Canada’s New Accelerated Labour Market Opinion Initiative

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) is implementing a new Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (A-LMO) Initiative. This new Initiative applies to employers hiring temporary foreign workers in higher skilled positions such as: management, professional and technical occupations.  However, the Initiative does not apply to the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, the Agricultural Stream and occupations in the film and entertainment sectors.  

The Initiative is currently not implemented in Quebec.  

The two main objectives of the new A-LMO Initiative are:

• improving the integrity of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and labour market outcomes;
• responding to the employers' need for more efficient and timely LMO processing.

To be eligible to participate in the A-LMO Initiative, employers must:

1. have been issued at least 1 positive LMO in the previous 2 years;
2. have a clean record of compliance with the Program within the last 2 years;
3. not have been the subject of an investigation, infraction or a serious complaint; and
4. not have any unresolved violations or contraventions under provincial laws governing employment and recruitment.  

This new A-LMO Initiative reduces the amount of paper-burden on employers in the application process, and introduces attestations for specific assessment criteria that can be reviewed through a subsequent compliance review.  In addition to the attestation-based assessment, HRSDC will provide an A-LMO based on:

• the genuineness of the job offer;
• the wage offered to the temporary foreign worker;
• whether the job offer is likely to fill a labour shortage.  

If the employer is deemed eligible, HRSDC will issue an opinion, within ten business days, based on the employer’s agreement to follow the necessary Program requirements and the A-LMO assessment criteria.  In addition, employers may want to register for the TFW Web Service to be able to apply for the A-LMO online.