Agri-Food Immigration Pilot
November 16 - Eligible industries & occupations
On November 16, 2022, we switched to the 2021 version of the National Occupational Classification (NOC).
Use the NOC 2016 page if you submitted your application on or before November 15, 2022.
Eligible industries
Eligible industries under the pilot are:
meat product manufacturing (NAICS 3116)
greenhouse, nursery and floriculture production, including mushroom production (NAICS 1114)
animal production, excluding aquaculture
cattle ranching and farming (NAICS 1121)
hog and pig farming (NAICS 1122)
poultry and egg production (NAICS 1123)
sheep and goat farming (NAICS 1124)
other animal production (NAICS 1129
Eligible occupations
Occupations are classified by the National Occupational Classification (NOC) code. You can see the duties for each occupation by searching the National Occupational Classification website.
Eligible jobs for each eligible industry are listed below.
For meat product manufacturing (NAICS 3116), eligible jobs are
NOC 63201 - Butchers - retail and wholesale
NOC 65202 - Meat cutters and fishmongers - retail and wholesale
NOC 94141 - Industrial butchers and meat cutters, poultry preparers and related workers
NOC 82030 - Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors
NOC 84120 - Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators
NOC 85100 - Livestock labourers
NOC 95106 - Labourers in food and beverage processing
Agri-Food Pilot - 2,750 Applications Limit
Application limits by eligible occupation
There are annual limits on the number of applications that will be processed for each eligible occupation.
Starting on January 1, 2023, applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. This pilot will last for 3 years.
January 5, 2022 - Agri-Food Pilot: permanent residence Process
To apply for permanent residence, make sure both your job offer and work experience meet the requirements. If you don’t meet both requirements, your application for permanent residence will be refused. Send IRCC the complete application.
April 2021 - Agri-Food Pilot: About the pilot
The pilot provides a pathway to permanent residence for experienced, non-seasonal workers in specific industries and occupations. It will run until May 2023.
About the process
To apply for permanent residence under the Agri-Food Pilot, you need
eligible Canadian work experience in one or more of the eligible industries and occupations
a full-time, non-seasonal job offer from a Canadian employer in one of the eligible industries and occupations (outside of Quebec)
to meet or exceed the language requirements
to meet or exceed the educational requirements
to have settlement funds (if applicable)
to maintain temporary resident status (if already in Canada)
Eligibility
To be eligible, you must
have an eligible job offer
meet or pass the language requirements
meet or pass the educational requirements
prove you have enough money to settle in Canada (if applicable)
have maintained your temporary resident status (if already in Canada)
Work experience
You must have eligible Canadian work experience.
Your Canadian work experience must be
a minimum of 1 year of non-seasonal, full-time work in the past 3 years (at least 1,560 hours)
in 1 or more of the eligible occupations listed under 1 of the eligible industries
through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program
A Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) with a minimum 12-month duration must have been submitted by your employer when hiring you. If you’re not sure, you can ask your former or current employer about the duration.
Job offer
You must have a genuine job offer.
The job you’re offered must meet all of the following requirements:
The job must be in an eligible occupation listed under 1 of the eligible industries.
The job must be full time.
This means you work at least 30 paid hours per week.
The job must be non-seasonal.
In general, this means you have consistent and regularly scheduled paid employment throughout the year.
Your employment is permanent.
This means that there is no set end date.
For unionized positions, the wage must be determined by the applicable collective agreement.
For non-unionized positions, the wage must meet or exceed the Job Bank’s prevailing (median) wage for the occupation listed on your job offer in the province of employment (or at the national level if no provincial rate is available).
Your job offer must be for a job in Canada outside of Quebec.
Language requirements
You must prove your ability in English or French.
The minimum language requirements are Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) or Niveaux de compétence linguistique canadiens (NCLC) Level 4 in :
reading
writing
speaking
listening
You must submit your results from an approved language test. These results must be less than 2 years old when you apply.
Educational requirements
You must have at least
a Canadian high school diploma, or
an educational credential assessment (ECA) report from a designated organization or professional body showing that you completed a foreign credential at the secondary school level or above
The ECA report must be less than 5 years old on the date of your application.
The original ECA report must have been issued on or after the date the organization was designated.
Settlement funds
You must prove that you have enough money to settle in Canada. You’ll need to prove that you have enough funds to support yourself and any family members you may have, even if they’re not coming to Canada with you.
If you’re already working in Canada with a valid work permit when you apply, you don’t need to provide proof of settlement funds.
March 30 - Update to Pilot
As the Government continues its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot is now scheduled to open on May 15, 2020, and will accept applications until May 14, 2023.
Information on how to apply will be posted online and shared via social media closer to the launch date.
Applicants currently preparing to apply should expect delays in receiving supporting documentation, such as proof of education and official language proficiency. Organizations that provide these services have temporarily reduced or suspended their operations in response to COVID-19.
The pilot will help address the labour needs of the Canadian agri-food sector, particularly in meat processing and mushroom production, by testing a new industry-specific approach.
Read more about the pilot here:
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/immigrate-canada/agri-food-immigration-pilot.html
August 14 - IRCC launches Agri-Food Immigration Pilot
IRCC is launching a new 3-year economic immigration pilot that will fill labour shortages mainly in meat processing and mushroom production, within the agri-food sector.
The agriculture and agri-food industry are an important contributor to Canada’s economic growth and supports 1 in 8 jobs in Canada.
Meat processing and mushroom production industries have experienced constant difficulty in finding and keeping new employees over the past several years.
This new pilot aims to attract and retain workers by providing them with an opportunity to become permanent residents.
Temporary foreign workers with more than 12 months of Canadian work experience in some occupations be able to apply under this pilot program as of 2020.
The Agri-Food Immigration Pilot complements the Atlantic Immigration Pilot, the Provincial Nominee Program and the recently launched Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot.
