Canada expands access to open work permits for spouses of workers at two BC companies

Foreign workers currently residing or soon-to-reside in British Columbia (BC), who work for one of two select companies, can facilitate work permits for their spouses or partners—regardless of their compensation or seniority at the company.

These two companies are:

• Lulu Lemon Athletica; and
• Microsoft Vancouver.

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As of March 23, 2026, eligible spouses and common-law partners of all foreign workers at these two companies (which have been identified by the federal government as “significant investment projects”) qualify for an open work permit. That means that the spouses or common-law partners will be free to work for most employers in most industries across Canada.

This new policy applies to applications received on or after this date.

This includes applications for:

• Spouses of employees in high-skilled occupations (TEER level 0, 1, 2, or 3); and
• Spouses of employees in low-skilled occupations (TEER 5, or 6).

Foreign workers do not have to wait to formally begin their role before applying for an open work permit for their spouse or partner, if they have provisional approval for a position at one of the two companies, supported by a letter of introduction.

Prior to this change, only spouses of high-skilled workers (TEER 0, 1, or at select TEER 2 or 3 workers) were eligible to receive an open work permit.

Eligibility requirements

To get an open work permit for their spouse, the foreign worker must be:

• Authorized to work in Canada through either a valid work permit or provisional approval (with the support of an introduction letter) for a work permit, in accordance with an active Significant Investment Project agreement;
• Employed in or (if only provisionally approved), will be employed in either a high-skill occupation (TEER 0, 1, 2, or 3) or a low-skilled occupation (TEER 4 or 5);
• Physically residing in Canada while employed, or if only provisionally approved, plans to physically reside in Canada while employed; and
• In a genuine spousal or common-law partner relationship with the applicant.

Under these provisions, the foreign worker is not required to have at least 16 months of work authorization in Canada at the time that the spouse or partner’s open work permit application is received. Most other foreign workers must meet this requirement for their spouse or partner to be eligible for an open work permit.

If an applicant is in Canada at the time of submission, they must have a valid temporary resident status (including maintained status) or be eligible for a restoration of status as a temporary resident and be eligible to apply for a work permit from within Canada.

Spouses of foreign workers employed at a significant investment project can renew their open work permits, as long as they still meet all eligibility criteria.

How to apply

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) advises in their instructions to officers that foreign workers should receive guidance from their employers regarding how to apply for a spousal open work permit (SOWP).

Spouses of foreign workers who qualify under the above provisions are instructed to make a standard work permit application to IRCC. To distinguish the applications under this policy, applicants are instructed to enter the following code into the “Job Title” field when completing the online application: “SIPSPOUSEBC”.

IRCC officers are trained to pay increased attention to the following two factors when assessing the application:

• Proof of a genuine relationship, if the applicant is the spouse or common-law partner;
  • Examples of this may include, but are not limited to:
    • A marriage certificate or a Statutory Declaration of Common-Law Union [IMM 5409];
• Proof that the principal foreign national holds a work permit or has been approved for a work permit* under the Significant Investment Projects – Provincial agreements category [R204(c) – T13];
  • Evidence of this would be a copy of the provincial letter issued to the principal foreign national identifying the name of the significant investment project, along with a copy of the principal foreign worker's work permit or letter of introduction.

*If the spouse or partner is applying with the principal foreign worker as a group, this supporting evidence is not needed.

Limiting SOWPs in Canada

The new open work permit measure for spouses of workers at significant investment projects comes after Canada tightened SOWP rules across the board.

As part of broader measures announced in September 2024, IRCC changed open work permit eligibility for family members of international students and foreign workers effective January 21, 2025.

Before January 2025, spouses of most foreign workers could get an open work permit regardless of their partner's job or skill level.

Under the new rules, SOWPs are now limited to spouses of high-skilled foreign workers in TEER 0 or 1 occupations, or select TEER 2 or 3 occupations in sectors with labour shortages or linked to government priorities.

Spouses of international students also face new limits. Their partner must now be enrolled in a master's program of at least 16 months, a doctoral program, or certain professional degrees for the spouse to qualify.

Most undergraduate and college diploma programs no longer make spouses eligible.

The government introduced these restrictions to reduce the number of temporary residents in Canada and address housing affordability pressures. The policy is part of Ottawa's goal to bring Canada's temporary resident population down from 6.5% in 2026 to 5% of the total population by 2027.

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