Software Developer LMO
 

Hi Everyone,

I have been offered a position as a software developer with a company in Kitchener/Waterloo in Ontario.
The company that have offered me the position wrote to me last night to tell me that another one of their potential employees was refused a Labour Market Opinion (LMO) even though they were the best candidate for the job. The refusal was due to the fact there is a high unemployment rate in Canada at present, and they couldn't prove a canadian could not do the job. Surely that's a near impossible thing to prove, but that's just my thoughts on the subject.
The refused person was for a different position but still a technical position.

So now I am starting to panic!

I found a link on the CIC website stating that due to a skills shortage, software developers do not require a confirmation letter from HRSDC. Is the confirmation letter the LMO and if so, does this mean I am exempt from an LMO.
(My position matches the criteria for a software product developer).
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/work/special-tech.asp
http://www.americanlaw.com/cdncomputer.html

Any help/advice appreciated,
Steve

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

As long as your experience and the job you are being offered is a very close match to one of those job descriptions you can claim the LMO exemption.

BTW, in my experience the problem with LMO refusal is more likely down to the wages being offered or a lack of evidence of recruitment efforts than there being unemployment in that sector. Your employer must show that they are paying the going rate for the type of position and that they have at least advertised nationally for 2 weeks.

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Yep, I think for software development jobs it would have been better to not bother with the LMO and use this special exception instead. There a few others on this forum that have used this - search for sinurt ?

The only slight draw back is that it is quite an old scheme and I think you may need some help proving that you fit into the language/system categories as they are a little old - particularly if the job is for a more contemporary language such as C#. Definitely worth pursuing though, if you have that job offer.

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Thanks for the replies!
My experience and skills do fit into these categories.
bodgerx, I'm afraid I do use C# as opposed to C++, but hopefully it wont be too much of an issue.

I have a copy of the LMO application and they have stated the websites they have advertised on and job fairs that they recruit at. It also says I am 1 of 5 developers recruited since January and the other 4 were Canadians.
From my own research into wages I think I have been offered a competitive salary.

I have informed my prospective employer of the possible exemption and their legal team is currently looking into it. Fingers crossed, I wont even need the LMO!

Thanks again,
Steve

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

I think sinurt is a c# web developer and she managed to use this route, so it has definitely worked before. I hope it works out for you - congratulations on the job offer BTW.

I'll be looking for software development work when we get PR next year (hopefully) - how difficult did you find it?

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Thanks for that,

It was a bit of a struggle to start with.
In Kitchener/Waterloo there is a lot of software development companies but I had a hard job getting anything positive.

I went through the website www.waterlootechjobs.com, but that is obviously only for the waterloo area.
Every job I applied for was through the web, either on the above website or the companies own website.

I was visiting family friends in the area in April so I put on cover letters that I would be available for interview in person between certain dates, and alternatively was happy to interview by phone.

Out of about 25-30 applications I only got one positive reply, then I did 1 phone interview, 2 interviews in person while on holiday, and then was offered the position when back in the country and they had checked my references etc.

Perhaps there are easier ways to find positions than the route I took.

Thanks for the help and I wish you luck in finding a job!

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Yes indeed I am a c# developer and managed to get in through the LMO exempt route. I picked up my TWP at POE too but I had no problems with immigration I honestly don't even think they looked at my skills but I had proof with me none the less that I had experience in C++ as well as C#. It was actually my companys legal team that suggested I use the LMO exempt route!!
All the best,
Sinead

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

My reply did not work first time so I'll try again.
Apologies if I end up replying twice, haha.

I didn't have much luck getting a job to start with.
I went to companies websites and to waterlootechjobs.com which has software jobs for the Kitchener/Waterloo area.

I must have applied for about 30 jobs and only got one positive reply.
I put on my cover letter that I would be available for interview in person while on holiday over there visiting family friends in April, or I could interview by phone.

I did 1 phone interview before going and then 2 in person while on holiday (with the same company).
I was offered the position once back in Scotland and my references were checked.

I was starting to get down-hearted about it when I wasn't getting positive replies, but it only took 1 bite and there may be easier avenues than the one I took.

Thanks for your replies and I wish you luck in finding a job!

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Sinurt,

Thanks for your reply.
I was trying to avoid the Point Of Entry Route as it sounded risky to me, although I can see the advantage of not having to pay to re-submit a postal application because you accidentally forgot to tick a box.
I would appreciate if you could tell me your thoughts on this and your experience?

What did you have to prove for LMO exemption? Did you just state to the officer that your skills are included in job profile xyz which is exempt from LMO?

Thanks
Steve

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

It did, but posts containing links from new posters automatically go into the moderators approval queue in order to minimise the amount of spam that makes it through to the boards, so there is often a delay untul we can get around to approving it...

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

My company's lawyers basically supplied me with a letter stated I wished to apply for a 3 yr TWP through the specialized IT category (or something like that) they included the NOC code (which ended up being the wrong one but thats another story :rofl:). Anyway the immigration officer basically read the letter, checked the job offer, took the passports, took ages looking for the correct NOC code to put us under, apologised for the delay and gave us our TWP after we paid. All in all it was pretty painless and although I was armed with documents (resume, letters from previous employers, copy of degree and subjects studied and the print out of the LMO exempt job category with the relevant skills which applied ticked off) I don't think she really looked at it!! I was there with my OH and young son so of course it was risky but thankfully we had no problems.

Hope this helps,
Sinead

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Thanks Sinead,

That's really helpful.
I will contact my employer on Monday to see if I can get them to write a letter stating the same information as yours.

