's next step will be.