Work Permit Extension

If you apply 30 days or more before the permit ends, there is a better chance the decision arrives before, or not long after, the old permit expires.

Before you begin, check that your employer has finished every step required of them.

If the government receives your extension application before your permit expires, you can legally stay in Canada while it processes your application, even after your permit expires. This is called maintained status. The same page sets out whether you can continue working during this period, so look there for the answer that fits you.

The cutoff is firm. The government needs your application in hand before the permit runs out. The online system logs submission times using UTC, a single world clock that may not match the time where you live.

In most cases, the application goes online. The form you need is IMM 5710, the worker form for changing conditions, extending a stay, or remaining in Canada, and the government asks you to read its instruction guide before you start, even if you apply online.

Applying online requires a working credit or debit card. If a prepaid card is what you use, hold on to it for 18 months or more after payment, since that makes refunds simpler.

A paper application is only possible in these cases:

• You are requesting a temporary resident permit together with a study or work permit.
• A disability stops you from applying online.
• Something is wrong with the online application.

If you apply on paper, you won't get a letter confirming your application is complete, because the government only knows that once it reviews your file.

Before you apply, make sure your passport won't expire before the end date you're asking for.

IRCC also asks you to renew your ID documents at both the provincial or territorial level and the federal level before your permit runs out. This matters because once your permit has expired and you are on maintained status, you cannot get a SIN card or change the expiry date on your current SIN.

Your biometrics are a set of fingerprints and a digital photo. You may be asked to provide them for this permit, and if that applies to you, the biometrics fee is paid when you submit your application.

Biometrics last 10 years, so you give them only once in that period. No permit can run more than 10 years past the day your biometrics were last given. The government's biometric status check tool shows when yours run out.

If you want a permit for longer than that, you can choose to give them again. Here is what you do:

1. Submit the biometrics fee together with your application.
2. Watch for your biometric instruction letter, and use the letter issued for this application.
3. Make an appointment at an official site that collects biometrics and give them there.

You also need to apply if you want to change something about your permit, not just extend it. To change your permit's length, who you work for, or the type of work you do, you must apply for and be granted a new work permit. You should apply before making the change.

Post-graduation work permits follow a separate rule. Since 21 June 2024, you cannot request one when you arrive in Canada, whether that arrival point is an airport, a land crossing, or a marine port.

Work permit extensions inside Canada currently take about 121 days, but this is not a guaranteed timeline. That number changes, so it's worth checking it again shortly before your permit expires to help you decide when to apply. You can also see the latest figures on our processing times page.

Holders of an expired Venezuelan passport fall under special rules. Passports issued before 7 June 2019 that have been expired for less than 5 years count as valid for 5 more years past the printed expiry date, capped at 10 years in total.

If that is your case, count 5 years forward from the printed date and put the result in the expiry date field. Include a letter of explanation saying that you are a Venezuelan national holding a Venezuelan passport that has been extended 5 years beyond its printed expiry date.

Once 5 years have passed since the printed date, the passport counts as expired. The same is true for a passport issued on or after 7 June 2019 that has run out. Either way, you need a new passport or some other travel document the government will accept.

If your Venezuelan passport was issued before 7 June 2019 and has been expired for more than 5 years, you may still apply in exceptional circumstances if you cannot get a valid passport or another acceptable travel document. Add a letter explaining your circumstances and why obtaining a valid travel document isn't possible for you; an officer then decides if you qualify.