I think I am still going to apply by post and pray for a 6 week turnaround :fingerscrossed:, but if there was any problems with it then I think I would go the Port Of Entry route.

I am almost convinced to just go POE but my girlfriend is not.

I'll post back here with any developments/decisions as they occur.

Thanks everyone!

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Point of entry worked out very well for me. Like others, I went armed with almost every piece of paper imaginable (certificates and even samples of code, as well as the usual job-related stuff). I'd also consulted with an immigration consultant and was advised to ensure the letter of employment referred explicitly to the NOC code name, and even mentioned the technologies. I was under the Software Product Developer label, and even though the original offer letter used a different job title, the company (a small one) was able to change the letter and essentially make it use the same language as the NOC description.

On entry, like others, the letter of employment was read carefully, but not much else. After a lot of checking of their computer systems (they said this was a pretty rare situation for them) and about a 30 minute wait, I was asked to pay the cashier, and I was on my way. It was actually a very painless route, although I was admittedly nervous. It was also speedy, any my employers were happy I arrived within a couple of weeks (they were desperate, not having had good Canadian applications after a lot of advertising) and the time was a lot less than a postal application would have taken.

Good luck!
Stuart

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

We went down this route too (twice if you include the TWP renewal at POE) ... it is perfectly doable. :thumbup:

OH is a software developer who, according to the rules, didn't need an LMO.

We printed off a copy of the info on the scheme from the CIC website and took it along just in case the IO wasn't aware of it. In both cases, they were well aware of it.

Also, as well as the letter of offer from the employer, we took exam certificates to prove competency and experience for him as well as reference letters from previous employers which specifically outlined the roles which used various programming languages from the list.

Last time we had a great IO at the POE who was very switched on. She appreciated that we had taken as much info as we could and took all of these things away and looked through them while we waited.

No problem issuing the TWP on this basis. I can reassure your girlfriend that TWP at POE is not such a scary prospect and would certainly get you both here quicker!! I have a SOWP on the back of OH's permit.

Good luck!!!!

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

My husband is a senior software developer and we are hoping to move over to Ontario if our PR is successful.
I was just wondering how do you all manage to get job offers while still here in the UK. As most of the ads say only canadian citizens or those with PR will be considered.
We would like to know how did you get your foot in the door?

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

If you read the Job Hunting section of the Wiki (on blue bar at top of page) then you'll soon discover the secret! Put simply, he needs to ideally get over there (that's how most on here got their job offers) or at the very least pick up the phone as Canadians like personal contact.

Good luck. :)

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

I found a website called waterlootechjobs.com.
It had a list of many software jobs in the area I was looking to emigrate to, Waterloo, ON. I also tried monster.ca but had no success with that.
I think I got lucky and perseverance was the key. Now that I have read the wiki retrospectively, it would have been a big help!

Good luck, Where in ON are you looking to move to?

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

We have family who live on the outskirts of Toronto. Ideally we would like to be close to them but havent our minds set on a defenite place yet. Obviously we happy enough to live where ever the job is. From research we have noticed that many of the big tech companies are in Waterloo or Cambridge area.
Huband's company here in Uk offered him a transfer to the US and got us all very excited but after dragging it on for 2 years it came to a dead end. So we dont want to get too excited again until we get the letter saying we must go for medicals and knowing it is for real this time.
On the other hand we sort of hope that we can convince the company to transfer him to a Canadian office instead of US. Which will be fantastic :thumbsup:

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Your right, there are a lot of tech firms in Kitchener/Waterloo/Cambridge.
For a software developer, it is probably the best place to be. I was visiting Waterloo in April and it is exactly where I want to be.
An hour from Toronto, an hour from Niagara, and a great place in itself.
I would give it serious consideration for a Software Developer as I think there are a lot of opportunities there.

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Do you know any good website we can do some research for houses to rent and how much to pay for a 3 bed house in the Waterloo area.

Just for interesting sake what is the name of the company you got your job with? Are they helping you with relocating cost a all?

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

waterlootechjobs.com was a good site. Companies post jobs on there and you can apply through it, but I prefer to go to the company website and apply through that if possible.
The biggest employer in the area is Research In Motion who make Blackberry phones. rim.com. They have a good job search facility on the website.

My girlfriend has been looking at the houses so I'll ask her the website when I get home. I think we were looking in the region of $1200 CAD pcm for a 3 bed with finished basement.

I'll mail you privately about the company.

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Hey folks.
I just thought I would update on the status of my LMO application if anyone is interested or in a similar situation.

My company decided to apply for an LMO exemption, which took 10 days to get a reply.
My LMO application was already in progress so we were just waiting for those results also.

On Thursday night I got an email from my company to say that the LMO was refused due to them not proving that a Canadian could not fill the position.
I was gutted!

The following day and 2 bottles of wine later, I got emailed the results of the exemption application. It said that HRSDC believe that I should be exempt from the LMO. This letter is not the exemption itself, that is the decision of the immigration officer who processes your TWP. This letter is just a recommendation from HRSDC to the officer.

Thanks again for everyones advice. It's been horrible playing the waiting game but now hopefully, everything is in place - apart from the TWP of course! ;)

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Thanks Steve for the update, I'm interested to see how you get on as I'm in a similar situation.

Re: Software Developer LMO
 

Ooo, that's a great thing to have. We did it without that, just all the exam certificates, references, etc so to have that additional confirmation from the HRSDC is a real bonus! I'm sure the IO will appreciate that.

You're getting there!!!! :thumbup: