Inter company transferee - work permit
 

I work for a Canadian Company in UK and am being transferred to HQ in Ontario.

I am told that as a British Citizen and as an inter company transferee I can obtain a 3 year work permit at the airport. If the stay is going to be over the 3 years I can then apply for PR once I am there.

Has anyone any experience of doing this ??
:beer:

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

I dont have experience of doing it, there are a few visitors here who have done it, and that sounds about right, except that you dont need a three year WP before you can apply for PR, one or two years is enough. Sure someone in the canadian immigration forum can give a definative answer to you.

Under those circumstances you would normally apply through Buffalo NY, assuming you have nothing in your background that would prevent you entering the US. If you do, then you probably wouldn't meet the Canadian security clearances anyway.

If you can, try and persuade your employer to help you with the PR application..mine got fed up of WP applications and paid the fees and for a lawyer for me to do the PR thing.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

This is essentially what I am doing, although I have had to change from contract to permanent status. Completely painless, although best to apply for the permit in advance. Should take 4 - 6 weeks and comes in the from of a letter of approval from the CIC London. When you arrive at the airport you get directed to immigration and 10 minutes later you have a 3 year work permit stapled into your passport. In theory you can do the whole application at the airport, but ........

Depending upon what you do, you may be able to apply through a PNP to get faster PR as well.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

I'm currently going through as a Intra Company transferee, my company who have a base in BC also applied for an open work permit for my husband. Currently waiting for the approval letter to be faxed over to the immigration lawyers that my company use.

The lawyers that my company use say I should recieve the approval within 3 weeks as it takes 10 working days?

My work is in the pharmaceutical consulting industry but is still not considered health/medical related to require a medical. Can I ask why it may take longer? 4-6 weeks. We're in the process of exchanging soon on our house so if its takes longer - we're gonna be homeless!

Its a fairly easy application to put together.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

If the intention is to stay permanently, then PR is a must.

As to where one should apply, Buffalo is likely an option, however British citizens can always apply to London instead. Only a lawyer familiar with the processing culture in both posts - and especially whether either of them give informal priority to those with work permits - could advise on which one is the best to choose.

With processing times approaching 3 years for federal PR, it's important to choose well.


Jeremy

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

True enough. Back in 2000 my application through Buffallo took less than a year to be rubber stamped, but that was a long time ago, and I suspect that since 9/11 the security checks alone take a lot longer.

I think the consensus of opinion is you apply to Buffallo to avoid having to fly back to the UK solely for any interview that may arrise, rather than for processing time differences. You here about preferential timelines for WP holders, but does anyone really know if it happens or not? It would make sense just to avoid the duplicated effort of generating work permits for people who want to be PRs anyway, and who have already met certain criteria to get the WP in the first place.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

I went through this process recently. Intra Company transfer with a Canadian company to HQ here in Toronto.

I went down the road of getting Work Permits approved in London for myself, my wife (open spousal permit) and study permits for the kids. I believe you can do it at the airport, but personally I would rather make sure it is sorted without any questions before I arrive (just in case!) At the airport it only takes 10 minutes fo rthe permits to be printed. There seems to be doubt over whether the study permits are required, but again it makes things very clear when the kids have permits in their passports.

I have been advised that when we apply for PR (which we plan to do soon) we can use either Buffalo or London. However only London is likely to shortcut the process for WP holders with conformation of permanent employment. Their website 'implies' that they will review the application within 6 months.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

In theory in can be done in a couple of weeks, but as pointed out in another post, processing times are getting longer and longer.

Mine arrived the day before I got on the plane, although I had a contingency plan of applying at Calgary airport upon landing. Our HR department had also sent a file of supporting documentation to the airport immigration people to help smooth my passage in the event that I had to do this.

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

I can't believe it - guess what popped up in my email box 5 minutes ago.....An email from my company's immigration lawyers with a scanned copy of the work permit approval letters for my husband (open) and myself for 3 years. The approvals have been transmitted to the Canadian Ports of Entry and upon entry into Canada the actual Work Permits will be issued. Woohoo!

It took just over 10 working days to process! I'm in West London and the immigration lawyers used are based in Toronto whereas my company has a base in BC!

Re: Inter company transferee - work permit
 

CONGRATULATIONS! I hope you enjoy Canada as much as I do.

Iain